Arkansas Canoe Club Forums

My tents are about 15 yrs old, so I figure it is time to get a new one, so I can join Richards group activities!
Do you need to buy a Winter tent and a Summer tent? I just don't see how one that breathes in the summer to keep you cool can also hold the warmth in at 25 degrees in the winter.
Also, what about getting one that is small enough to fit in the boat?
Thanks for the input!
Susan T

Here is my two recommendations one is general camping other is super light weight


http://www.rei.com/product/728308

This is my favorite lite weight canoe tent, I have the older model and it has been very good in storms. Maybe ten big time rain storms for me and minimal leaks altho one did blow so hard I got a little mist coming thru that dried off pretty fast. For me there is plenty of room for just me and my gear, I doubt if two my sized could fit in. I recommend this tent from REI half Dome series. Been in several western floats where the wind was fierce and would lay the tent down over me as I was on my big paco pad inside - so if you upgrade the stakes and add in the extra tie downs, this design can handle a pretty severe storm.

http://www.bigagnes.com/str_tents.php?bid=7

I have the super light SL 1 tent from big anges. really lite weight but truely a one person tent. about the lightest I have found. Been in a couple storms with it and it is tight but it held up pretty good. I would not recommend this for heavy duty use but if you are kayak self support this is a good choice in my opinion

Dave and I are looking at the same web site!

I started writing and quickly realized I had more to say than what you probably wanted to hear....... that happens at ACC meetings too :roll:

Good description and advice at

http://www.rei.com/learn/Camping

look for tents in sections about choosing and also about skills.

Yup, Arthur and I both share an engineering background and tend to cover a lot of bases when giving feedback.

I have been searching for a perfect tent for years.

Lost count of how many I have purchased and stuck in the shed or given away.

That little REI half dome comes close to the perfect reasonably priced tent.

My most favorite bomb proof tent tho is one of the original Moss tents with three poles. That baby has never let me down. It is, however, pretty heavy and a raft trip tent. Moss sold out to REI AKA MSR and while the designs are much the same, the quality suffered a bit. Still good tents just not like the real Moss ones.

I have become a real fan of the side entry tents like the REI half domes. Reason being you can keep your sleeping bag and sleeping area a lot dryer with the side entry. Provides good gear stowage as well. If you have the cross doors and stake outs, ventilation is about as good as it gets.

Friend of mine had that REI tent last time I went backpacking in Colorado. Really really nice and light weight too. The vent things really work well. Double vestibules are great, each person gets to keep their boots and stinky socks on their own side, plus it means more room to spread out the gear. It also has plenty of room inside, on a rainy day three of us played cards inside it without any trouble.

My two person tent only has one vestibule and trying to climb over two backpacks stacked to the top is pretty awkward when trying to get out, really tends to be more like leaping and falling out onto the ground (though the people in the other tents usually get a kick out of seeing the process).

Mine is Sierra Designs, my roommate has a Sierra Designs, my brother has a 4-season Mountain Hardwear, and after using a lot of these pricier ones I'd still go with the REI if mine ever wears out.

Really can't over emphasize how impressed I was with the tent, especially considering it cost half what a lot of the others do.

Don't forget to get the REI lifetime membership for $20, you get about a 10% dividend at the end of each year so for the price of the tent you'll about pay for the co-op membership.

Also, don't worry about summer/winter. The no-see-um mesh in the wall panels won't be a problem, it will still warm up fine.

The main difference between a 3-season and 4-season is strength. They are made to withstand 90mph+ winds that can happen at high elevations (a friend of mine recently told me about a friend of his that got blown off a ridge on Mt. Shasta and had to self arrest through the tent floor to stop himself sliding down the mountain towards the crevasses below). However, a 3-season tent guyed out will withstand some pretty hairy storms. Where a 3-season will really have trouble is snow. A foot or so of snow on a 3-season tent will cave in the roof where a 4-season will hold the snow up till you get up in the morning and clean it off.

I own and highly recommend the MSR Hubba for a lightweight one-person backpacking/river camping tent.

I chose the MSR over the Big Agnes Seedhouse SL1 because it has a side entry, a larger vestibule, and is a little easier to set up (IMO).

There are also two and three person versions in the Hubba series that don't weigh a whole lot more. Additionally, MSR has developed "HP" versions for more difficult conditons that replace some of the mesh with ultra-lightweight fabric.

MSR tent link here: http://www.msrcorp.com/tents/fastandlight.asp

With either the MSR or Big Agnes tents, if you have the matching footprint you can set up just the fly & poles with the footprint as a freestanding "tarp".

A tent will keep the wind off of you but your sleeping bag is the thing that's going to keep you warm. In cold, dry, weather a good bag is much more important than the tent.

It has been a while for this post, but if anyone still needs a tent, REI is putting their Half Dome tent on sale from now till the 11th for $109 down from $169.

Really nice tent. Not ultralight, but big and roomy and reasonably light, especially considering it has two vestibules.

REI has a 20% off sale beginning tomorrow for members.

I think membership is $20 bucks now - for which you get about a 8-10% annual dividend on non-sale purchases.

I spent the past 6 months reviewing and inspecting a variety of tents specifically to take on overnight paddling trips. Everyone will have different needs, but here were my criteria:
1) Only wanted a 1-person tent as I have a 4 person one I can take if sharing and have someone to share the load with.
2) Freestanding, (for me this was a must. I have a 1-person that requires several stakes and it can be a pain in some conditions to set up solo).
3) Lots of mesh/ air circulation (in AR I’ve seldom worried about camping and being too cold, but I’ve spent many hot and uncomfortable nights in a tent).
4) Packed small (being small was more important then how light it was since I wanted it to fit into my 10’ rec kayak or 12’ pack canoe).
5) Good air circulation (again, in AR, if it does get cold, condensation can be a big problem/

I bought the Mountain Hardware Meridian 2 thru REI. It is classified as a 2-person tent, but that would be tight fit. For 1 person there is plenty of room for some extra gear in the tent. It is really easy to set up. I pack the tent, fly and footprint in a waterproof compression bag which helps save space and then just put the poles and stakes in as separate tube. I’ve only tested it twice, but so far I am very happy with it.

I slept in a Hubba last weekend. I know it says 2 people but I agree .... only 1 fits. It was really nice and airy.
I've also heard the REI's are great, the new ones coming out especially, BUT .... I don't see myself river camping after all, and I kinda like the idea of sleeping in my Yukon at the campground!
Thanks for the imput!
Susan T

thats why they call it car campin'....

Yeah, they can be tight if you're expecting a lot of room. It gets even worse if you try to stick 3 big dudes in a backpacking tent labeled for 3, that starts to get funny to watch.

When you stick two full size pads in and they overlap you know you're in for a cozy camping experience. (Though the Hubba Hubba should be wide enough for two pads, and the Halfdome is another several inches wider than that.)

Last week I was in a two person tent on a snow covered slope, and even though we tried to kick the snow around to make a flat pad before setting the tent up, the far downhill side dropped off pretty steep so part of the tent was unusable. Luckily it was my brother so basically spooning on and off all night was only mildly awkward.

It's kind of the price you pay not to carry a 10lb+ tent.

Minimalist approach: http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/store ... &langId=-1
Pros: Almost infinite versaility. Extremely light weight, compact, and cheap. Keeps the wet out.
Cons: does not keep out bugs or cold.

Disclaimer: I'm a guy, so life is a little less complicated in some areas.

Good luck,
RJ

No Kidding, a tarp is all RandyJ takes camping.

I have seen him pitch that tarp in driving rain, engineer some wierd arrangement of tiedowns, crawl inside and sleep like a baby!

Makes me feel like a wimp as I get inside my hi dollar mountain tent, but I'm too old to learn how to engineer a tarp to keep the rain out.

RandyJ is definitely the TarpMaster!