gcsitts
Pie,Coffee,Gas,Blacktop
I bought a new Mountain Hardware three person tent in December. I set it up in the yard a couple of weeks ago and have slept in it several nights, including one night of strong winds, another of 3" of snow and another where it rained heavily and then froze in the early morning. It got down to about 28 degrees.
Other than double-stakeing it (the ground is wet and soft) and using a ground cloth under it, it was a normal set-up. I was surprised that it held up for a week through all that, staying dry and not leaking or buckling under the snow load.
It did collapse down some under the snow, but a shake from the inside pushed the snow off and it sprang back.
Watching it lean and give when the wind blew I came to appreciate the advantage of its flexible aluminum poles.
I hear concerns with the fibreglass poles breaking. I presume aluminum poles could kink, but could be straightened.
This "three man" tent is just about right for me when I am solo. But I want to find a larger tent for trips where two of us ride. (2 bikes) and stay a few days... like Spokane.
I'm looking for about 6' headroom. From the LL Bean site, it looks like a 6 person family tent fits. But they use fibreglass poles. I haven't found a site that sells a good tent of that size with aluminum poles. Is there a reason for that?
Are there any observations from those who have used larger tents, or comments on the pole materials?
Other than double-stakeing it (the ground is wet and soft) and using a ground cloth under it, it was a normal set-up. I was surprised that it held up for a week through all that, staying dry and not leaking or buckling under the snow load.
It did collapse down some under the snow, but a shake from the inside pushed the snow off and it sprang back.
Watching it lean and give when the wind blew I came to appreciate the advantage of its flexible aluminum poles.
I hear concerns with the fibreglass poles breaking. I presume aluminum poles could kink, but could be straightened.
This "three man" tent is just about right for me when I am solo. But I want to find a larger tent for trips where two of us ride. (2 bikes) and stay a few days... like Spokane.
I'm looking for about 6' headroom. From the LL Bean site, it looks like a 6 person family tent fits. But they use fibreglass poles. I haven't found a site that sells a good tent of that size with aluminum poles. Is there a reason for that?
Are there any observations from those who have used larger tents, or comments on the pole materials?