The Sierra Designs High Side Tent is a single person, double-wall tent that’s a big step up in comfort from a bivy sack. While it features excellent ventilation and a side vestibule, one of the stand-out features of this tent are its tent poles, which collapse down to 12.5″, making …
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CAMP USA Minima SL 1 Tent Review
The CAMP USA Minima SL 1 is a compact double-walled tent that weighs 2.0 pounds. One step up from a bivy sack, it packs up impossibly small, making it an option when you need a waterproof shelter that doesn’t require much space to set up and you care less about …
Read More »Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight 2 Tent Review
The Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight 2 Tent is a relaunch of old customer favorite with an updated design, fabrics and hardware. It’s a double-walled, two-person tent, lightweight enough for backpacking if the weight is shared (3.5 pounds), but also well-suited for car camping when you want a shelter that’s roomy for …
Read More »Illustrated Tent Terminology Guide
Do you find the jargon and terminology around camping and backpacking tents confusing? This handy illustrated guide helps demystify tent terms and technology, so you can find the tent that best suits your needs. A-Frame Tent Classic pup-style tent patterned after old army tents where the walls form an ‘A’ …
Read More »Wild Country Zephyros 1 Person Tent Review
There’s a critical design flaw in most of the double walled tents sold in the US. If it’s pouring rain and you go to set up your inner tent first, it’s likely to be soaked before you can cover it up with the rain fly. I’ve seen this happen to …
Read More »EMS Velocity 1 Tent Review
The EMS Velocity 1 is a lightweight, freestanding and affordable. I think it’s an exceptional value, particularly if you plan on doing any backpacking where you need to camp on unprepared tent sites in the woods or other wilderness areas where unobstructed space is at a premium. Total Weight: 40.0 ounces (2 pounds 8.0 …
Read More »Do You Use The Tent Stakes That Came With Your Tent?
I usually replace the factory-supplied tent stakes that come with backpacking tents because they’re too heavy, too short, or they hurt my hands when I pull them out of the ground. My goto tent stakes are: MSR Mini-Groundhog Tent Stakes because the have superior holding power and stand up to rocky …
Read More »Best Family Camping Tents
What is the best family camping tent? What are the must-have attributes of a family camping tent are? How many people should a family camping tent hold? What’s a reasonable price for a quality family camping tent? Best Family Camping Tents Most of our readers equate family camping to car camping, where there’s no …
Read More »Permethrin Pre-treated Camping Tents
The outdoor gear company, Wenzel, has started making family camping tents pre-treated with Permethrin, which repels and kill mosquitos and ticks, including those that carry Lyme Disease. I think this is a fantastic development and hope higher-end backpacking tent manufacturers follow Wenzel’s example and start selling backpacking tents that have been …
Read More »Big Agnes Fly Creek UL 2 Tent Review
The Big Agnes Fly Creek UL 2 is a two person backpacking tent that weighs 2 pounds 4 ounces, making it an excellent choice for backpackers who want to reduce the weight of their gear but still prefer a double-walled tent. Just a few ounces heavier than the one person …
Read More »Hilleberg Akto Tent Review
The Hilleberg Akto is one of the lightest weight, single person, 4 season tents ever made. First introduced in 1995, Akto was the gold standard by which lightweight ( 3 pounds 8 ounces) expedition class solo tents were judged for more than a decade. I first saw the Akto up …
Read More »Scarp 1 Tarptent Review
The Tarptent Scarp 1 is a spacious double-walled tent with two doors and two vestibules. It’s a very strong tent that’s able to withstand challenging three-season and four-season weather conditions without any compromises on livability. Rain Performance The performance of a shelter in heavy rain is one of the best …
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