Hyperlite Mountain Gear Inc.

Great looking gear. Congratulations!

Also like the modular design of the shelter.

Looking forward to some reviews!
Good luck.

If it gets here in time for my end-of-August trip, I'll post about it. I'm not sure about whether or not my Labor Day trip will be a day hikes or backpacking yet — too many outside factors involved for certainty yet.

My Echo II setup arrived already, which was impressively quick. I'm planning on using it as my shelter in the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness trip next weekend… the catch being that it's very unlikely that I'll have a chance to attempt a pitch before I go.

Any advice I should keep in mind when pitching this setup that might be unique to this combo?

I like the fact that it seems like the guylines are already attached. That's rather convenient — with my house in a bit of disarray at the moment due to some in-progress renovations, it's going to be a bit awkward to find enough room to spread it out to tie up guy lines and such next week.

Anyway… it's going to be interesting to compare this setup to the Grace/Serenity combo. It's not much heavier, and most of the extra weight seems to be in the insert, which makes perfect sense since the Serenity is only sized for one rather than 2.

Hurry back with that report. You may cost me 500 bucks. :)

I'll do my best!

Seriously I'd love to try it out this weekend, but this weekend is tied up with a martial arts seminar… and I'm going to be spending most of my free time next week getting my condo ready for sale, but I might have a bit of time to at least set up the insert or something to check it out before I head out. Staking it down in the house might be a bit tough though, especially since I'm trying to sell it :)

It's not much heavier, and most of the extra weight seems to be in the insert, which makes perfect sense since the Serenity is only sized for one rather than 2.

IMO, it's more sized for 1 and some gear. They say 24 sq ft which would be really tight for 2. Even the BA Fly Creek 2 offers more space and it's definitely known to be too small for 2 real people.

With that said, it definitely looks like a great shelter for 1 and I love the modular concept.

If I get a break before the weekend trip, I'll see if I can put it up in one of my rooms before I head out, otherwise I'll wait until after the weekend to post with a bit more detail.

One thing I like is that the guy lines are already attached, which is good because I'm in the middle of renovating my house and rushing it in order to get it on the market soon, so I am lacking both time and space to spread it out and cut guys.

It also came bundled into a single Cuben stuff sack. I already have a set of 8 Easton nails and several shepherd hook type (Vargo Titanium, I think — it's the set that MLD sells), so I'm pretty sure that I have everything I need to pitch it all ready to go :)

I'll put up a more detailed trip report after I get my computers unpacked again (I'm renovating my home, so everything's crammed into a small part of it to make room for painting and steam cleaning).

I trekked to Blanca Lake this weekend, which is a nice place to camp, but not particularly difficult to reach — around 4 miles and 3000 vertical feet each way, and for most of the route the trail is in good condition.

Due to the steep cirque walls and narrow beachhead, there aren't a lot of elevated camp sites available, so we were camped pretty much along the lake shore, leading to a pretty chilly evening. The breeze was light, making this a good first attempt with the Echo II.

The first thing I noticed is that the tarp comes with the guy lines cut and tied in place. It basically arrives ready to go, all you have to do is add stakes and poles.

The tarp's a tarp. Pitching it was a piece of cake, at least once I got the ridgeline stakes to stay in the ground when I cranked the ridgeline tight. Other than that, it was a piece of cake.

It only has one side tieout, so I didn't spend nearly as much time staking it out as I did my Grace Duo, which has 3 tieouts on each side.

The insert is easy to put up; just spread it out, clip up the two ridgeline clips to corresponding d-rings on the tarp, and do the same for the 4 corners. It took a minute or two at most. The guylines on the insert are bungie cords with linelocs.

The beak was slightly more awkward; I *think* I had the tarp pitched too high for the beak to fit it properly. Attaching the ends of the beak to the snaps on the tarp took some of the tension out of the tarp. I'm hoping that someone from HMG will post a little bit of guidance on that front.

The insert is pretty spacious and even with my slightly off-kilter setup I had the vestibule is fairly large. I was able to fit my pack under one side of it — and I have a pretty large pack (McHale SuperSARC Critical Mass, around 80 liters). I *think* it would do nicely for two, but I don't know for sure. I certainly could have perched next to my sleeping mat to reload my film holders if I'd needed to.

I had a pretty comfortable night, no trouble as far as warmth. I slept with a pair of liner socks, microfiber pants + long johns, and a polypro shirt and a light fleece top, under an MLD Spirit (30 degree) quilt, atop a Thinlight from Gossamer and a Kookabay airmat.

As far as build quality goes, I'd have a tough time picking between MLD and HMG. These guys might be new to this, but they're definitely not going in half-assed. The tieouts are reinforced with the same heavy-duty Cuben that they used for the floor of the insert, which seems pretty sturdy to me.

If all goes well, I should have a chance to try it out with two people on Labor Day weekend.

Any pictures of the set-up?

I have one, I'll see if I can get my computers re-rigged tonight and post it. And I'll hopefully get some more next weekend. :)

Hi Rakesh,

I would first off like to say thank you for checking us out and deciding to go with the Echo II shelter.

To answer your question on the beak, this piece is designed to have as much versatility and flexibility as possible given, setting up a tarp can be different every time and from user to user. In order to insure it works perfectly especially on those nights when you don't think it is going to rain and you have to get up and put it on, I like to regularly set up the tarp with about 2' of line between the stake and the linelock on the four corners. Adjusting the lines ahead of time on set up and adjusting the front pole height to 46" will insure all three pieces fit perfectly. For the rear pole it is best to adjust it approximately one foot shorter than the front. You can adjust the pole height lower in the front and rear and snug the whole shelter tight to the ground but the insert will sag a bit, which is ok. Some nights I pitch the shelter and just lay the insert on the ground not set up and use it as a ground cloth.

The tighter you pitch the tarp in an A frame the easier to attach the beak. As you can imagine if you pitch the tarp with the lines as long as possible the tarp will be splayed out real wide and it will be harder to get the beak on, not to mention you will have very little protection on the sides from wind and driving rain. Adjusting the lines shorter will make the tarp pitch as more of an A frame.

This whole shelter is extremely versatile and as the guys who took it out on the AT and PCT said this year, the more you pitch it and use it, the more you can see and find cool ways to pitch it.

One thing I really like doing is to tie the front guyline to a tree or a branch over head and not using the front trekking pole. You set up the rest of the shelter the same way just, now you don't have a pole to navigate when getting in or out. If you tie the front and back guylines to branches overhead it gives the shelter a little give when the winds really pick up.

While out in Utah recently camping at 12,000" I tied the lines up in tree branches, staked the corners down and around 3am the winds picked up to 50-60mpr and the tree branches acted like gigantic bungees. It was awesome.

I hope this helps and I am always here to answer any question anyone might have. Just let me know.

Thanks again,

Mike

No need to thank me! You saved me the trouble of figuring how how to build it, so that I can concentrate on photography ;)

I was pretty sure that wind and rain weren't going to be a problem because of the forecast and comparatively sheltered location — in a deep cirque, and in a camp site surrounded by trees on three sides, the lake on the other. So… calm, but right in middle of the area that the katabatic effect would keep chilly. :)

Anyway, since I wasn't pitching it for wind/rain protection, I pitched it a bit wide and with the sides and corners almost a foot off the ground.

46 inches is a higher pitch that I'd expected — now I'm thinking that I had it backward, and that I had the front too LOW :)

But whatever… it was a first pitch, it worked well and made a few of the other folks jealous because of the overall space/weight ratio.

Honestly, I'm mostly surprised that I was the first person to post an impression about it here :)

Me too, Given we have quite a few out shelters out there. We had ten guys thru hiking this season and I asked each one of them to write something on BPL but to my luck not one of them are members. Cough up the $25 its worth a good cause.

I am looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the pack once you get a chance to use it.

Keep me posted, we are always looking for cool picts for the website. I need a new homepage picture.

You don't need to be a BPL member to post in the forums. You should go hound those sneaky guys to post here.

Did not know that, I am all over it.

Maybe they're still through hiking ;)

I know I'd rather be out there than in my cubicle right now!

My tentative hiking partner for next weekend will probably be using the pack before I will. It looks like it would be perfect if I didn't carry a monorail camera everywhere. :)

My name is bama. I have just completed my fourth thru-hike. Through the years, I've tried a variety of gear. On my most recent AT hike, – carried HMG pack and shelter. Along with reduced weight, I found the gear incredibly durable! And to my surprise, truly waterproof. The gear performed flawlessly. This company offers superior products at a very competitive price. I would suggest to anyone, who is serious about long distance hiking, to give HMG products some serious consideration. I am one loyal fan!

Yes Bama – not only are you a fan you are also a HMG Team Member in charge of design, testing and promotion.

Very misleading post on your part.

Maybe him some slack since this is his first post, but you're right of course…

Bama, you really should identify yourself as being part of HMG.

And if you can, try to share some more details/specifics rather than just endorsing them!

"IMO, [the Echo II is] more sized for 1 and some gear. They say 24 sq ft which would be really tight for 2. Even the BA Fly Creek 2 offers more space and it's definitely known to be too small for 2 real people.

With that said, it definitely looks like a great shelter for 1 and I love the modular concept."

The HMG site does list the Echo II at 24 square feet, but the more detailed specs list it at 7' x 52" (width at head end) x 46" (width at foot end). The edges of the insert appear to be straight (ie. it's quadrilateral) so using those numbers I get 26.8 sq feet.

I'm sorry if you feel misled. Allow me to respond. HMG is a young company that offered to fund my latest thru-hike, in return for testing their products. My feedback assisted in the fine tuning of the backpack. That was my contribution. I put this gear through the ringer, and it performed efficiently. I have tried many other companies products, and stand by my endorsement. I take my experience and integrity very seriously. I truly feel that you would agree, given the opportunity to use the gear. Again,Mr. Williams, I appoligize if you feel wronged or misled by my testimony!

A little more info about me and my hike… I began thru-hiking in 2004. With little knowledge of long-distance hiking, I completed the northbound AT journey in 5months and two weeks. It changed my life. Hiked the AT again the following summer, in about the same length of time. Then in 2006, hiked the amazing trek known as the PCT. All the while carefully downsizing my gear. Spent the last few years, hiking shorter trail, when time permitted. I was contacted by a HMG earlier this year. Knowing of my trail experience, mike asked if I would consider trying to reduce my pack-weight and attempt to hike the 2178 mile AT in 90 days. He offered to provide funds and gear that he had developed. I jumped at the offer. Set-out May13th, and completed the journey on August13th. This 92 day trek was the greatest achievement of my hiking career. I am trying to plan a CDT hike for next year, and am planning on another thru, on the PCT, in 2012.

"The edges of the insert appear to be straight (ie. it's quadrilateral) so using those numbers I get 26.8 sq feet."

I didn't measure it in the field, but I'm pretty sure it's rectangular. It's more spacious than I'd expected, definitely a bit of a palace if you're solo. It was easy to get sloppy and just toss gear on the floor next to my bed simply because I had room. It feels like it has more space than my Big Agnes tent did (Seedlot 2), so I think it will be pretty comfortable for 2, but until I try it, I'm only guessing :)

but the more detailed specs list it at 7' x 52" (width at head end) x 46" (width at foot end)

It's 7' x 52" x 40" (not 46").