Oh no, not another damn what tent thread

Shelters are tough to choose. There's so many variables for a good shelter that there's almost always going to be aspects you like and dislike. I was going to write a darn long post about shelters attributes but I can digress for days on that subject. In short, you want something simple, light and robust.

Since we're looking at ~20oz, tent poles are out. With the realm of trekking pole supported shelters you got designs that use 1 or 2 poles. The dual pole designs tend to have more headroom (ie. TarpTent Notch), while the single pole designs are simpler and quicker to pitch. For a solo hiker I recommend a single pole shelter – in essence a mid – if you're looking for a shelter that can be used in a huge range of conditions.

To cut to the point, a cuben MLD DuoMid (or other pyramid, ie. Locus Gear, Bear Paw) is excellent. Very quick to pitch (vs. a Hexamid or TT Notch/SS1), offers robust protection and versatility. I use a solo inner which sets up in the back half during bug season, and I switch to the groundsheet in the colder half of the year. It's a wonderfully low maintenance, light and easy setup.

Hi Dan,

Thanks for the reply.

I already have an Ss1 which I use with trekking poles and thats a palace, I had thought about the Cuben Doumid with Solo Net option but that's 560$ which could lead to a divorce unless I sold the ss1 to help pay for it.

I will check out the Locus and Bear Paw options.

Cheers,

Stephen

Lightheart Solo or Solong (if you're tall).. though Judy is doing the Colorado trail so the Cuben stuff might not be in stock.

Hi Jake,

I had look and the Cuben kit is out of stock, oh well.

I'm kind of in the same boat. I had the cuben duomid and liked it, but decided I wanted a bugnet inner with it and the price was getting too high. I go back and forth on the hexamid, but still haven't tried it out. I'd prefer a removable inner. Good luck in your search.

Cheers Jeff,

I much prefer a removable inner myself.

Someone was selling a cuben LH Solo with awning, opening on both sides, sil floor, for $325 plus paypal fees (so $335.02 with fees).

Oh yeah, me. :-)

I may be interested Doug, I will need to check my change jar :-)

Whats the weight all up?

I was just looking at the cost of the Cuben Duomid with the Net inner with cuben floor, it costs more than what my SS1, Trailstar and Golite sl3 cost me combined (the sl3 and Trailstar where bought used)

F*** me.

Shelter, attached guylines, plastic spacer piece (necessary to set up shelter, though Judy sells a CF one) and stuff sack: 21 oz on my cheapo kitchen scale.

Spot on Doug,

I will definitely consider it.

Jo has re-introduced a separate net inner for Hexamid Solo+.

Good to know! Looks to be priced decently too – significantly cheaper than getting a similar one from bearpaw once you add all the options.

I'm looking at the Zpacks Hexamid shelter. With everything it's exactly 16oz and fits your needs I think.

It just so happens I have a hexamid currently for sale…
Just thought I'd throw that out there!
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=80826&skip_to_post=688021#688021

Hi Brian,

Will Pm.

Cheers,

Stephen

I got my Hexamid Solo Tarp with the separate Hexanet solo bug shelter when Joe still made it. It works great for me and I love it!

I'd be interested to try the Hexamid Solo Tent with net floor to compare, but never had the chance.

I see Joe has started making the separate Hexanet again, but only for the solo-plus.

a seperate inner sounds handy.

I started with the tent version of the Hexamid Solo Plus, and loved it. However, for me, I found that I didn’t like the amount of water & mud that the mesh floor wold pick up when it rained. I found that by setting it up in a grassy area when expecting rain helped decrease this a little, but in the end, it was just a bit more than I personally wanted to deal with.

So, I sold it and picked up the Solo plus tarp and the new hexanet for it. I haven’t had a chance to use it on the trail yet, but have tested it 4 nights so far and really like this option. I prefer the solid cuben floor as opposed to the mesh floor, and I love that I can set up one or the other, or both if need be.

However, don’t think that I am knocking the tent version… as I said, it was a personal choice for me. There are pro’s & con’s to each set-up. The obvious pro to the tent version is less fiddle & more interior room. The obvious pro with the tarp & net combo is more versatility and (IMO) a cleaner option when in wet situations. Of course there are others too, but these are the ones that stand out to me.

As for weight, both, my tent version & now the tarp & net version are with an oz of each other. (But to be fair, my tent was seam sealed with SilNet first, and then I also taped the inside. My tarp is only taped. So, the tent would have been a bit lighter…)

Anyway, I gotta say that I love the Hexamids. They are priced right (comparing to other cuben shelters), are obviously lightweight, and have been proven to be reliable shelters by many other users. Not saying it’s the best out there… it just has a lot of features that I really like. And as far as setting it up, I find that it is quite easy. Check out this video of me setting my the tarp & net tent:

Setting Up My Hexamid Tarp & Hexanet

Nice video Chad,

Just wondering as I can't quite see, did you get the extended beak?

Yes, he does have the extended beak he just has it rolled back out of the way, here is his video of just setting up the tarp.

I had think about this last night and really like the double doors and and space of my Ss1, especially around the head and feet area due to the pitch lok corners, if only Henry started using Cuben :-)

A Hexamid Long has a comparable arrangement to raise the height of the sides.

The SS1 looks a tremendous shelter but weighs nearly 13oz over your spec and a pound over a Hexamid!

For two doors and a little bit of a weight reduction compared to a SS1, how about a Notch.

Hi Jim,

Thats good to know about the Hexamid.

The Notch could be a contender also, must give it a look.

Cheers,