Best tent for 1 month section hike through Virginia (this Summer)

[matt608]

Hi everyone,
I'm looking for a one man tent for my first 'serious' solo hike. I'd say I'm between intermediate and novice in experience. I've just had a week camping and hiking with two friends in the (freezing cold!) Scottish highlands, before that I did a few Duke of Edinburgh hikes in school (bronze and silver).

I going to be hiking for a month along the AT through Virginia this summer, the exact dates are yet to be decided. I'll be hiking solo for most of it probably, but some friends may join me for a few days here and there.

My research is pointing me to get a Henry Sheine Tarp Tent, but I am not sure which one is best for me. I'm trying to decide between a:

Sublite
Moment
Contrail
Scarp 1

I'm tall and skinny, about 6 foot 2, so fitting me and my gear is a concern. Price is also a concern, is there a reason I shouldn't just go for a cheap and lightweight Sublight?

Any advice here would be appreciated

[Graywolf]

Hi everyone,
I'm looking for a one man tent for my first 'serious' solo hike. I'd say I'm between intermediate and novice in experience. I've just had a week camping and hiking with two friends in the (freezing cold!) Scottish highlands, before that I did a few Duke of Edinburgh hikes in school (bronze and silver).

I going to be hiking for a month along the AT through Virginia this summer, the exact dates are yet to be decided. I'll be hiking solo for most of it probably, but some friends may join me for a few days here and there.

My research is pointing me to get a Henry Sheine Tarp Tent, but I am not sure which one is best for me. I'm trying to decide between a:

Sublite
Moment
Contrail
Scarp 1

I'm tall and skinny, about 6 foot 2, so fitting me and my gear is a concern. Price is also a concern, is there a reason I shouldn't just go for a cheap and lightweight Sublight?

Any advice here would be appreciated

Lots of hikers here will agree with the Contrail..It is very durable..And not as expensive then the others..And light weight...As for the Moment, the one thing I like about it is it can be made free-standing..Which I like...I also understand it has a entrance that makes it virtually impossible to get it wet inside when your trying to take off your shoes..

Those are my takes, but any of them would do..I purchased a Squall back in 2002 that was excellent..very light weight and very comfortable..I was impressed..I think others here will have good opinions too...But watch out for the hammock people, they will try to convince you other wise..They scare me....

[Tinker]

The Sublite is made of Tyvek, which is not entirely waterproof. I don't see the silnylon version on their website anymore, but I didn't look that long. Either way, they don't seem to have the perimeter ventilation of the other tarptents (I didn't see it in the photos or read about it in the specs, though it may be that HS assumed that we'd know that all of his tents had it). Another minus is that ventilation may be compromised when you have to button it up for heavy rain. The Moment (and most other models) seem to have a vestibule which can be left partially open even in heavy rain to aid in ventilation.
Have you looked at the Lightheart Tent yet? It's more money but is biased toward warm weather with as much mesh as you can get on a tent.

[Tinker]

Lightheart Tent link (my test):
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/show...ightheart+tent

[Tinker]

There is a new link to the manufacturer, apparantly: http://lightheartgear.com/index.html

[Tinker]

One plus to the Moment (and the reason for the name, I believe) is that it only requires two stakes to set it up (sets up in a moment??). It has more staking points for extreme weather (as do most tents), but if you are completely sure that the weather will be benign except for a little rain, your setup will probably be faster than most other tents.
Decisions, decisions! (and I'm not even buying!)

[garlic08]

Happy Contrail user here, with over 5000 trail miles on mine and I'm hoping for 5000 more. The deciding factor for me over the Moment is no hoop pole. The Contrail is ultra-reliable--virtually nothing to break. Even the zippers have lasted. It takes a week or so of practice to get the pitch right, even for someone with experience. The Moment pitches easier, it looks like.

[Roche]

Very happy with my Contrail, but very intrigued by the Moment.

[Praha4]

only factor I'm not crazy about with the Moment is having to slide the pole thru the fabric "sleeve", he doesn't use clips like most of the newer hoop tents, I guess that was to save weight, but the clips allows for faster put-up and take-down times than the sleeve, which can bunch up, or the pole sections can come apart on you insided the sleeve

[bigcranky]

I have the Moment, and it's a very nice design. Super fast and easy to set up. I've owned and used the Squall and the Rainshadow, which are similar designs to the Contrail, and I prefer my headroom in the middle and the door on the long side.

That said, the Contrail is a very simple and versatile design, and weighs less.

[Press]

Keep in mind that here in VA in the summer depending on the month and elevation it may be hot as hell and super-humid, with thunderstorms. So you will want to stay dry if it is raining at night, but also not burn up and sweat if it isn't. I have a BigAgnes Seedhouse 2 very lightweight 2-man tent that is just the right size for me alone. I am about 6-1 and can sit up in it. You can leave off the fly and just use it to keep the bugs out if you want. I don't know that much about the other tents mentioned, not doubt they are good choices as well.

[J-Fro]

Will be hiking in VA this June on section hike, I use MSR Hubba. Is fairly lightweight and can easily fit me (6') sitting upright, has generous vesibule. You can have the tent with or without fly, or you can have the fly alone if you'd like. It is very strudy and of good quality and reasonably priced. I also don't know much about the ones you have mentioned, but I'm sure they are of good quality too. Have fun!

[Tinker]

only factor I'm not crazy about with the Moment is having to slide the pole thru the fabric "sleeve", he doesn't use clips like most of the newer hoop tents, I guess that was to save weight, but the clips allows for faster put-up and take-down times than the sleeve, which can bunch up, or the pole sections can come apart on you insided the sleeve

For a single hoop, a sleeve is a more structurally sound system than clips. If you have a tent with crossing poles, a clip at each crossing makes them stronger. Without crossing poles the sleeve keeps the single pole from sliding around when the tent is hit broadside by a big wind.
The key to not poking the pole end through the sleeve is to pull the sleeve over the pole rather than trying to push the pole through the sleeve. It's best done before staking the tent out (Hilleberg Akto experience).
Also, pushing (rather than pulling) the pole out of the sleeve during takedown will minimize the possibility of the sections coming apart unexpectedly.

[Tinker]

Might as well throw this one http://www.buzzillions.com/reviews/r...1-tent-reviews into the fray.
Warning: if you're not really skinny, this one may not be for you (unless they've widened it for this year). I tried one on for size last year. It seems made for someone 6' or less and not close to my 215 lbs.

[XCskiNYC]

Hi Matt,

Did you consider Tarptent's Rainbow? It seems to have a lot of interior space and much more floor space than the Moment (Rainbow = 23-30 square feet says TT site).

A main drawback of the Rainbow apparently is the high-area and high side walls but in the summer in VA this may not be a problem very often.

The Moment, OTOH, has a shape which is both low to the ground and capable of shedding a very strong wind. In fact, if you could attach some wings and a tail empennage to the Moment, you might have yourself alternate hang-gliding capability.

[DTG]

Hi Matt, just to throw this out there, for a section hike in the summer i have heard great things about all the tents youve mentioned particularly the moment (and the rainbow) and think theyd do great for you however 2 things id say are that if most of your hiking is in the highlands of scotland or UK in general im not sure that upon your return a single wall tent will be the best bet and also the shipping cost means that the price is not as good value for money (assuming you had it shipped to the UK)

For what its worth I have a seedhouse Sl 1 which did great for my thru and does fine in the UK.

[LIhikers]

I have a Tarptent Rainbow and am happy with it.
It has a ton of room inside in all 3 dimensions and can be made to be freestanding by either using hiking poles or a couple of tent poles, as described here.

[Bear Cables]

I really like my Contrail. Quick set up, haven't found it hard to get the pitch right. Have had it for two years and 6 hikes. Never have been rained on in it so today as a thuderstorm was blowing up I quickly set it up in the yard and got in as the strom broke. It poured! wind made the tent billow out like a sail but no water in the tent. I got out, and got soaked, put the back struts down to the ground and left it in the weather. After the storm passed I checked it out. There were puddles on top where I pinned the back corners down but the inside was very dry! Good test I think...