One plus Dog Pyramid?

[Stumphges]

Hi,

Does anyone have any idea for lightest pyramid for one + dog that provides:

At least 50″ width for part of the tent.

Mosquito and tick protection

Pointy peak to prevent mosquitoes flying around at eye level – dog will attack them through mesh – this is why I specify pyramid

Dry entry and exit

 

I am very tempted by LG Khufu with full mesh inner. Width of ~52″ is enough to accomodate his short but wide rectangle. Sil (~30 oz) and DCF (~25 oz) acceptable weights; DPTE gets the pole out of the floor if wanted. Only thing holding me back on this one is lack of dry entry and exit. Maybe not such a big deal?

We are currently using an SL3 clone with full inner, which is great, but at 50 ounces about twice as heavy as I’d like.

A Khufu with a slight hex shape to add some vestibules would be ideal, but no one makes quite that thing.

Any and all suggestions most welcome.

 

[William Chilton]

I’ve never seen this in the flesh but an owner on trek-lite says the quality is decent. Slight hex shape, available with/without inner.
Arixci Mid.

[J-L]

Since you asked for pyramid tarps, I’ll list several ideas here (focusing on single-pole designs), each of which has its own pros/cons:

• Locus Gear Khufu + 3/4-mesh inner: probably the lightest option. Might be a tight fit inside, but it could be just big enough for 1 man and a dog. This would give you a small vestibule area and semi-dry entry/exit
• Locus Gear Khufu + full mesh inner: 2nd lightest option. It would give more interior room, but no vestibule area. Lack of dry entry/exit could be an issue depending on where you hike. In typically arid climates, this might be an acceptable tradeoff.
• MLD Duomid XL + mesh inner: this shelter would give you lots of interior room and a vestibule with a dry entry/exit. While maybe not ideal for couples due to the single door and sloping rear wall, I think it would be great for 1 man and a dog. All for the cost of a few more ounces and a larger footprint.
• Locus Gear Hapi + full mesh inner + Hapi V-tarp: by pairing the Hapi with their V-tarp, you could have a modular system. Bring the V-tarp when you are expecting precipitation, and leave it at home to save weight. The V-tarp would give you a small vestibule and dry entry/exit.
• One of the larger Locus Gear mids (Menkaura or Khafra) + half-mesh inner: interior room probably similar to the Duomid XL, but you would get an even bigger vestibule area. Again, for the cost of a few more ounces and a larger footprint.

For 1 man + dog, I eventually settled on a MYOG dome tent as the ideal shelter. And while my dog has since passed away, if I were to adopt another, I would probably use a Nemo Hornet 2P or a Tarptent Double Rainbow Li. Both of these tents have relatively high solid fabric walls that might work for you. I found that without solid fabric walls that blocked most of the view out at night, my dog would remain restless. With solid fabric walls, she’d happily snore through the night and be better rested for the next day.

My issues with pyramid tents for 1 man and a dog are:

• You end up with no vestibule and no dry entry/exit with designs like the Khufu or MLD Duomid. Maybe not a big issue in some locales
• You end up with a large footprint and increasingly heavy weight with bigger mids
• Two-pole designs solve some of these issues, but their footprints are still huge (relative to poled tents)

[Stumphges]

William, thank you for the suggestion. That tent was actually on my radar and is nearly what I think might work best. Compared to a purely rectangular pyramid like a Duomid or Khufu, this one by Knot, aka Aricxi, aka Ice River, aka Glacier Knot (formerly at ice-river.com) does have stretched out sides that offer a little vestibule space on either side. The inner that comes with it is 120 cm wide, which I know is too narrow. One possibility with this one would be modify that inner so that it occupies the triangular space on one side. This would provide enough space for the dog and leave the other vestibule unoccupied. Not sure I’m up to the modification. The other option would be to use it with a wider inner by Locus Gear or MLD, and I think they both would fit and offer enough width for us, but then the vestibule space would be used up, and with it any possibility of a dry entry.

I actually have three tents by this company, a hexgonal pyramid, an octagonal pyramid offering about the same space as a Supermid, and a small, one-man mid that is designed for pitching with A-framed trekking poles without needing any hardware. All these flys pitch very tight with little fuss, which I attribute to the designs accounting very well for the bias stretch of silnylon. According to a couple folks at trek-lite.com, Knot/Aricxi have recently improved their silnylon, which formerly was pretty lightly coated. I’m still considering various inners for the hex and octagonal pyramid flies for 1+dog use, but no combination gets me quite light enough.

John, thanks so much for your detailed reply and suggestions. I’m very sorry to hear about your dog.

If my dog did not hunt insects through no-seeum, I think the Rainbow Li would be the one for us. I’ve also looked hard at the Hornet 2p but think the inner would be a little narrow. I’ve found that 50 inches is the minimal width that would work. Not that all of the inner has to be that wide, but at least a portion. I would actually prefer a dome, as I don’t use poles that often and greatly appreciate the quick and easy pitch of a “pop up.” As you say, the footprint size is usually smaller too.

Alas, due to the insect issue, I think I’m stuck in the land of mids, which would be no problem at all but that we have either heavy mosquito or heavy tick pressure for three seasons here, so an inner is required. I would really like 2 pound outer + inner and don’t think there is anything that ticks all the boxes on the market. I’m mulling bonding up a custom DCF elongated hexagon or octagon (like the Knot/Aricxi but with wider vestibule sections, and with an asymmetrical inner that leaves one vestibule empty, allowing for a dry entry/exit). The making of the custom inner is the crux of that project, though, as I’ve not sewn.

 

 

[Niko Z.]

Hello Stumphges,

I have a couple of Aricxi/Knot tents. I own their octogon mid and really appreciate the fly design, but the inner is quite short for a taller person. I am 6’2 and end up touching the mesh with my feet and my head simultaneously.

I noticed on another thread that you have paired Knot mid with the Locus Khufu inner. How did that work out for you in practice? Have you gained any usable length inside?

Best,

Niko Z.

[baja bob]

I recently picked up a used Hapi custom long with the inner nest, V tarp snd DPTE.  I believe the outer tent is 10ft long by 6 ft wide. Only difference with regular Hapi is it’s 1 ft longer About 35 oz with inner nest and DPTE.

Am 6’4” and use a 3.5 inch BA AXL insulated pad.  I need the long; not sure a regular Hapi would work for me with use of the inner net.  If positioned optimally inside the inner net I have maybe two inches either side to avoid brushing the net but will not brush against the outer tent

V tarp adds about 7.5 oz.   I have not set it up with the V tarp yet.

The Hapi has entry at the foot vs Khufu has side entry. Maybe a little easier with just one person using a side entry to avoid getting inside wet if you were not using a full inner net.

If using a center pull and the inner net of the Hapi there is enough room for a 25” wide pad on either side.  The DPTE is a nice option and actually a little easier to pitch the inner net from inside.

[Mark Jones]

I have used an MLD DCF Duomid, MLD DPTE, and Zpack DCF solo bathtub groundsheet with my dog for several years. I use a GG 1/8 foam pad for the dog. My dog is a 55-pound medium/large dog. This setup works very well for us. It does not meet your requirement for bug protection but works well for us in the Appalachians. There is no floor for the dog to damage.

I pitch the mid so that the canopy is about 6 to 8 inches above the ground. This allows my dog to come and go at will by crawling under the hem of the canopy, thus dry entry is not an issue.

Hope you find the right setup and enjoy the trail with your canine companion.

Mark

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