Stoic

A Frame Tent: 2-Person 3-Season

Great Tent Generally, Limits in Rain

Familiarity:

I've used it once or twice and have initial impressions

Finally went camping for the first time with this tent. It has a tarpy bottom that does not require a footprint. We camped for 2 nights: Night 1: temps in the 40s/50s with light drizzle starting in the night. The breeze could get through a little, but when tucked in our sleeping bag, we were plenty warm. The tent retained some heat and reduced the wind. Not sure if this tent would feel hot in warmer temps or if that breeze would be enough. Regarding the rain: we had ZERO water in the tent, even on all the places where our sleeping bag or other items were touching the edges. Night 2: temps in the 30s/40s, continued light rain that had been going all day long, with a few heavier periods. We got into our tent again by early evening to escape the rain & cold. By this point, the top of the tent was beginning to drip slightly. The top 14"(ish) of the tent is a single layer of fabric with the attached "rain fly" only covering the window vents down the sides. This single layer was no longer withstanding the rain entirely. The rain stopped around 3am and by morning, we had drops about every 1cm across the top of our double sleeping bag (which covers pretty much the entire footprint of the tent). Not ideal, and we had to tuck books & other less water resilient items under our sleeping pad to keep them dry, but not terrible. The good news: no water from the bottom up. Not bad for 24 hours of rain. The bad news: if we were stuck in multiple days of rain, we might be in a pickle with rain continuing to collect on top. Not sure if there is an additional rain fly option, or you could potentially throw your own tarp over it since the poles are external and above the tent's fabric. Other positives: it can be set up super quickly & easily, even by one person. Ideal to have a second person for counter-tension when staking, but you could still easily do this one corner at a time. Two internal hang pockets on opposite corners in the tent. If you & your tent buddy want to have your head on the same side, that means one person will have "their pocket" at their feet. Would be perfect if you sleep face to feet. It is a compact 2-person tent, so it also means that pocket ends up being right above your face thanks to the slope of the tent walls, which is fine until sitting up & bumping into it. Packs down to a size that feels very compact for car-camping, but leans bulky for backpacking. Wouldn't be the worst I've backpacked with though. I've just used it the once, so I can't speak to durability, but so far I love this little tent, as long as I'm not in a situation where I need to stay in it for more than 1 day of rain!