duomid with two people

My girlfriend and I often sleep together in the Duomid. It isn't spacious but there is enough room, especially if you leave the gear outside. We are small, I am 5'8" 130lb. and she is a little smaller. We usually use the Duo Innernet but if using just the Duomid tarp you have more space. We also use a center trekking pole but I would imagine an inverted-v setup would free up even more space. If my girlfriend and I were going on longer trips I would want a larger shelter but for a couple nights out at a time I am happy with the Duomid.

I have spent a few nights sharing a Duomid, and it was okay. But ultimately, I decided the center pole and the somewhat tight space were frustrating. So I started using a SS2 for two people.

I'm not sure what else to suggest if you didn't like the SS2. Perhaps a Double Rainbow? You might also cosider a GoLite Shangri-La 3. Its slightly larger than a Duomid–mostly by hexagonal and giving two people a place to store gear. You can do two people in a Duomid, especially if it is only a couple of nights. I just would choose something else given the option.

I definitely continue to love my Duomid, and I often use it and the duo innernet for solo backpacking (but honestly it's a bit heavy for this purpose, which has me constantly on the lookout for something else). And while I do use it for two people, with friends, my wife, my dog, etc. it never is really ideal. It's too cramped for two people to do anything more than sleep. You even have to take turns setting up in there, which is not cool in the rain.

Quite honestly, if you are both on the smaller side it should work fine. Not a palace, but perfectly adequate. I am 5'4'', 175 and another person my size could easily share my Duomid with me. Get two pole extenders and use an inverted V setup and it will feel even more spacious.

I backpack more solo than with my gf also which is why I looked into a flat tarp in A frame mostly, and I have a solo net tent for myself and a 2 person net tent when my gf comes. This will also allow me try out a bivy eventually and pitch anyway I want.

I imagine I've had one of the few instances of 2 full grown men in a duomid. I'm 5'11" and 230lbs depending on the season. My occasional hiking partner Steven is about the same height but ~200lbs. We snuggly fit in the duomid with all our winter gear. We have quite a bit of outdoor time together so the close proximity isn't too much of a problem.

I would not recommend 2 full size guys in a duomid unless 1) you really like the other person or 2)have enough backwoods experience with the other person or 3) emergency.

A couple, especially your height should have no problems unless one or both of you are just space hogs. At the current projected rate of one to a few trips a year, you should be fine.
I had originally bought my duomid with a similar situation to yours in mind.

Taking care of business at night, I've found generally you end up waking the other person up in any size of tent. So by the time you get out of your bag, they are aware enough that you are going to crawl over them, if not, they are a really good sleeper and aren't going to notice either way.

At the very least you can try it a couple times and if she shows more interest and the space is a problem, then look at something else.

Thanks for all the response. Sounds like it should work for us for the time being. I already use pole jacks for an inverted V setup so that will be helpful as well. Now to convince the wife we need a cuben version…

"Any opinions/suggestions? Is it a pain for the person away from the door to crawl out at night to take care of business?"

I'd second the suggestion to take a look at the Double Rainbow. Plenty of room for two smaller folks-ask me how I know ;0)-, and it has entries on both sides. It is also a very stable tent in windy conditions, properly guyed of course, and very easy to set up. The main downside, IMO, is condensation under certain conditions, but that is easily managed with its optional clip in breathable liner, or just an occasional wipe down with a bandana.

"Now to convince the wife we need a cuben version…"

Simple. You carry the food, she carries the tent. She'll come around :)

Of course, this approach has backfired on me (the tentaholic in the family); while his tent load has gotten lighter over the years, my food load has not! At least mine gets lighter through the trip.

Too late now, but regarding the Tt SS2 set-up, yes it is a difficult shape to figure out however it may be a lot easier to do if setting up the rectangular floor first then pull the vestibules out once the 4 corners of the floor are in place.
You can see that in my video clip :

Tarptent SS2 set up

I find it curious that many people on here posted that they found the Duomid very crowded for two people. So much for the "Duo" part of "Duomid", eh?

Personally, I leave the Duomid at home and take the TiGoat Vertex 5 when my wife or a buddy comes along. Having said that, I believe the Duomid could be quite livable for a couple if you sewed in a second zippered door at the rear and used the dual pole setup. After all, it does have 40 sq ft of floor space. Perhaps MLD should offer this as an option even. Novel idea, duo doors in a Duomid!!!

I think this is where the UltaMid might shine, since the door is at the end instead of on one side, so either person could get up and out without having to climb over the other.

Of course, as far as the Duomid, if it's a male/female couple, and the male slept to the inside with a bit of tubing, he wouldn't have to leave the shelter to pee and therefore wouldn't have to climb over his partner.

I've only used my Duomid as a solo, but I have sucessfully pitched it by using the outer hang-loop, and totally eliminating the pole(s) altogether. I did use a pole to erect it first, but removed it after tying it up.

Just thought i'd throw that out there.

Can anybody comment on how the Shangri-la 2 compares to the duomid space-wise for two people? How does it compare with the duomid in mild winter/snow conditions?

Hi

Could anyone tell me how long the poles need to be to achieve an A frame setup?

Thanks

James

I often use my Locus Gear Khufu whose dimensions are slightly smaller then that of the Duomid's, with two people and a single center pole and think it's just fine for space. I'm 6'4" and so is my buddy that will typically share the space. I always pitch the khufu with ~4" space between the edge and ground, so that may be why I don't feel overly cramped in it, despite my taller then average height.

Where are people getting these long pole extenders?

I got mine here: http://www.rutalocura.com/Polejack.html

I was going to get a duomid but for the same weight I can get a speedmid which has more room for two people.

I followed Clayton Mauritzen's advice and tried a set of Black Diamond Traverse poles, the large size, which extends to 155cm. They are just about long enough to use for an inverted V setup under the Duomid, although the poles are still a few inches in from the front and rear panels. Add a pair of 6" pole jacks and they would be just about perfect.

For most folks with 125-135cm long poles, you're probably looking at something like an 18" pole jack. I didn't want them to be that long as my impression is they would be considerably less stable in strong winds.