X-Mid 1

Sale price$240.00 USD

Pinnacle of Lightweight Tent Design

The X-Mid 1 has been developed from the first principles of geometry to achieve the most weight efficient, simple to use, and stormworthy design for a trekking pole shelter. The result is a double wall tent that is incredibly user friendly, capable and spacious while weighing just 28 oz (795 g). As a result, it has become one of the most awarded tents in recent years including awards for best tent from The Trek, Outdoor GearLabSection Hiker and numerous other respected outlets.

STORMWORTHY

Most ultralight tents are designed more as fair weather shelters, and thus compromise stormworthiness and protection for weight savings - such as using lighter coatings that are barely waterproof, extremely thin fabrics, cutting away areas of the fly which leaves you most exposed, and omitting important features like peak vents and guy out points.

With the X-Mid we save weight with efficient design including minimizing seams and maximizing the volume:surface ratio, so we can create a tent that is both light and capable in tough conditions. The X-Mid excels in rough weather with its fly first pitch, full doublewall design, non-sag poly fabric, large adjustable vents, factory waterproof seams, full-coverage fly (blocks rain splatter and drafts), stormworthy shape, and protected entryways that avoid rain falling inside. No other tent can claim that list.

USER FRIENDLY

Simplicity and user friendliness are a major focus for the X-Mid because the last thing you want in bad weather or at the end of a long day is a tent that is a hassle to use. We avoid complexity and improve the user experience with our focus on first principles design, combined with obsessive attention to detail and extensive real-world validation.

Unlike most trekking pole tents, the rectangle based X-Mid offers a simpler 4 stake pitch. There are no mandatory guylines, no struts that are harder to pack up and store, and no measuring pole heights or estimating odd angles. It goes up quickly with just 4 required stakes and 2 poles that can be extended without measuring.

Once pitched, the user friendliness continues with large doorways that aren’t blocked by poles, vestibules that put the main area beside the door instead of blocking it, magnetic door toggles, intuitive pockets, and one hand operated zippers. Notably, the X-Mid uses polyester fabric for the fly which doesn't sag and absorb water like nylon so your pitch stays tight and the tent dries quickly. Polyester was controversial when we launched the X-Mid with it in 2018 but our passionate advocacy for it has led to many other companies following our lead.

The Trek

We Love This Tent

"A laundry list of well-thought-out details makes this tent exceptional in rough weather....it is our all around best thru-hiking tent of 2023."

Section Hiker

Editors Choice

"The X-Mid 1 is my favorite tent...it is a great shelter if you want a trekking pole tent that is affordable, spacious, stormworthy, and packs up small."

Best Ultralight Tent

It's still hard for us to believe that such an easy-to-set-up tent can be so delightful to spend camp time in while also being almost invincible to storms....it's our favorite 1P tent.

Paul Messner (YouTuber)

Best 2023 Tent

"A brilliant tent.....there's been a lot of hype around this tent and I think it's justified. It does everything really really well....the X-Mid ticks more boxes than any other"

Cottage Gear Innovation Award

"With a new type of design...the Durston X-Mid 1P offers light weight, livable space, ease of pitch, and storm resistance that we've never seen before at this price point."

SPACIOUS

The X-Mid geometry maximizes the space possible from two poles by using a diagonal ridgeline that positions the two poles further apart, while avoiding placing the poles near the edges that would detract from wind performance.

The result is a spacious 1P tent with best in class headroom. The two poles give headroom throughout the length of the tent so you can sit up anywhere in the tent and easily transition from laying down to sitting up without hitting the tent ceiling.

The floor has a generous 90" length which is combined with steep end walls to provide suitable length for hikers up to 6'4" (193 cm), while the floor width is a comfortable 32" that accommodates the widest pads. Also generous are the dual vestibules, which are spacious, tall, and easily hold even large packs.

QUALITY

In addition to the highest performance design, the X-Mid boasts the highest quality.

The tent is crafted at arguably the best and most experienced tent factory in the world using premium components, full double stitching, double folded edges, and generous bartacking.

We’re not aware of any other trekking pole tent that uses full double stitching and true double folded edges. While this premium quality gives the X-Mid a higher cost of production than comparable tents, the X-Mid 1 is priced lower simply because we sell it to you direct with only a modest markup.

Magnetic Toggles

Magnetic door toggles with pull tabs provide easy one handed-operation.

Large Doorways

Unlike most trekking pole tents, the doorways are large and not blocked by trekking poles. They also have a protected design to keep rain out even when open, and can be propped open with a stick or pole to create a 'porch'.

Full Coverage Fly

The fly extends low to the ground to block drafts and rain splatter, yet can be raised higher for more ventilation. Other tents cut away the bottom of the fly to save weight but it leaves you more exposed.

Stormworthy Shape

The X-Mid provides the ideal shape with consistent and moderate panel slopes. All the panels are an ideal 50 - 55 degrees which balance wind and snow shedding to provide excellent all around performance. Most tents are less consistent with a mix of shallower panels (worse for snow shedding) and steeper panels (worse for wind performance).

Ample Headroom

The X-Mid's offset poles provide a longer diagonal ridgeline that extends the headroom over more of the tent. There is ample clearance to transition from laying down to sitting up without hitting the tent, and room to sit up anywhere in the tent.

PATENTED GEOMETRY

The X-Mid shape has been developed from the first principles of geometry to be as weight efficient, simple, and functional as possible.

That includes avoiding all the common pitfalls of trekking pole shelters such as a complicated pitch, mandatory guylines, poles blocking the doorways, and a lack of interior volume.

Read the story about how the X-Mid geometry was developed:

As an incredibly well rounded, spacious, and capable shelter, the X-Mid 1 is the ideal ultralight tent for everything from a long thru hike to a remote adventure in Alaska. That's why the X-Mid 1 has become both the most popular and highest rated 1P tent on all three triple crown trails (Applachian Trail, Continental Divide Trail, and Pacific Crest Trail) according to hiker surveys by The Trek and Halfway Anywhere.

Customer Reviews

Based on 37 reviews
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H
Hank Troscianiec
Early adopter still loving it!

My original purchase was through Amazon when this, I believe, was first introduced. I was preparing for a 12 Hike with the Boy Scouts at Philmont Scout Ranch. I LOVE THIS TENT! It performed as advertised. I got some side eyed glances at first but after a couple of days the questions flooded in. There were a couple of times I couldn't get the setup right however that was total user fatigue and error. I truly love this tent and would recommend it to anyone looking for a quality and lightweight solution.

M
Marizaan Prinsloo
In. Love. X-mid 1P

I haven't had many tents, BUT I researched heaps before I made a purchase and I fell in love with my tent from the first night! The initial setup was a learning experience but it is quick to figure out the geometry and it is SO easy to setup, fold up and pack away. I have used it in rain, sunshine and wind, and excited to take it for a spin this winter. I am hoping it snows to put it to the test. If my tent goes missing, I am getting another one, no doubt about it. ** unfortunately my groundsheet arrived separately, during my trip, but I got a 1443r tarp locally , added grommets and additional stakes that did the job!

Y
Yujong Jeong
Fantastic tent (shelter)

I'm still using 'drop version 1P'. I'm using the basic configuration, the net inner tent, in summer and the fly + bivy combination in winter. Always satisfied. Recently, I encountered a strong wind and one corner line was cut twice, but I was even more surprised that it didn't interfere with the tent at all. Even in the wind enough to cut the line, I experienced a full tent fly and got to like it even more. I'm going to change the cut line to the dyneema line. It's questionable if I can change it to 1/8 inch (3mm).

Thanks for your long time support and nice to hear you are liking the tent.

For the corner line, we used pretty standard 2.5 mm guyline on these tents. Often when it is cut it is because of damage (e.g. rubbing on a rock, hit while pounding in a stake). A dyneema core line will be stronger and more resistant to whatever caused this. However dyneema lines are stiffer and don't stretch thinner under load, so they act like a larger cord. Because of this, 3mm maybe too thick. I would look for a 2.0 - 2.5mm line, such as Ironwire from Lawson. We have some on our site in a reflective version but he has a non-reflective version for less.

M
Moonshine
Loved it for my 2023 FLASH

Just completed 543 miles solo SOBO on the AT- I love this tent! All the space- even room to do some down dog/stretches at the end of day w my 48 yo “old” body. Cooked in the vestibule, once in tent totally incognito 🥸.
never detached the fly, even when I put it up wet, it never seemed wet enough to make any difference by the time it was set up and I was putting my gear in.- it held up in rain so well. I love the adjustable bathtub floor. It makes a difference, especially in heavy rain when you’re in the dirt and it splashes. did you know it rained 9+ weekends in the NE this season? I spent two nights in my Durston at a VFW waiting out the rain and the weekend prices at the hotels!
As I solo hiked, most of my pictures are of my Durston in sweet spots along the trail as I preferred tenting to shelters. took me a minute to really comprehend how big the footprint is. But I got good at it and learned its geometry quickly!
There was a convention of Durstons at Shaws hiker hostel in Monson. I think I saw six in the lawn. Since I had just finished 100 mile wilderness, and all the other hikers were finishing the trek, just starting 100 mile it was exciting to see how long the Durstons had been out there! 🥰
Also, I am not a typical gearhead- my original tent for 2002 was a (light for its time) Betamid by black diamond also w treking poles. And this was a great upgrade-keeping the ease of set up, which is very important to me.
No issue w platforms- just have some cord.
From ME to MA, there were ALWAYS enough rocks near or around platforms.
Also, I am 5,1 and can only cut so much weight from my pack- I used tyvek ground cloth, and was all good.
Can’t wait to get back out— I sleep better in my tent than in my bed.

J
Jared (Timber)
2023 AT Thru Hike Review

I used the Durston X Mid on my 2023 NOBO AT Thru hike (Mar-August). Overall, I loved this tent and it kept me dry through some really really gnarly rain in the Northeast including historic flooding through Vermont and New Hampshire. My only negative comments are these: the included stakes are extremely weak and bent in soft ground within my first two nights. I ended up replacing them with MSR mini groundhogs and didn't have any issues again. Second, the bag the tent is packed in came apart after about 2 months of hard use. I think that constantly packing the tent up wet strained the seams to the breaking point. Other than these two minor issues, this tent performed extremely well and I was super happy to lay down in it every night for 5 months. Good stuff Durston.

Glad the tent worked well on your wet thru hike and thanks for the feedback. I am working on steadily improving these tents so I did update the stakes to be stronger (in mid 2023) and we'll have even better stakes in a few more months. We also reinforced the stuff sack more (in early 2023) so you may have the older one. If you get in touch we can send you a replacement sack with the newer design.
-Dan

PITCHING GUIDE

Get started with our comprehensive X-Mid pitching guide.