Tent

[partinj]

Since i have some more time on my hands i been looking at some tents. I found one call the mountainsmith satellite. Has anyone ever use this tent and if you have did you like it. I was thinking about replace my warlus with this one it total pack weight is 3lbs.14oz that make it 1lbs 5oz less than mind:-?

[Frolicking Dinosaurs]

I don't have this tent, but I do see two potential problems with the design.

First - the mesh tent body clips to poles that are then covered by a rainfly. Could you set this up in a rainstorm without having the bathtub floor get soaked?

Second - I have a tent with a similar slanted doorway - it is impossible to enter or exit that tent in rain without getting the inside wet (unless you also use a tarp over it as we do).

[Rebel, with a Cause!]

A good tent for the solo AT hiker is the New Contrail by Traptent. Its 24.5 Oz, 94 inches long and easy to set up. My son used the Virga last year on his AT hike and loved it and the New Contrail is a much improved design.

Go here to see the tent:

http://www.tarptent.com/contrail.html

Notice that the Front beak provides 10 square feet of protected gear space. High beak vent allows flowthrough ventilation. Full Bathtub floor and mesh interior walls to prevent contact with condensation on outer walls.

For a larger and roomier tent look at the Squall 2 at 34 Oz. Room enough for 2 people and their gear and still much lighter than your choice.

Here is the link to the Squall:

http://www.tarptent.com/squall2.html

Both of these tents are high quality and great for an AT thru hike.

Me, I use an Hennessy Hammock but they arent for everyone :)

Good Luck and have a Great hike !

[rafe]

Hey, Partinj.... it looks like decent little tent, especially at the REI outlet price. Not the lightest possible tent, however. You can get to 3 lbs without too much trouble and at about the same price, eg. with the Eureka Solitaire, either "retail" or sometimes at the Eureka outlet store (http://www.eurekacampingctr.com/eureka/dept.asp?s%5Fid=0&dept%5Fid=3005).

[rafe]

First - the mesh tent body clips to poles that are then covered by a rainfly. Could you set this up in a rainstorm without having the bathtub floor get soaked?

It looks like a dual-hoop design that's been used in many tents over many years by a number of brands -- Eureka, Sierra Designs, MSR, et. al. It takes maybe 30 seconds to clip the mesh to the two hoops -- and as soon as it's done you can throw the fly over it. So yeah -- there's that 30 seconds where the inside floor of the tent is exposed. It's got to be a major downpour before that matters.

The alternative is to connect the fly permanently to the tent, and thread the hoop(s) through sleeve(s).

[saimyoji]

The Eureka! Timberlite series uses a similar design where hoops and clips attach the tent body to the frame, fly goes over the top. With practice the whole thing can be set up in less than a minute, with even more practice the tent can be erected with the fly still covering the tent body, fly is secured afterwards.

Use of any tent in the backcountry in harsh weather requires practice.

[Frolicking Dinosaurs]

Drop the first potential problem - the fellows that have used such tents know what works.

[saimyoji]

Just checked the rei link....at that price go for it.

[Forrest]

Thanks for putting up this thread. I was also looking for tent and the Mountainsmith was a good price and seems to be ok. For the price it is worth a try. I ended up with the two place tent as I am prepping to take my family.

Forrest