Thoughts on 1 person using a 3P tent for easy solo trips

[Joey G]

So, I’m doing a pretty easy trip this next month to enchanted valley, WA. It will be a solo trip and be a pretty leisurely pace. I thought about bringing my  Slingfin Portal 3. It’s 4 lbs but would provide lots of room to spread out. I bought it for when I want to share a tent with my son or wife, but it’s sooo nice inside.

Anyone else done this before,  One person in a 3p?

Will I be judged? Trying to figure out if I’m just being excessive.

TBH, this thing will probably be the same footprint as a ultimid 2 / duomid xl.

Any thoughts, appreciated.

[Terran Terran]

Leave no trace, after that it’s whatever you enjoy. Have fun.

[Philip Tschersich]

Anyone else done this before,  One person in a 3p?

Will I be judged?

No one will judge; they will only be jealous of you happily ensconced in your palace. We often take a four- or even six-man DCF pyramid for two of us. It’s sooo nice.

[Jon Fong / Flat Cat Gear]

I use a 3p tent for my wife and I.  I have gone one solo trips with it, I wouldn’t even think about buying a 1p as I can’t justify the additional cost for the overall weight savings.  Lastly, who give a sh*t what other people think?  My 2 cents.

[Joey G]

” Lastly, who give a sh*t what other people think?”

Yeah, I really need to think this way. I’m still newish to backpacking and think I’m doing it wrong sometimes.

[Robert Spencer]

Sounds like a perfect time to justify the extra weight — a leisurely pace as opposed to a FKT.

Also, it’s always best to skew towards a larger shelter when traveling in rain country since you may be hunkering down more than normal. Beautiful part of the park so enjoy!

[Dan]

Personally, only since you are asking, there would be no benefit for me to balance the extra weight, because I don’t have a need to spread out in such a large tent. Even with a large dog, a 2P tent is more than large enough. Aside from more weight, it’s harder to find a good place to pitch a larger tent. Bottom line is that I wouldn’t value the extra space.

However, I’m certainly not judging you, just giving my own thoughts.

[David Hartley]

If rain is expected – there is no substitute for cubic inches! Nothing worse than trying to keep things dry through multiple days of rain on a trip with a tiny one man tent. The only disadvantage – and that can be a deal breaker sometimes – is finding spots where it will fit.

Who cares what other people think.

[dirtbag]

My 3P tent I use solo. Granted its winter but that’s ok.  If its spring summer or fall,  I sometimes use my 2P tarp when solo.. Doesn’t matter. Carry what you are comfortable carrying. If you can shave some weight somewhere else then its all relevant.

[Joey G]

Thanks everyone for their comments. It makes me not feel crazy for thinking this is the right tent for me for this trip.

I’m trying to fight my bias that lighter is better that I hear / read all the time. I should ask my self “better for what”? This trip? All trips? As much as I want a tent that fits all situations, I don’t think that works for me. If I am able to have more space in my tent, I would like that. There’s a point where you can have too much space. I’m sure that’s different for everyone. There’s a point where the extra space isn’t worth the weight of the tent. I’m also sure that’s different for everyone. This tent being under 4 lbs when you drop a few things is worth the weight for me on THIS trip. If I was doing the Wonderland trail, no way would I bring this tent. I’m also not doing the whole 13 miles in one day to enchanted valley. I’ve split it up to be a leisurely 6-7 miles each day. There aren’t any big uphill climbs on this trip. I also feel like there will be room at every camp site I’ve selected.

I guess me asking this question here is to help me justify that it’s ok to fight ( think through? ) the lighter is always better bias.

[Terran Terran]

and think I’m doing it wrong sometimes.

There is no right way. I make it up as I go. Lighter is generally better, but that’s not the reason for going.

[dirtbag]

As great as it sounds.. Lighter is better.. What’s more important is comfort. For me, yes I aim to go as light as possible on every trip without sacrificing too much comfort. That means taking as little as possible because I don’t like looking for things at camp or having to remember where I put something. I also want to be as quick and efficient as possible especially when making or breaking camp! I can carry a heavy load for long miles if needed and really 10 lbs to 15 lbs is neglegable in the grand scheme of things. I find when I take as minimal “things” as possible, that my base weight stays pretty low.  Shelter, sleep, food and water.. That’s basically my needs while out hiking. If I’m comfortable there I’m happy. The food category is weird one.  A lot of people, myself included sometimes, pack waaaaay too much food.

[SlingFin Tim]

Way to push pack on dogmatic thinking! We love nuance! It’s all about personal goals and priorities. Are you trying to push yourself physically to the point where saving a pound or two could make the difference between successfully completing your planned route or not? Are you only stopping in camp to sleep for a few hours and slurp down some sad, sad, cold soaked ramen, or do you want to actually enjoy life in camp for a few hours? Sounds like on this trip, you fall into the second category. Comfort is not a sin.

Neither approach is “wrong”; the only way to do it wrong is to assume that people with different priorities from you are doing it wrong. Unless you’re not following LNT. That’s wrong.

The folks who think that one set of values/equipment is applicable to every person and situation are not the kind of people you want to go into the backcountry with.

[David D]

One drawback to a big tent not mentioned yet is finding a place to pitch it.  I use the Durston 2P and love the space and the weight is fine, but have a hard time shoe-horning into some sites, even with collapsed vestibules.  These are almost always heavily used older assigned backcountry sites where beaten down dirt has exposed large roots and rocks, and where flooding zones significantly limit options for pitching locations.

I run into that fairly often (expecting it on my trip in a few days) and am considering getting a second 1P tent for that reason only.   Don’t know if the Enchanted Valley presents this challenge though, but its worth considering.

[Mark Verber]

As others have said, hike your own hike. If it working for you, great.

As I was trying to simplify my gear there was a period of time when I owned only one shelter which I used for everything, including shoulder season with my wife.  Downsides for solo use is weight, footprint, and volume in pack.

But many of my trips are 3 season solo in the sierras.  I can get away with a lot less.  I eventually broke down and purchased a GG Whisper which is smaller, lighter.

[Sheryl O]

Do it! I solo hiked a week long section of the JMT with my mountain hardwear Ghost UL3 tent which normally would shelter me, my husband or daughter and a dog. The extra room was quite a luxury, and the campsites I found easily accommodated the size of the tent. I did get a couple quizzical looks from people, but more often got comments from other backpackers about how nice it must have been to have the extra room. Live large :-). Go out and enjoy your trip!

[Steve Thompson]

Do what you like.  I used to have a 4 person Eureka a-frame tent that I’d sometimes carry on easy overnights so I could have a “cabin” to camp in.  The tent has long passed its useful life, but the memories remain.

Not every trip needs to be UL.  If I am going out for a couple weeks without resupply I strip back to a minimal kit.  But for a short weekend I often add a few pounds be it a larger tent, all fresh food, and have even carried an oil pan to use as a fire pit to cook a steak.

The flipside, I also took trips to push UL to the extreme and test whether I would want to do this regularly.

So simply enough, as @Sheryl O suggests:  do whatever you want that makes it enjoyable.

[Joey G]

Thanks all! I’m definitely going to post pics of the tent on my trip in this thread.

[Kevin Babione]

Do it!  Easy trips (short mileage, not a lot of elevation, lots of water, etc.) is the perfect time to take things and try them out to see how they work for you.  You may find that it’s so enjoyable having the extra space that you will consider the 3P tent on other adventures.  Examples of things I’ve tried on these kinds of trips include: different chairs, stoves, fire starters, cooking methods (fire versus stove), saws, and clothing.  Clothing is interesting because as an “extra” item you can take along, for example, your tried-and-true puffy as a backup, but then take along that piece you’d like to try and you’re still safe if it doesn’t perform the way you thought.

Haters gonna hate, judgers gonna judge.  Ignore them and be happy.

[jscott]

Well…I agree with everyone’s comments. However, I would never bring a four pound tent backpacking if a 1 or 2 pound tent  would do. Comfort? for me, having a lighter pack is the most comfortable thing I can do. By far. Heavier  packs can also lead to blisters.  That’s the most UNcomfortable thing. I really only spend time in  my tent when I’m lying down to read and nap in the afternoon–sometimes–or when I lie  down to sleep. Who needs all that room to sleep?  all that said, if you’re  expecting three days of rain, take the 3 person. I don’t enjoy hiking into those conditions and would cancel my trip. Everyone’s different, HYOH.

[Joey G]

jscott, IF you were car camping, would you take 1 or 2 pound tent or a larger tent for comfort? If the answer is the larger tent, at what point of hiking distance and / or elevation gain would you change over to the 1 or 2 pound tent?

I ask out of curiosity, because everything you said I agree with IF I’m doing over 10 mile days with significant elevation gain.

I feel like there would be a continuous line where we would decide on the size of the tent based on the effort to get to the camp sites. Unless someone doesn’t enjoy more space. Then I can see always taking a smaller / lighter tent.

[jscott]

Well, again the only times I’m in my tent are to either lie down to read and recover in the afternoon for an hour,  and then to sleep at night. Since even with a four person tent I couldn’t stand up, I’m  uncertain how much more enjoyment I’d  get out  a few feet more space. In a prolonged rain storm,  having a bit more space  to roll over and  sit up would nice. But that rarely happens in the Sierra given I choose clear weather windows. I always hike into elevations and over four days minimum so my style  doesn’t meet your criteria. I like a light pack.  I trust my solo tent to be weather proof  in unexpected torrential downpours. So FOR ME having some extra space is not a priority.  But most others so far do find it to be a good thing and worth the weight.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

It’s not very light. I wouldn’t do it. My idea of luxury is the Deschutes Plus I recently bought.

[Joey G]

If your idea of luxury is the Deschutes Plus, I think we are not doing the same things.

I’m very appreciative of everyone’s comments. Thank you.

[jscott]

“If your idea of luxury is the Deschutes Plus, I think we are not doing the same things.”

Indeed.  Your idea of luxury is having space inside of your tent. Diane’s  idea of luxury is exploring wild terrain. This takes a bit of exertion. A light pack helps.

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