tent question

How do they work?
Is the anklet a webbing outline of the tent floor with loops/grommets for the fly’s poles? Hard to tell from the pictures…

Exactly

– Last Updated: Feb-12-13 1:24 PM EST –

Pretty simple concept really, but I couldn't buy the tools and materials to make one for what he charged me. He can make it to fit any tent. He just needs measurements between poles if it's for a tent he's never made one for.

LLBean Microlight FS
FS=freestanding. Saw one in their outlet store for $139. I think EMS may also be making a knock-off of the MSR Hubba family.

I use the Marmot Limelight 3
for two of us camping and they make a two man version. The vestibules are not freestanding but you will have no trouble finding rocks to use as a deadman.



Freestanding is not what you want necessarily on the Maine Islands. (none of which have sand camping btw except if the tide is out and you sleep fast) A good set of many exterior tie outs can be helpful in sour weather. Tie one end of a line to the tieout and the other to a set of rocks…



I also have a North Face Tadpole 23 that is a more freestanding version of the veritable Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight. All is freestanding except the long entry vestibule. Again deadman the tie out points.



The Hubba Series of all mesh tents (I have an older Hubba Hubba) is too sloppy inside. I nixed Hubba just for that reason…its a true one man tent with no room for splash errors.



You might visit a North Face Outlet (Freeport) and also Ragged Mt (Intervale) or IME(North Conway). The latter two have high quality consignment tents from time to time.

great ideas Kayamedic

– Last Updated: Feb-12-13 4:38 PM EST –

i would like free standing for a couple of reasons though...one of them being you can easily move to find even ground, hate that when you are all set up and then you realize that you are on a slope. not easy to move the type tent i have, it's actually not even worth it. But free standing would be so much nicer for such a thing. also would be much easier for camping on platforms. The one i have is destined to my neice so while i am in the market, i want one that should cover all my needs. I do plan on anchoring, but would like options.

We (not an I) used the Limelight
on chickees on our just concluded Everglades trip. The ease of setup was a great asset, plus the tieoffs were sometimes necessary…



Chasing a tent into the water after its left a chickee is not a fun sport in my book. While a freestanding tent is said to be essential for them, it IS possible to tie to the floor board ends.



Do you have a preference for end entry or two side entries?

Mountain Hardware Trango
is the tent that I have use for about 10 years now. There is a 2man, 3man and 4man. They are not for summer camping. But for fall, winter and spring, they are great tents. I have used my 3 man for many years and it has held up well. It is a 5 pole tent and very stable when all staked out in extreme weather. Not light. Not compact in the sack. But rugged and durable. It is a free standing tent except you have to stake out the vestibules. This is s tent that can bring you through the worst weather you can imagine.

My tent wardrobe
is the Limelight 3 for summer duet use, the Trango 3.1 for spring fall duet use and the 2 man North Face for solo spring fall use . The Hubba Hubba is reserved for true summer where no sand is anticipated. Before I got wiser I camped in Quebec with it in May and nearly froze…to its credit it did not cave in with the snow.



The Trangos are the beefiest. They are true mountaineering tents. But on a chickee you might cook.



I am not sure if the OP wants to chickee camp in Florida or GA but you do need a fly there…otherwise the dampness will soak your sleeping bag. (I tried going flyless). Some mesh is a plus in this situation. The Trangos have none and the fly comes down to the ground…a real asset in lousy cold weather.

Quarter Dome UL
They advertise it as a two-man tent. More like one-and-a-half.



http://monterey.craigslist.org/spo/3612981393.html

I spent 3 weeks on the ground…
Due to a brand new Big Agnes sleeping pad. It failed on day 4 of a 26 day trip, delaminated and couldn’t be field repaired. I wouldn’t buy anything Big Agnes ever again, but that’s just me. It was also the third pad I had from them that failed, I should have learned the first time, but they were so compact and comfortable for the time. I’ve since switched over to a exped.



I spent three months in a MSR Hubba Hubba tent in Chile, and it performed perfectly despite not being the best tent for the wet\windy conditions down there. If camping on a sandy beach, I’d wake up to a tent that was more sandbox with all the sand blowing through. It did blow flat during a few gusty nights, but always sprang back up.



For nasty weather nothing beats a full on 4 season tent, no breeze cranking through the tent all night, no endless flapping all night. I’ve spent a lot of time in the MH Trango tents, pretty awesome. As are the Hillbergs, but so expensive. I cheaped out and found a Marmot Widi 2 that seems pretty good, kind of a tube tent 4 season tent, but can open up a big side panel to get lots of ventilation and access for nicer weather.



NEMO designs out of NH seems to making some pretty burly little tents that would stand up to a bit of weather, and have more panels in addition to the mesh that’s typical of other manufacturers.



http://www.nemoequipment.com/nemo2012-esprile2p-tent



For kayak camping I usually add 3 or 4 feet of p-cord to tie down points to stack rocks, and lots of p-cord on the guy out points to tie to either a rock pile or whatever anchor is available. A well set up tent doesn’t make as much noise or flap around in the wind all night. I carry extra cord to make sure I get a good set up. I’ve seen people who carry small eye-screws with them to tie into logs or wood platforms to get a good anchor point.



For hiking I’m looking into a UL tarp setup, and a lot of manufacturers are making mesh inserts for the more popular tarps to keep the creepy crawlies out. I’m thinking if I can find something that will handle a bit of wind, I’ll use this as my nice season kayak and hiking setup, and keep the four season tent for the kayak trips to places with a little more weather.



http://www.mountainlaureldesigns.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=21&products_id=102



http://www.bearpawwd.com/shelters_floors/pyraNet1.html




MEC Tarn 2

– Last Updated: Feb-13-13 12:12 AM EST –

Canada's Mountain Equipment Co-op has the Tarn2 for $219 - great value, imho. Have used one for years, in wind and rain - when paired up with the Guide tarp, it's bombproof.
http://www.mec.ca/AST/ShopMEC/Tents/3SeasonTents/PRD~5027-697/mec-tarn-2-tent.jsp

Don’t get the Black Diamond…
“First Light”. After a lot of useless research, it seemed to be rated among the best so we got one last year for an expedition Challenge.

We didn’t get to use it for that, but used it on a six day five night trip, and were very disappointed to find that the inside wall would get soaken over night.

We called them about it when we got back, and they passed it off saying that it just needed more ventilation. We had lots of ventilation and it didn’t make any difference.



Jack L

Thanks everyone
Little nervous to buy an EMS product, sounds like they are going out of business, selling out to Bob’s. they laid off over 100 employees.

No inside news but if EMS is going
out of business, why did they open a second store recently in Portland Maine?

Also a new store in Bourne, Mass.
Jack L

EMS
not really sure why they would do that, we headr it the WMUR news about 2 weeks ago. They are closing the headquarters in Peterborough,NH and laid off approx. 116 employees. I noticed that the were having great sales unlike anything i had ever seen them do in the store in Concord, NH.

Time will tell.

Don’t know only what i saw on the news and in the store.

beach camp with caution
Generally it’s better to get behind the first rise or dune.

EMS News
EMs was bought by a private equity firm who ALSO owns Bob’s. No stores listed to close as of now.



The layoffs in Peterborough were associated with the closing of the warehouses. I believe the plan is to consolidate with the warehouses that they already own/service in Wilton, CT.



For news, read here:

http://www.unionleader.com/article/20130201/NEWS02/130209913/0/OPINION01


Thanks for setting us straight Suz.

Back to the OP’s question,
I have used a MSR HubbaHubba as a solo tent for years and am quite happy with it. True, now that I love hammock camping it gets less use but I love the roominess (I am a Big Guy) and gear storage room.



I will be doing a cycling trip on the GAP trail from Pgh to Cumberland and back this June, and for the longest time I lusted over a MSR Hubba. But it is essentially a tall bivvy, only 26" wide and I got to thinking how “close” it would feel on a humid and rainy night. The HH is very well ventilated, and I have been happy when it sheltered me from the rain. And it ventilates relatively well to boot. The H would save about 1 lb, but I can do that by losing weight!



Jim