Best solo winter tent

Finally had a play with the Soulo in Seattle ( at the Feathered Friends shop, only visited that 3 times) . It is just right for my size…
Different beast from the Nallo. Freestanding for a start (one of the few with a freestanding vestibule as well, like the Allak) , looks to me much better suited to heavy snow loads and strong winds. Of course if you pegg out the Nallo using the guylines it will hold up pretty well but the Soulo/Allak should be easier to do.
Franco

Hi Lynn, just curious: is the Nallo a full 87" long? My Eldorado was supposed to be that long, but Black Diamond fibbed and it's a few inches short.

Finding a great winter tent when you're 6'3" (6'4" on a good day!) is really tough!

Sometimes I look longingly at the Kaitum. At 87" long with vertical walls (i.e. no length lost to sloping tent walls) it might be a dream come true… Just too heavy, but…

It is a full 87" long with respect to the footprint…but…the back slopes (see http://www.moontrail.com for good pics) so the usable length is reduced a few inches.

Sorry – I am not Lynn, although I have been called worse.

Hi Franco,

How do you think the Soulo would fare for a 6ft tall person with a winter bag? I've heard that the Akto has more usable length due to the more vertical walls?

On a side note, what I really want is a solid fabric inner for my Duomid! Heaven!!

You would fit but it will depend on the loft / length of your bag. My Montbell UL SS #2 had both ends touching. It is the 'long' version and 84" long.

>>It is a full 87" long with respect to the footprint…but…the back slopes (see http://www.moontrail.com for good pics) so the usable length is reduced a few inches.

Argh! The curse of the sloping tent wall. My clown feet would touch the wall and it'd be condensation city.

Hence my love of the Kaitum and its vertical walls…

"Hi Lynn, just curious: is the Nallo a full 87" long?"

Oh, I forgot about your height. I would say the Nallo would be too short for you, mainly due to the slope of the back wall.

>>Oh, I forgot about your height. I would say the Nallo would be too short for you, mainly due to the slope of the back wall.

Bummer. ANy suggestions for tall folks?

Lots of great tents out there – I used an Integral Design MK1 last winter [yep, single wall]. For several years I used a Wilderness Engineering Kinder Shuttle [pulk] but alas the kinder grew up so I passed it on to another dad.
[As a brief sidenote, skate skiing with a pulk loaded with child is an incredible workout, I had serious racers wanting to borrow pulk and kid to do intervals with.]
So time passes and I needed to borrow the pulk back to haul stuff for the Special Olympics and my friend had popped for their tent/sled called the Snow Cave.

After the Olympics I took it out for a spring tour.
Many of our more classic approaches are long snowed in forest service roads tracked by snowmobiles.
This tent/sled worked remarkable well for that application.[photos from their web page]

Good question. Tough one too.

I'd want a vestibule. I'd have to have solid snow loading and wind stability. I need a lightweight tent. Tough call.

Hilleberg Nallo 2. Fantastic in high winds. Reasonable snow loading if you bang the walls, and it's light. I'm 6' 2" and it's fine in length for me. And I can cook in the vestibule.

Hilleberg Kaitum 2. Love this tent- dual vestibules and usable space is brilliant. But it's a bit much for solo work.

Integral Designs MK1 XL. Good solo, good for two. You can't beat this for windblown snow and snow loading. Definitely not as roomy as the hoop tents…but you can add the extra vestibule.

The Rab Summit Extreme is an amazing tent but the ceiling is a bit low, cutting down on usable space. It's too short for me, really. But it's amazing.

I think I'd go with the Nallo 2.

If a single wall could be considered, ID is coming out with an eVENT two person shelter called the Wedge in October. I believe a vestibule will be optional. Unfortunately I also believe that it will be low in height (but long in length).

If Doug fits in the Nallo then it should work with 'long' bags for sure!

Christopher
What David said, also take in consideration the mat. ( I am 5'7")
Important to note that some tend to slouch ( like me) and also , sitting up, some have a torso out of proportion with their legs, so "sitting up" comments can vary. I happen to be of the exact International Standard Height And Proportion For Tent Use ( not an EU recognised standard)
I still don't know why folk don't make their own "mock ups" since all the dimentions are public.

Franco

Yep- I'm a long bag. No issue with the Nallo.

Now, using the Rab Summit Extreme? That was a different story- I had to sleep at an angle..

Would it be advisable to take an existing 3 season 1 person tent, like an REI Quarter Dome 1, and sew yourself a new inner tent? The existing rainfly and tent poles could be retained, just not the mesh inner. The modded inner tent could be made of breathable dwr nylon and have no mesh panels. Would this be an acceptable 4 season tent?

Ben, you really dug this one out of the archives.
Remaking one of the tailored inners on a stock tent sounds like a ton of work. You'd need to cut up the inner to get good pattern pieces. Write down and carefully mark each piece, and draw diagrams of how the seams are sewn. Once you get it apart, it will be hard to tell otherwise.
But if you're going to do it, maybe one of the winter trekkers will answer.

All may like to note that the Snow Peak Lago 2 appears to now be available for sale on the US website if you use the search window for Lago. Got it into the shopping cart at least.
It is a dome, designed and intended for winter use, about 3 lbs without the fly, which is a partial fly and might not add more than a pound. $450! Lots of space, though. Maybe they will get the Lago 1 onto the site.

And maybe the wedge dome door will allow too much snow to enter when getting in and out. But the RAB and ID wedge dome designs would have that problem also.
Might be worth looking into. Think the inner may be WPB, but not sure how well it works.

Today I took delivery on a Scarp 2 that I intend mainly for winter use. That's why I ordered crossing poles.

But I'm modding the tent in the same way I did my TT Moment, by putting the crosing poles INSIDE the canopy.

This time the crossing poles will go from the apex of the inverted V (^) of the carbon fiber corner struts. Pole ends will fit in pockets I'll sew in each inside corner of the fly.

Velcro cable wrap loops sewn inside at the crossing pole tie-outs will stabilize the poles in winds and hold the fly to them for much less flutter.

A stronger pole will go through the main hoop sleeve (Thicker wall and larger pole diameter)

You can do exactly same mods in a Scarp 1 and it should be a very sturdy winter tent IF you order the "solid" (ripstop) inner tent. This tent will give you a nice vestibule for your pack plus a sheltered cook area during bad weather.

Eric,
Don't know what kind of silnylon TT is using these days, but before you do all those mods on the Scarp, would recommend you set the tent up outdoors, but in a place where it will not get soiled, and see how it responds to temp changes, particularly the cooling temps late in the day and overnight.

Should you see a lot of sagging on the canopy, consider that it will be multiplied when the snow builds up on it. There are good videos on You-Tube showing how sagging creates weak points on the canopy in heavy rain, not to mention snow.

Your cross poles will help somewhat with this, as they will allow less area for sagging. BTW, you should repost your inner pole photos when you bring this up, so folks will understand what you are getting at. It is a super idea. The only thing that deterred me was the effort required to get the poles set up like that. So I designed and am building a tent expressly intended for lighter carbon inner cross poles.

Check out the sag factor and see what you think.

Has anyone tried the TarpTent Moment DW with optional solid inner walls in the winter with blowing snow?  I am looking for a lightweight winter shelter.  After trying several bivy sacks, I think the lack of ventilation and inability to change clothes or store gear have turned me off of that option.

How come nobody’s suggested a Megamid over a snow pit? I’ve only tried it once, and it was not 50 mph and snowing, but it was mid-30s and raining and it worked great. We had three sides sealed w/ snow, if it had been windier, and we a little more experienced, we could have sealed front too…

I’m 6’1 and have no problems with my Soulo…handles snow and wind like a champ.

That being said I’ve used many a pyramid/tipi tent in winter/snow/ wind, and properly pitched they handle most of what the Soulo can handle too.

The Soulo will always remain my go to winter tent, as I know I can depend on it with my life in serious unexpected conditions, especially if you are too far in from getting to immediate help. Totally bomber!

John W, thanks for the input. The Hilleberg Akto is on my list. The Soulo is just too heavy for me to justify taking versus the 2-man winter tent I already have. From reports I’ve read, the Akto can handle very bad conditions, if you don’t mind the tent wall being close to your face. It is very similar to the TT Moment DW I am also looking at – 4 stakes instead of 2, and wider at ends. But heavier, because Hillebergs are built to be heirlooms. I’ve had a few Hillebergs and I can say they are by far the best built tents available.

John Brown, thanks for the input. I don’t want to start a whole floorless vs tent debate here. I think mids work well for some people in the winter. But I had a DuoMid and found it just wasn’t for me. My issues were very poor ventilation, which required me to have accustom solid inner tent made to avoid contact with condensation. That brought the weight up to around the lightest free-standing winter tents. And I could never stomp the snow down level enough to get all 4 sides tensioned well with the edges against the ground. Keep in mind I was always doing this in the dark by headlamp, due to short days in winter. I also didn’t like stomping snow over a much larger area than needed for 1 or 2 people to sleep, due to the sloping walls (stomping Utah snow takes a lot of work! Mostly just moving it around – it doesn’t consolidate well). And at the end of a long day slogging through snow, I really don’t feel like digging a snow pit solo. Anyway, after too many nights with one wall sagging into my face, I sold it. I’m sure I could have spent more time and learned how to pitch it better in the snow, but I gave up. Also, I usually use my winter tent as a base to go for the summit, so I have to leave it pitched while I need my trekking poles. So I would have needed a separate pole anyway.

Brian B,

The Akto is also a great winter tent and very bomber, The vestibule is actually bigger than the Soulo’s, but the sleeping area is a little smaller width wise. My friend has one, and when we are out in wintertime, I like the freestanding set up of the Soulo better, just my personal preference, than the Akto.

I also use the Soulo a lot on kayak trips, and weight really isn’t much of an issue then….but…

youll never see me hauling it around for 3 season use on my back though!

I pulled a 19 day trip in April 2015 and used my red Akto and gotta say, never again.  Of course for most of the trip it rained every day—in the mountains of NC and TN.  I went with my full winter kit and when you’re laying on your 2 inch sleeping pad inside your fully lofted down bag you WILL touch the inside yellow canopy walls with the bag; walls that are often wet with condensation.

The Akto can at times get terrible condensation.

And then there’s the two water leaks I had on the red fly near the door which dripped into the already small vestibule—requiring moving gear in a hard rain.

The first leak sponged thru the door’s tie-back elastic band and dripped into the vestibule.

The second leak came thru the sewn-thru fly door zipper as shown.  Both of these can be fixed with ample at-home McNett’s silnet seam sealer—but it shouldn’t happen in the first place on a brand new Hilleberg.