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ProTrail Li: sleep 2 small-ish adults?
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Home › Forums › Gear Forums › Gear (General) › ProTrail Li: sleep 2 small-ish adults?
- This topic has 4 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 1 year, 7 months ago by Sam Farrington.
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Aug 5, 2022 at 4:49 pm #3756657
Has anyone ever tried sleeping 2 adults in a ProTrail Li?
I’m trying to help a friend find a tent that would mostly be used for solo backpacking (he’s 5′ 10“, 165 lb, so slender).
But he was hoping for a slightly roomier solo tent so that his 5′ 4″, 105 lb partner could occasionally squeeze in if they wanted to go really light (they have a Rainshadow 2 for “luxury” trips – haha).
He says they sleep tucked in close anyway, and that they were able to share his solo Krua hammock tent for 2 nights and that, while not ideal, was doable, even if very cramped. Lol.
I was trying to compare the dimensions and but the 3D model of the ProTrail Li makes me think that it would feel a lot roomier to them than the Krua did – just because it seems like the “eaves” on the ProTrail would end up providing extra elbow room…
I thought the ProTrail Li could be a good choice for him since his primary goal was a SUL or UL solo shelter to replace the Krua for his solo trips, and his partner would rarely be needing to squeeze in with him. But I’m curious what people think who have actually used it.
Aug 5, 2022 at 4:52 pm #3756658I have one. It’s a palace for one. But two? No. You’d have to spoon in one position on one pad all night.
Aug 5, 2022 at 4:56 pm #3756659Big Sky has a 1.5 person tent. Perhaps that would work.
My wife and I used to share a 40″ wide tent. Worked fine.
Aug 5, 2022 at 6:13 pm #3756669I’d recommend the Rainbow 2p Li for cross-duty.
Aug 5, 2022 at 11:47 pm #3756685TT’s site includes at the end of the pictures a diagram showing the tent’s dimensions. It shows the height to be 45″ at the front, and 24″ at the back, and note that the ridge between the two has a catenary cut (as many A-frames do) that is concave and therefore sinks.
The width of the floor is shown to be 42″ at the front, and 30″ at the rear; but the A-frame walls spread considerably wider to 70″ wide at front, and a bit wider at the rear, although that dimension is not shown. When designing a tent, I make thin cardboard scale models that show visually just how much space is under the canopy, and even put small dolls bought at the dollar store inside the models on top of small of stiff foam cut to the shape and thickness of the sleeping pad that will be used. And that also provides a better visual picture.
Since this is an A-frame, the side walls slope from the catenary ridge to the outer dimensions. So there is zero convexity, and considerable cancavity created by the catenary shape of the sloping ridge.
Since all A-Frame tents make me claustrophobic, I’m biased. But TT’s own classification of this tent is for one person, and would suggest sticking with that. Note that tent makers are prone to designing for the average person, not for all sizes of height and weight. A good example for TT is their one person Notch Li with a floor area of 15.75 square feet, according to the dimension given on their site. It is a popular tent, but that is a pretty small floor area compared to other one person stake supported tents I’ve seen.
Or maybe you could just order one and pitch it indoors if TT allows returns for that. It might provide a good guide to how much size you need if you decide to buy a slightly larger tent.
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