WhiteBlaze Pages 2024
A Complete Appalachian Trail Guidebook.
AVAILABLE NOW. $4 for interactive PDF(smartphone version)
Read more here WhiteBlaze Pages Store

Page 1 of 3 1 2 3 LastLast
Results 1 to 20 of 44

Hybrid View

Previous Post Previous Post   Next Post Next Post
  1. #1
    Registered User
    Join Date
    10-18-2007
    Location
    Lebanon, pa
    Posts
    50
    Images
    1

    Default what is the best tent for bad weather

    What is the better tent, the Gossamer Gear, The One or the Tarp Tent , Rainbow any pros or cons.
    I am looking for something light weight but will stand up to bad weather as well as blood sucking bugs and will hold up for lots of miles

  2. #2
    Registered User ShelterLeopard's Avatar
    Join Date
    06-01-2008
    Location
    Milford, NJ
    Age
    33
    Posts
    3,030
    Images
    12

    Default

    I've never slept in either, but it looks (from the statistics, photos, and things I've heard) as though the Gossamer Gear is the way to go. I've heard that it holds up better than the rainbow.
    2010 AT NoBo Thru "attempt" (guess 1,700 miles didn't quite get me all the way through ;) )
    Various adventures in Siberia 2016
    Adventures past and present!
    (and maybe 2018 PCT NoBo)

  3. #3
    Registered User Lyle's Avatar
    Join Date
    01-25-2006
    Location
    Croswell, MI
    Age
    70
    Posts
    3,934
    Images
    68

    Default

    I use The One. Had it for a couple of years now. The only thing I don't like about it is that the roof line, sloping to both head and foot, tends to drop heavy condensation right onto your face. Good thing is that this wakes you up, so you can wipe down the inside of the tent.

    This only happens on fairly rare occasions, when condensation problems are very high - cold, very damp, very still night.

    The counterpoint to the above complaint is that the ventilation is fantastic, so that if their is any breeze at all, condensation is virtually non-existent.

    I LOVE the lack of weight and the fact that it provides full protection. Easy to pitch, once you get your method down - watch the videos online, it's not entirely intuitive.

    Good shelter, kept me dry in hard, all-night rains, light snow, and heavy winds. Definitely Recommended.

    I have no personal experience with the Rainbow. From having seen them set up, they strike me as having a very large footprint, and thus could be more difficult to find a place to set up in some situations.

    Another option to consider is the Six Moon Design Lunar (solo or duo). I have a Six Moon Wild Oasis that is a great little (key word) shelter.

  4. #4
    Registered User
    Join Date
    01-11-2007
    Location
    Johnson City, TN
    Posts
    163
    Journal Entries
    1

    Default tent option

    You might also look at the Lunar Solo from Six Moons Design. It's light and will keep the bugs off. Similar condensation issues to the others mentioned. Not yet sure about its long-term durability; ask me in September.

  5. #5
    Registered User bulldog49's Avatar
    Join Date
    12-27-2004
    Location
    Anderson, IN
    Age
    74
    Posts
    1,032

    Default

    I have the Lunar Solo and have it used it for winter AT trips. Encountered wind, rain and wet snow. It's worked fine in all conditions. Really happy with it.
    "If you don't know where you're going...any road will get you there."
    "He who's not busy living is busy dying"

  6. #6
    Registered User ShelterLeopard's Avatar
    Join Date
    06-01-2008
    Location
    Milford, NJ
    Age
    33
    Posts
    3,030
    Images
    12

    Default

    I almost got the Lunar- but I can't stand the fact that you can't sit up at all. And I love bathtub floors. (I stuck with my old tent- it had everything I need, even though if would make UL hikers flinch)
    2010 AT NoBo Thru "attempt" (guess 1,700 miles didn't quite get me all the way through ;) )
    Various adventures in Siberia 2016
    Adventures past and present!
    (and maybe 2018 PCT NoBo)

  7. #7

    Default

    Stephenson's Warmlite

  8. #8
    Registered User
    Join Date
    02-19-2003
    Location
    Texas
    Age
    76
    Posts
    1,979
    Images
    1

    Default

    The best shelter for bad weather is a good hammock with a tarp. That way no water can pour in the sides like it does in a tent... I use a Warbonnet Blackbird with a MacCat tarp.

  9. #9
    Registered User ShelterLeopard's Avatar
    Join Date
    06-01-2008
    Location
    Milford, NJ
    Age
    33
    Posts
    3,030
    Images
    12

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Red Hat View Post
    The best shelter for bad weather is a good hammock with a tarp. That way no water can pour in the sides like it does in a tent... I use a Warbonnet Blackbird with a MacCat tarp.
    I have been very close to changing to a hammock for that very reason. (But, I like sleeping on solid ground. For now, anyway.)
    2010 AT NoBo Thru "attempt" (guess 1,700 miles didn't quite get me all the way through ;) )
    Various adventures in Siberia 2016
    Adventures past and present!
    (and maybe 2018 PCT NoBo)

  10. #10

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by ShelterLeopard View Post
    I have been very close to changing to a hammock for that very reason. (But, I like sleeping on solid ground. For now, anyway.)
    There's never a wet floor in a hammock.............
    Shalom.
    As I live, declares the Lord God, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn back from his way and live. Ezekiel 33:11

  11. #11
    Section Hiking Knucklehead Hooch's Avatar
    Join Date
    03-26-2007
    Location
    Charlotte, NC
    Age
    55
    Posts
    3,948
    Images
    17

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Red Hat View Post
    The best shelter for bad weather is a good hammock with a tarp. That way no water can pour in the sides like it does in a tent... I use a Warbonnet Blackbird with a MacCat tarp.
    Watch out for the hammock haters, Red Hat. But I do agree with you.
    "If you play a Nicleback song backwards, you'll hear messages from the devil. Even worse, if you play it forward, you'll hear Nickleback." - Dave Grohl

  12. #12

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Hooch View Post
    Watch out for the hammock haters, Red Hat. But I do agree with you.
    The last time I slept in a tent was in 1995 or so in Olympia
    I've grown up since then. My dogs sleep on the 'floor"
    Clarks Tropical for this ole boy.
    Justa swingin"

  13. #13

    Default

    never had a drop of water get into my MSR zoid2

  14. #14
    Hike smarter, not harder.
    Join Date
    10-01-2008
    Location
    Midland, TX
    Age
    65
    Posts
    2,262

    Default

    The Lunar Solo has a footprint as large as the TT Double Rainbow, so I wouldn't get that unless you're aware of that. I could sit up in my Lunar Solo, so I was surprised to see a previous poster say you couldn't. And you might look into the new Tarptent Moment. Slightly heavier, but nicely evolved.
    Con men understand that their job is not to use facts to convince skeptics but to use words to help the gullible to believe what they want to believe - Thomas Sowell

  15. #15

    Default

    how do the coffin tents compare to the tipi? i would think the steep slope of the tipi wall would shed water and snow alot better.......

  16. #16
    Registered User
    Join Date
    03-06-2007
    Location
    Bellevue, WA
    Age
    67
    Posts
    2,000

    Default

    I'm not a hammock hater (I have an HH, use it occasionally), but I think it depends (among other things) on the anticipated overall weather --- not just rain but cold.

    Bottom line for me is that when it's sufficiently cold out, the weight hit to be warm enough in terms of both above and underneath insulation leaves me with a significantly heavier set of sleeping gear. For example, starting on the AT in late Feb I'll be using a very lightweight (not waterproof) bivy combined with a Gatewood cape used as both tarp/tent & raingear. I can't get close to that weight package with my HH and sufficient insulation (JRB or whatever). And starting that early makes "drying out and/or sleeping in" a shelter a good option (at least I'm guessing the shelters won't be as full for a thru-hiker starting in Feb ...).

    In other seasons and/or on other trails where there are enough of the right kinds of trees, a hammock is without doubt a great shelter, not least for the ability to stealth camp and in the right conditions to greatly expand the options for finding a campsite, and for at least many people, the comfort and consistency of the experience (no roots, rocks, to sleep on).

    W.r.t. the original thread (!), I've spent many a night in my Tarptent Contrail --- a very roomy solo single wall tent. Between that and the Gatewood Cape and my Gossamer Gear pack I would feel very comfortable buying any product from any of these three companies (tarptent.com, sixmoondesigns.com, gossamergear.com). I love these cottage industry companies that keep pushing the limits of what gear can do for us.

  17. #17
    Registered User
    Join Date
    07-21-2008
    Location
    Everywhere
    Posts
    839
    Images
    1

    Default

    From the ones you mentioned, definitely the Rainbow. With the two side grommets for vertical trekking poles, the long center pole and multiple tieouts, none of the other ones come close.

    The One's vestibule does not come down far enough and will let in wind driven rain. That sucked BTW.

  18. #18
    Registered User
    Join Date
    10-12-2007
    Location
    Mt Rainier, WA
    Age
    60
    Posts
    5

    Default

    I have to say my Rainbow Tarptent-actually a Double Rainbow, has been a great tent for me. I've had several other tents, although none of those listed-although I did look at them all.
    If pitched correctly, the Rainbow does a fantastic job keepin the weather out, and shedding snow too. It also has extra points where you can tie off into or use your trekking poles to hook into, to add extra stabilization in bad weather. The Double Rainbow comes with an optional inside fly that takes seconds to put up, needs to never be taken down, and helps considerably with condensation, misting, and adds a bit of insulation to the inside of your tent. Dual entry and spacious vestibules only add to its appeal for me. That is my go-to tent when I think the weather may be iffy. For good weather trips, I take my Contrail.

  19. #19

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Red Hat View Post
    The best shelter for bad weather is a good hammock with a tarp. That way no water can pour in the sides like it does in a tent... I use a Warbonnet Blackbird with a MacCat tarp.
    Water pours in the sides of a tent? Which tent is this? Never had it happen to me.

    Tarp Bails: On my last trip(Nov 22 to Dec 6), I ran into 3 backpackers from Chattanooga who got caught in a mean snowstorm at 5,300 feet and one guy had a tarp with everything covered underneath in blown snow. See fotogs below. He later lowered it but then bailed before the second night, an even colder night at 7F.

    The last fotog shows a typical winter windstorm and the effects of spindrift on a tent. Ergo, no tent should have unsealable mesh if you expect to keep blown snow out.

    The best tent for bad weather? When I think of really bad conditions, I think of 60mph winter blizzards or summer thunderstorm windstorms at 5-6,000 feet on an open bald or mountaintop. Like with staying warm, security in such conditions requires weight: more poles, more stakes, more guylines, beefier shelter, double walled preferably. And enough living space to keep your sleeping bag dry and not touching any part of the tent. Most of the tents listed will touch the foot of a lofted down bag, including the highly vaunted Akto.

    It's all about head and foot tent angles and if the fabric touches the sleeping bag. With any touching will come a wet bag. Very few tents have vertical head and foot ends, and Hilleberg has this problem too. In fact, in their Tent Handbook they recommend covering your sleeping bag with a rain jacket before you go to sleep. Why? Cuz their tents are too short and too angled.
    Attached Images Attached Images

  20. #20
    Registered User
    Join Date
    07-21-2008
    Location
    Everywhere
    Posts
    839
    Images
    1

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Tipi Walter View Post
    Water pours in the sides of a tent? Which tent is this? Never had it happen to me.

    Tarp Bails: On my last trip(Nov 22 to Dec 6), I ran into 3 backpackers from Chattanooga who got caught in a mean snowstorm at 5,300 feet and one guy had a tarp with everything covered underneath in blown snow. See fotogs below. He later lowered it but then bailed before the second night, an even colder night at 7F.

    The last fotog shows a typical winter windstorm and the effects of spindrift on a tent. Ergo, no tent should have unsealable mesh if you expect to keep blown snow out.

    The best tent for bad weather? When I think of really bad conditions, I think of 60mph winter blizzards or summer thunderstorm windstorms at 5-6,000 feet on an open bald or mountaintop. Like with staying warm, security in such conditions requires weight: more poles, more stakes, more guylines, beefier shelter, double walled preferably. And enough living space to keep your sleeping bag dry and not touching any part of the tent. Most of the tents listed will touch the foot of a lofted down bag, including the highly vaunted Akto.

    It's all about head and foot tent angles and if the fabric touches the sleeping bag. With any touching will come a wet bag. Very few tents have vertical head and foot ends, and Hilleberg has this problem too. In fact, in their Tent Handbook they recommend covering your sleeping bag with a rain jacket before you go to sleep. Why? Cuz their tents are too short and too angled.
    Except the little Akto - with 87" vertical ends, I never had any issue with touching the walls when laying down. Just don't ask me about sitting up.

Page 1 of 3 1 2 3 LastLast
++ New Posts ++

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •