Trying to decide on a tent

[Reflex]

Thank you all. Well, I would have not thought of 2 tents but now I am.  For car camping with my son, looking at REI Half Dome 2 or 4, or one of the Big Agnes 3 with mtnGlo.

For solo backpacking, no idea still

[John B]

I have owned a copper spur UL2 for seven years and love it.  I also own the UL1 for solo trips.  Tried tarp systems a few years ago, and just didn't work for me--like the better insulation from weather with a tent.   (my 2 cents worth)_.

[Reflex]

I was thinking of the Big Agnes Flycreek Premium for solo backpacking, its $550, expensive, weighs 1 lb. 15 oz.  I can afford it but I think its a lot of money.

Copper Spur 2 weighs 3 lbs. 2 oz.. Is that too heavy for light backpacking? I could use this for car camping with 6 year old too but on the small side? The Spur 1 weighs 2 lbs. 8 oz., not that much lighter than the Spur 2.

Then theres a few bigger Big Agnes and REI's for car camping. I dont want something uber palatial. REI Half Dome 2, Big Agnes Tumble 3 mtnGLO Tent, Big Agnes Rocky Peak 4 mtnGLO Tent....

Decisions, decisions...

Edited February 8, 2016 by Reflex

[Streue]

I am guessing that you are set on a freestanding tent?  Otherwise, there are much lighter and less expensive options that set up with trekking poles, which you may already be carrying anyway.  TarpTent options? Six Moon Designs?

[Reflex]

I have checked out the tarp thing...I dont think I wanna do that for now.

I think Im gonna do Copper Spur 2

[Streue]

No no, tarptent is a company that makes fully enclosed, sub 2lb, tents for under 300$. Part of how they keep their weight down though is through hiking pole setup. Six Moons Design makes some as well. Fully enclosed. Not a tarp. 

[Reflex]

Got it.

[grizzled]

My wife and I bought a Copper Spur UL3 a year ago and used it until the end of August.  Opinion?  Hated it in more ways than I can describe but the Zippers were the worst.  Nothing like trying to get out of it on a cool morning with the inside of the fly completely wet from condensation (venting inadequate).  Balanced out on one hand trying to get the fly zipper open with the other but every 4" the fly flap gets tangled up on the outside of the tent.  Sooo, laying on your back in the vestibule, you use both hands to open it all the while getting rained on by that condensation, not to mention half of it ends up in the tent because of the slopping tent sides.  Then there are the "bottom hinged" doors.  No matter where you try to hide them, wet canines will make them a mess.  That tent was returned to REI.  We added a half pound to my pack but the MSR Mutha Hubba is just so much better thought out and livable.  The floor pan is slightly smaller but since it is essentially full height door to door (doors actually slop a bit outward from the bottom), it seems much larger inside.  And the doors and zippers are just a pleasure to use after dealing with the Copper Spur.  You can open both the tent and fly doors without getting off your butt in the tent.  The Mutha Hubba venting sucks too but at least you can leave the fly doors unzipped part way without getting rain/snow in the tent and the vents are adjustable from inside the tent-unlike the Copper Spur.  Just my 2 cents.

[Andrew]

Lunar solo is nice for one, it's rated as 1.5 person. Loved my fly creek 1 but couldn't sit up and just too small. 6' tall, 190. Copper spur for two with gear worked well. Two vestibules for gear and cooking.

[rwehrman]

This answer is only about your need for a one-person tent. The tarps, and the general car camping tents will work fine for most of those non-backpacking needs. But solo walking in the wilderness is different. I am presuming you do not need a 4 season tent for winter or expedition-level camping at altitudes above 14,000 feet. 

Here goes. Last year I walked solo across the Mojave Desert. Weight was absolutely critical to my selection. But so was the ability to stand up in high wind and be big enough for me to stay inside for a couple of days during sand storms without feeling like King Tut. I looked at all sorts of tents and no one tent seemed to fit the bill. 

Although I might sleep under the stars some nights if the weather was right, I realized in a nasty storm I'd need a solid place to retreat. And should the need to go to ground arrive, in the Mojave it was probably going to be for a longer time than in tamer environs. 

In the end I settled on a Sierra Designs Tensegrity 1 FL. It is very light. But is advertised at 2 lbs. I knew I could cut that down with a bit of thought and double-purposing. I dumped the stuff sack and the pegs which I replaced with rocks, the pack, full water bottles, etc. I got it down to 1 lb. 9 oz.

It's only fair for me to say I could lose the stuff sack because I carry everything, yes everything, inside my pack. And I wasn't expecting any rain so I needn't be concerned about stuffing a wet tent into the backpack.

It requires you to use your trekking poles for the vertical supports (another double-purposed item). Since I had to take them along anyway, I figured it would be OK.

It was more than OK. It worked great for nearly a month of nightly use.

What I liked is there is a tremendous amount of room inside. Almost enough room for two very friendly people. For me alone it was palatial. Ventilation is also important in the desert and this tent has BIG doors on each side and another one on the front end. Gear is stored outside the tent in a very easy to reach alcove beneath the built in awning. So I could easily reach into the pack or use the stove outside the tent while I stayed inside ensconced on my luxurious down sleeping bag that also weighs less than 2 lbs. On some nights, when I wanted to watch the stars but not worry about things that go zzzzzzz outside, it allowed me to roll back the awning so I could look up at the sky with nothing in the way.

And for shade, the awning can be stretched out like a tarp. Shade was pretty high on my list, too. For there wouldn't be much of the natural kind at all.

There was indeed a storm that blew sand at high speeds for about 24 hours and the Tensegrity held up just fine. I am certain tent pegs would have pulled out in this wind, so rocks worked better anyway, and they were abundant everywhere I went. 

It is extremely well made. The factory folks were a big help when I accidentally broke something in the field. It was my fault, not the tent's. I was a long way from anywhere but they managed to get the part to me the next day!

Now, one more thought, I am perfectly happy sleeping out on under the stars. But when the need for a tent arose, this one made me feel as though I was still outside, not zipped away from the world in a nylon pouch like every biv I've ever used. I was safe and snug, but still out in the green world. And that, coupled with the low weight, flexibility, and reliability made me a happy camper.