Winter tent suggestions, good for snow.

Will your tent be in the photos?

Would  a tunnel tent be sufficent?

Yeah the tent will be in photos every now and again. Tunnel could be OK.

Get yourself a Hilleberg.  Can you claim it as a business expense?

Honestly I’m not too sure. I could check it out. I’m tempted by the Allak, nice looking tent, the red would stand out. Seems light enough for the type of tent it is..

are you base camping or on the move? how big are you and your wife? do you have an idea where your comfort curve crosses the tent weight curve?

Hi Richard, I do a bit of both..

I’m 6’1, 185, my wife is about 5’4 and thin. I would like to keep light if possible, but in the winter and with the wife (not all the time, but sometimes) comfort is definitely necessary.

i’ve used a wide variety of 4 season/mountaineering tents (including the ev 2) and have settled on the bibler/black diamond family for my quiver: a lighthouse, eldorado and bomb shelter. unless the forecast truly calls for pain or there’s three of us, i’m typically grabbing the lighthouse. i love the big side door. yes it takes some cooperation if the inside person wants out, but it’s never really been an issue in my experience. as with the eldorado, it’s a little over 30 sq feet of mostly usable space because of the steep walls. I’m 6’2″ ~ 200#’s and share it on a regular basis with a similar sized guy without any issue.

because of the epic fabric, users have strong

FEELINGS
and
OPINIONS

about the performance of this tent.

i’ve used it in a variety of weather conditions without any issues. also, if you practice setting the tent up a couple of times in the backyard, it’s a breeze to set up in the field. at under 4#’s it’s hard to beat. while it’s no longer made, they show up in sales forums with some frequency, in great shape and often including the vestibule. because of the lighthouse, my eldorado doesn’t get much usage, but it’s absolutely bomb proof when that’s what you need. sometimes a little extra weight is the insurance you want for the trip you are planning. as with the lighthouse, the eldorado can be found periodically in sales forums for considerably less than the retail price. if could only have one of the two, it would be the lighthouse.

Thanks for your thoughts Richard. Have you happened to use any of the Hillebergs at all? While money is certainly a consideration, I’m more than happy to fork out if it is deemed worth it. Also, any thoughts on the EV2? The main issue I’ve heard people have with it is condensation.

Just a little turned away by the fact I can’t get those Black Diamond’s anymore and I need something pretty soon. I’m also worried with the people complaining about poor quality material.

i’ve slept in an ev 2 and two issues with the tent stood out that i can remember. first, the external pole setup didn’t shed heavy/wet pnw snow very well and second, with two big guys in long sleeping bags, things got a little tight where the the tent starts to narrow. We found it better to sleep with our feet in the direction of the narrowing. as far as condensation goes, i’m pretty agressive with my venting, so no level of condensation that stood out as more/less than other single wall tents.

Interesting, thanks for the input! I was just looking at a couple of the Nemo winter tents.. the two man looks pretty good. Very similar to the Black Diamond, but comes with a vestibule. Love the color for photography too.

I’d suggest considering a Tarptent Scarp 2 with solid inner and Eric B’s internal crossing pole mod (which is detailed in a thread here somewhere). That’s what I have, but I haven’t used it in significant snow yet.

the guys and girls at nemo are brilliant and many of their designs are revolutionary.  they really think outside of the box.  having played around with their tenshi, other than the weight being a little high, the only issue i can remeber was that the dimensions appear to be a bit misleading.  when staked-out, the short sides were not a straight line, but arced inward, reducing the usable length of the tent by a couple of inches, which when you are tall is noticeable if you’re not sleeping on an angle.  it’s more of an inconvenience than a problem. Same thing with the long sides if you didn’t use the guy out points if i remember. I’m not sure what fabric they are using now, but i think the early models were skinned in eVent.

Thanks again Richard. The Tenshi was what I was looking at. Hoping that at 6’1 it’s not enough of an issue to turn me away. I know by myself it would be fine, but hopefully it would work with my petite wife as well.

Thanks Andy. Unfortunately the Scarp doesn’t check the “photogenic” box which is definitely important as it’s part of my work.

If you can afford it I would look at the Hilleberg Kaitum.

Matthew,

I’m in the market as well.  I reached out to Roger and among his suggestions, the Macpac Olympus came highly recommended.  I’ve yet to get my hands on one but do value Roger’s opinion on the topic and will eventually buy one.

http://www.macpac.co.nz/olympus-alpine-tent.html

After purchasing a sleeping bag, skis, and other winter gear, it’s out of reach for me financially this winter so I’m going to stick with my Black Diamond Megalite this year.  Plenty of reviews on it here and other ski touring websites.  As far as aesthetics go, I find it attractive but eye of the beholder and all that.

Thanks a lot Ian, looks promising. Decent weight, love the color. Hopefully there’s enough room for us both. I’ll do some digging into it.

Hi Stephen, interested in why you recommended the Kaitum over the Allak, Jannu or Nammatj?

Big Sky International Chinook 2 is a 4 season double wall tent (breathable fabric inner) that is relatively light weight (less than 4lbs) and has a few color options (Apple Red, Marigold Yellow, Granite Gray, Forest Green). I have the Mirage 2P and find the quality and attention to detail very high.

http://bigskyproducts.com/big-sky-chinook-2p-tent.aspx

Both the Kaitum and Nammatj are great tents, I recommended the former due to your height. I have no experience with the Allak or Jannu in the field, but from seeing them in stores I think they would be too tight for you and your wife.

My aologies for the short post, but it is a pain in ass to reply on the new Bpl using a phone.

Thanks Stephen. No problems at all, I don’t really like the change either.

You could go with a dome, tunnel or perhaps even a mid/tipi…even with a stove if you like.

I like the Hilleberg Kerlon fabric, because snow slides off it so easily.  Snow doesn’t seem to slide off as easily on the PU coated fabrics.  (The silnylon on the Big Sky Tents is slippery as well…I think most silnylons are this way).  Regarding the Hilleberg domes, I really like the massive roof vents…if you keep them open they do a great job of keeping condensation down.  You can can reach right through the inner with the vents open and tap the fly and the snow just slides down the sides of the tent.  You don’t really need to go outside to clear off the tent.  And you can keep the vents open in most rain/snow conditions because there is a separate vent fly that covers them.

Regarding the Allak, you and your wife could fit in there if you are both using 20 inch wide pads and 6-0 sleeping bags/quilts would be preferable.  I’m not sure how two 25 inch pads would fit.  The Allak also tapers in width toward the foot end.

Tunnels are cool…they do the best job with weight/space.  I have to admit that Macpac Olympus looks great, especially the sod flaps on the vestibule.  The Hilleberg Tunnels will give you more room at the head and foot for the most part in comparison to the Hilleberg Domes (The Nammatj and the Nallo slope at the foot end, while the Kaitum and the Keron do not).

I would check out some of the Terra Nova tents as well…I think their fly material is some sort of silicone coated nylon, which I do like for snow conditions.

The Mids and Tipis are generally floorless, and you could get a pretty big mid or Tipi and still be lighter than a tunnel or dome.  However, in big snow they snow load around the bottom outside perimeter so you will have to clear that off.  And you’d have to determine if you are comfortable with floorless or not.

Hi Rob,

Thanks a lot for the detailed post. I have a 25inch wide pad and 6’6 bag for winter use, wife uses a 20inch pad and 5’6 bag. It’s sounding like in the Hilleberg line, the Kaitum may be out best bet.

It might all end up coming down to price. I have found a Mountain Hardwear EV3 for around $400 that I’m tempted to grab being that it’s such a great price. I figure that at worse I can sell it for nearly what I payed.

The Macpac Olympus, Nemo Tenshi and Hilleberg Kaitum I think are the other contenders. Decisions are hard.

The Kaitum is very nice indeed, get the 3p one

If you are using 25inch pads.

I