Jonathan Hanson
Supporting Sponsor
I'm continuously amazed at the number of people who think a tent shouldn't cost more than lunch. When I was guiding in the Sea of Cortez I assembled a comprehensive tent repair kit with which to patch up the $39.95 dome tents a lot of my clients showed up with. Flimsy fiberglass poles, "coated" nylon fabric you could blow out a match through, shoddy construction. Match any of them against a stiff norther and the results were inevitable.
I don't think there's an item of gear that will affect your comfort and security in the wilds as much as the tent--not even your sleeping bag. So whatever size you need, whether it's a backpackable model or a family-sized cabin tent, invest in quality. You'll be glad you did, especially at 3:00 a.m. when the rain and wind start.
Probably the best field test I ever gave a tent was a storm on the Beaufort Sea coast, where my wife and I were kayaking when a report came over the VHF of a fast-moving storm from the west. We pitched our North Face VE25 above the high tide line and cooked dinner in the vestibule while the wind rose and rain started blowing sideways. It topped out at 50-55 mph gusts according to our anemometer. The tent just hummed, and we slept like babes.
I've reviewed at least 200 tents for various magazines. In backpack-style tents the major brands that stand out right now include Marmot, The North Face, MSR (formerly Moss Tents), and Sierra Designs. In larger tents look at Paha Que, Coleman, Eureka, and L.L. Bean. Sierra Designs has a couple of models that are big enough for cots and have standing headroom, but only weigh 20 pounds or so.
I don't think there's an item of gear that will affect your comfort and security in the wilds as much as the tent--not even your sleeping bag. So whatever size you need, whether it's a backpackable model or a family-sized cabin tent, invest in quality. You'll be glad you did, especially at 3:00 a.m. when the rain and wind start.
Probably the best field test I ever gave a tent was a storm on the Beaufort Sea coast, where my wife and I were kayaking when a report came over the VHF of a fast-moving storm from the west. We pitched our North Face VE25 above the high tide line and cooked dinner in the vestibule while the wind rose and rain started blowing sideways. It topped out at 50-55 mph gusts according to our anemometer. The tent just hummed, and we slept like babes.
I've reviewed at least 200 tents for various magazines. In backpack-style tents the major brands that stand out right now include Marmot, The North Face, MSR (formerly Moss Tents), and Sierra Designs. In larger tents look at Paha Que, Coleman, Eureka, and L.L. Bean. Sierra Designs has a couple of models that are big enough for cots and have standing headroom, but only weigh 20 pounds or so.