On The Unbearable Lightness of Modern Tents

[albert]

Here's a canvas tent with wood stove I found on Craigslist, price with wood stove is $300.00.

Tent weighs 28 lb and wood stove 12 lbs.

http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/spo/5888677917.html






I have a Springbar Compaq 2 with poles weighs only 22 lbs. can easily be carried on a sled, canoe, motor cycle, etc.

I also have a Kodiak and Turbo Tent I sometime use.

I guess over the years I became tired of synthetic dome tents with poles, most are more humid with more condensation than canvas tents. They easily burn or melt from a flame, heat and anything hot. Whereas canvas is more forgiving.

The canvas tents mention above are less difficult for me to setup, don't need to worry about poles breaking, fabric tearing and are able to withstand high winds, up to ~70 mph, perhaps higher with additional tie downs. However when winds and gust start becoming higher there may be problems with any sort of tent. I've been in storms with ~120+ mph gusts. This type of wind easily flips RV's and 5th wheels if not properly secured to the ground.

 

[Alan Gage]

One last feature I have not seen on a small tent. See those batten-down-the-hatches Pale Ale boxes and gear windage piled against the Hubba Hubba fly? I would really like a tent with a deployable sod cloth around the rainfly perimeter, just a couple inches of cloth that could be left rolled up/fastened for ventilation and let down to occlude blowing sand and dust or to keep the interior warmer in cold temps.

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

Alan

 

[Boreal Birch]

I will agree with Bothwell Voyageur and Canotrouge that the Hilleberg tents are really great. Very weather proof and durableI have the Nallo 4, which I think of as prefect for two bigger people. I have slept 3 in it a few times, with plenty of room. I take it on most all trips, I even take it when I travel by airline. I use it as my hotel/motel rooms for the night. I sleep better knowing I have saved enough money to more than pay for such a expensive tent, now that it has more than paid for itself, it even now pays for the ridicules car rental prices. On my annual fall brook trout and ruffed grouse hunting trip in MN, WI, and MI this fall I slept like a king most every night in it, on a big Exped MegaMat 10, tucked into a old big Feathered Friends rectangular down sleeping bag, with my favorite pillow from home. I went to sleep in some magical places and awoke to some wonderful sunrises in beautiful places. This may not canoe tripping, but it is tripping, I leave Alaska after the leaves fall off the trees and winter is just around the corner. In the states on the West and South sides of Lake Superior, fall is just starting to paint the forests and I get in another autumn. When I get old I may have to do more base camping with a wall tent, wood stove, and cot.

 

[Alan Gage]

As I've been looking at tents I've certainly been eyeing the 2 man Hillebergs. The lighter "Yellow label" tents seem like they'd be sufficient for me as I don't ever expect to use it in the snow. The one concern I have about them is the 38-39" max height. If I sit on the floor my head is 38.75" off the ground. Add to that a couple inches for sitting on the sleeping pad and it doesn't seem like a very comfortable place to spend a couple days in the rain.

Alan

 

[Bothwell Voyageur]

As I've been looking at tents I've certainly been eyeing the 2 man Hillebergs. The lighter "Yellow label" tents seem like they'd be sufficient for me as I don't ever expect to use it in the snow. The one concern I have about them is the 38-39" max height. If I sit on the floor my head is 38.75" off the ground. Add to that a couple inches for sitting on the sleeping pad and it doesn't seem like a very comfortable place to spend a couple days in the rain.

Alan

That does seem a bit low. If you are thinking about more northern trips I would be tempted to look at a Red label anyway. The fly on the yellow label tents is cut short for ventilation so can be a bit drafty and windblown rain can be a problem if you are camped on exposed sites.

Moontrail has additional pictures of each tent set up with a person sat inside.

 

[Canotrouge]

Like I said I'm really happy with Hillbergs, but I really like the look of these Bigsky tents!! I wish I could see on in person to evaluate the quality!!

 

[albert]

Hillberg appears to be quite a tent, I haven't had a chance to look at or sleep in one. After reading some from their website articles it appears their tent designs have different methods of combining the inner and outer shell. So one can setup a tent without fiddling with an outer shell such as a rainfly. This is an advantage especially when hiking and climbing at high altitudes, you need a tent that can be easily setup under various weather and terrain conditions.

I haven't been climbing high altitudes any more and don't think I would need something like a Hillberg Nallo 4.

In the summer months I often stay out camping for months at a time, winter perhaps up to several weeks. A canvas tent has worked great so far when camping from weeks to months at a time.

 

[Boreal Birch]

I am finding that some of the stuff made in Norway, Sweden, and Finland it of very high quality, and that it is very durable. My Norwegian friends have a saying, "There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad gear." I have been really happy with Bergans, Hilleberg, Sako, Mora, Eagle Products, Muurikka, Tentipi, Fjallraven, and Nils Master equipment and tools. I think the small U.S.A. that are not part of some big Corp. make wonderful stuff too.

 

[Quinn]

Alan-
I'd encourage you to take a look at exped's offerings as well. I have a Venus II that I am very happy with. It's not light, but it looks like they now do make a lighter option. The tent is rock solid, and a little easier than a standard tunnel tent to set up on a slab of bedrock.

I've spent a lot of time looking at the big sky tents. Based on pure speculation, I'd take something more robust on a long trip like yours.

 

[Alan Gage]

Alan-
I'd encourage you to take a look at exped's offerings as well. I have a Venus II that I am very happy with. It's not light, but it looks like they now do make a lighter option. The tent is rock solid, and a little easier than a standard tunnel tent to set up on a slab of bedrock.

Thanks for the tip; those are some great looking tents. Good headroom and nice looking designs. The Venus II does look like a winner. I really like that some of their tents are available in multiple layups (UL, Reg, and heavy duty).

Regular: http://www.exped.com/usa/en/product-category/tents/venus-ii-terracotta

UL: http://www.exped.com/usa/en/product-category/tents/venus-ii-ul

Alan