Tents, Hammocks, and Tarps

The Paria Breeze Mesh Bivy is an affordable and spacious single person bug bivy for use under a tarp or by itself in dry weather.  Bug bivies are more spacious than bivy sacks with floors and sidewalls to keep rain from splashing back under your tarp. They’re far more livable …

The REI Passage 2 is a comfortable two-person camping tent that’s ideal for car camping, base camping, and short backpacking trips. It has two doors and two giant vestibules with plenty of external gear storage. But what sets this tent apart from others is its internal livability. The tent interior …

The Hyke & Byke Antero 15 is a hybrid ground sleeping bag and hammock peapod insulation system meant to lower the cost of entry into outdoor recreation. I recently reviewed another hammock peapod system, the Outdoor Vitals MummyPod. The Hyke and Byke Antero 15 is a similar concept but it …

The Zpacks Plexamid is a one-person, single-wall ultralight tent that weighs 14.8 ounces. It is made with 0.51 oz/sq. yard Dyneema Composite Fabrics (DCF), a waterproof material that has does not stretch or sag, making it well-suited for lightweight tents, tarps and stuff sacks. But, while the Plexamid “checks all …

The Outdoor Vitals StormLOFT Down MummyPod 0*F is a cold-weather sleeping bag that can be used either on the ground as a mummy bag or in a hammock as a peapod insulation system. Weighing under 3 pounds and filled with 800 fill power, responsibly-sourced DWR down, the MummyPod has a …

The Outdoor Research Interstellar Bivy is a 4-season bivy that features an upper made with AscentShell, a proprietary waterproof breathable fabric made by OR that has some built-in stretch. While the floor of the bivy is nylon coated TPU for more conventional waterproofness and abrasion resistance, the addition of the AscentShell …

The Zpacks Duplex Tent is a single-wall 2 person tent made with Dyneema Composite Fabrics (formerly called cuben fiber) that weighs 19.4 oz. It has two doors, two vestibules, and requires two trekking poles to erect. Despite its high-tech construction, the Duplex is a remarkably simple tent to set up …

The Ray-Way Tarp Kit is an excellent introduction to MYOG (make-your-own-gear) and for a reasonable price, makes a lightweight and highly-packable shelter which is flexible for many situations. I have used a Ray-Way Tarp as my primary solo and 2-person shelter since 2011. Specs at a Glance Type: DIY kit …

The Eureka Solitaire AL is an updated version of the original Eureka Solitaire 1-person bivy tent, renamed the Eureka Solitaire FG-1 (see review) . The new model comes with more durable aluminum poles, replacing the fiberglass poles that broke frequently on the older model. The new model is also about …

The MSR Advance Pro 2 Tent is a two-person, wedge-style tent designed for professional mountaineers who are willing to sacrifice on tent comfort in exchange for light weight and a small footprint. Weighing 2 lbs 14 oz ounces, the single wall Advance Pro 2 includes a pair of Easton Syclone …

The Sierra Designs Convert 3 is a freestanding three-person tent that’s strong enough for four season winter camping and backpacking, but can also re-configured for three season use in less demanding conditions. It has a large main compartment and two vestibules, which make it a spacious, but lightweight winter tent …

The NEMO Rocket 2 is a three-season, two-person single-wall tent that can be set up with trekking poles or the pair of interlocking tent poles included with the tent. Weighing only 22 oz (18.2 oz without poles), the Rocket 2 has two asymmetric peaks, two doors, and two vestibules with …

The Six Moon Designs Lunar Solo is a single wall trekking pole tent that weighs 26 ounces (740 g). It is a six-sided shelter, shaped like a half pyramid, with a side door and vestibule area that’s good for gear storage or cooking in rainy weather. The single side door …

The Hilleberg Anjan 2 is a 2 person tent designed for three-season use. Weighing 3 lbs. 5 oz., it has a tunnel style architecture with two poles that slot into sleeves, not clips, making it more wind and weather worthy than most lightweight and ultralight tents sold today. While it is a double-walled …