Help deciding on a tent

[jgillam]

Hello all, first time poster.

I have been watching this forum on and off for a few years and have greatly appreciated all of the opinions and knowledge available on here.

After taking a 10 year hiatus from hiking, to raise young children, I am now looking at spending more time in the woods and have been sorting through gear options...which is a lot of fun.

Currently, I am trying to decide on a tent. I want a l relatively lightweight two-person tent and have narrowed my choices down to a few tents. Those being the MSR HH, Tarptent Stratospire 2 or Double Moment. Feel free to make other recommendations that fit my criteria.

Important to consider in offering advise is that I am 6'2" and around 250lbs. I will carry trekking poles, I do want a double wall tent with a non-tapered floor. I don't know if I want / need the tent to be free standing...input appreciated. Initially, my intended use will be for 1-3 day hikes with the kids in the Midwest with a few longer solo hikes. At some point in the next 5 years, I will plan an AT thru hike.

I like the MSR HH however, the interior height at seems awfully low at 39". The easy of set up, reasonable weight and reviews are all positives of this tent.

Both of the noted Tarptent options seem very nice as well. I find myself drawn to the additional interior height in both of these models.

Thank you in advance,

Jeremiah

[soumodeler]

Can't go wrong with TT products. I have owned 2 of them, the original Virga and the Notch, and I really love my Notch.

[garlic08]

Ditto Tarptent quality and durability. You see a lot of them on the long trails.

In your freestanding decision, consider that you should always drive secure stakes anyway. A freestanding tent (complete with sleeping bags) I saw high in a tree below a shelf lake will testify to that.

[TNhiker]

i have a MSR hubba hubba-----which i love....

but i wouldnt call it lightweight at all................i think it comes in around 5 pounds....

with that being said----ive used it for about 3 years backpacking before ive switched over to other lighter tents (which i do not love as much as the HH)......

the hubba hubba, for one person, is very roomy.........tons of room inside where i can sleep in the center and have a ton of room on both sides of me............along with being able to sit upright and not have my head touch the ceiling at all.........

but, if you're worried about weight----i would find something else.......

currently using a big agnes fly creek 2 which i dont like (front entry, it kinda sags, not a whole lot of room, but hey, its light) and about to switch over to a TT double rainbow.....

[Hikingjim]

http://www.mec.ca/product/5036-964/m...055&f=10+50858

could consider this at $260 USD. tapered, but wider/longer at the head compared to the double moment and some others. free standing, double entry/vestibule, seam sealed. height is 42"
A bit of a plug for the CDN retailer, but you can take back anything for almost any reason if it's somewhat reasonable

certainly some benefits to the other tents you're looking at

[jgillam]

What about the height issue? Is the 39" interior height of the HH going to feel tight?

The only thing I've camped in recent years is a box store special that fits 4-6 people, is 15 pounds and is about 6' tall at the center.... I understand that anything is going to feel smaller but that's okay.

The Stratospire list a 50" height which sounds nice.

[TNhiker]

What about the height issue? Is the 39" interior height of the HH going to feel tight?

ive never felt tight inside of the hubba hubba.....

i can sit up in it and not have my head touch the ceiling............and im just about 6 foot---probably under it (i havent measured myself in years so just taking a guess)....

now compare that to my fly creek ul 2---------i can only sit about halfway up or so................

but, obviously having the hubba hubba comes at a weight penalty...........


i really like the hubba hubba for a few reasons------double side doors.........very roomy especially for one person.............and no matter how you set it up---its the same inside---as in, one side is equal to the other (as in, one side doesnt taper down or anything like that).......

but, at 5 pounds give or take---it can be somewhat heavy for one person..............

[Hikingjim]

I don't think you'd have an issue with the height on that tent. The 42" one I use is a non issue, and I'm 6'4". It's not like I do much other than sleep (or hide from bugs the odd time) in the tent, and I can sit up well enough, and double entry helps for 2 person models

My first backpacking tent awhile back was a eureka solitaire at 28" roof. that was pretty terrible (felt like a moist coffin). kept hitting the roof with my arms and getting condensation on my stuff.

[Secondmouse]

well first of all, you're not going to use the same tent for you and your kids and then a thru hike. if your thru is a couple years down the road, worry about that when the time comes.

I don't own one but purely from a design perspective, I haven't been as impressed with any new tent as I have with the Stratospire One or Two. it really looks innovative. my needs may not be your needs but I value vestibule space more than interior roominess. the SS looks to have both...

[ggreaves]

Get a pair of hammocks instead of a 2 person tent. You'll sleep better, stay high and dry and never worry about condensation. Give it a try and you won't look back. The ground is for peeing on, not sleeping.

[Franco]

"and never worry about condensation"
That sounds fantastic and I mean that in the true sense of the word.

[Franco]

Whenever I read a "no condensation" comment regardless if it is about a tent/bivy/tarp/hammock I automatically translate that "no condensation for me so far..."
I pointed out before that exactly the same tent had one guy raving on about "zero condensation" and another, different forum within a day or two, calling it "a condensation machine" (meaning condensation factory...)
Oddly the "zero condensation guy" raving about his $700 tent disappeared soon after.
Anyway, Google "hammock condensation" and see what you get.

[jgillam]

Fortunately, I have zero interest in a hammock.

[MuddyWaters]

The tent for a thruhike, and the tent you want for camping with kids , arent the same tent.

Get a 3 person for with kids, freestanding. Assuming 2 kids. If more...get a huge tent.
Get the lightest thing possible for solo hiking, and learn to live with it.
Get the tent for the AT when that time comes. That aint on the radar yet and tech changes rapidly.

[ggreaves]

Anyway, Google "hammock condensation" and see what you get.

mostly posts about people sleeping on vapor barriers in a hammock (i.e. pads) instead of using an underquilt.

[jgillam]

I realize that a tent for thru hiking and a family tent are different. I've got the family tent stuff covered, a new tent would be for me and my oldest son to use for multi-day, local hikes as we prepare for bigger hikes.

Again folks, thanks for the input.

[squeezebox]

I like the increases interior space of the copper spur 2, The top spreader bar is a big deal. The poles do weigh 1 lb. and it is a tapered floor. 3lb 2oz

[Mayday_Belle]

I own a Stratospire 2 and can attest to the palatial interior space. It's luxurious for two people, and at only 2lbs 11oz it's a great UL choice.

However, there are two significant downsides. The first is the HUGE footprint, which was an issue during my recent West Coast Trail hike, where many of the designated tent spots were simply too small for the SS.

Secondly, attaining a taut pitch is very challenging. Even when I follow the setup video on the Tarptent website, I still get wall sag. In a heavy storm, this might become an issue. I'm sure it is possible to get a good pitch, but it would take a lot of practice.

I'm selling my Stratospire (let me know if you're interested) and would still highly recommend it if you have the patience to deal with these issues.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

[Franco]

"Secondly, attaining a taut pitch is very challenging. Even when I follow the setup video on the Tarptent website, I still get wall sag. In a heavy storm, this might become an issue"
Others have had the same problem but I bet that if I showed you in person how to do it you would be able to have the tent taut the first time after that. (I have done that with that one and other tents too, people seem to be amazed at just how easy it is once shown)
Anyway , have you tried my way of doing it ?
<span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); background-color: rgb(235, 235, 235);">
that video was really shot about half an hour after I opened the parcel...
The idea is to think of the tent as the rectangular floor area, so you set that up first and then just pull the vestibules out.
After that stake down the apex guylines (not visible in my clip)
Those apex guylines with the two raised corners give the shelter the correct tension.
Should look like this :

this photo was posted on the TT Facebook page yesterday, note the challenging ground :

[Franco]

BTW, for the new one here, I am part of Tarptent