Way back in 1999 Susan and I decided to go lighter with our backpacking. A new tent was in order. We bought one of the lightest two person tents at the time, a Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight. We spent one night in it and never shared it again. It was jsut way too small for the two of us. It became my solo tent....and has been exactly that ever since. I've grown very fond of it over the years.
Here it is last month on a S24O bike camping trip.
I've had plans for awhile for bigger and longer self supported bike adventures. One was to happen this year. That is until Susan had a major health issue earlier in the year. My plans have been pushed back until 2012. Part of the planning included a list of equipment I wanted to upgrade or replace. As much as I have come to love the Clip Flashlight, there are several reasons I wanted to upgrade to another tent. The reasons are
1) It's not freestanding. You have to stake it out or it won't stay pitched. Slightly limits your choices of surfaces you can camp on. It's not an issue backpacking in the backcountry most of the time. But in developed areas, some areas I might camp in don't have soft ground that you can easily drive a tent stake into. There was no such thing as a sub 4 pound 2-person freestanding tent in 1999. Tent technology has advanced since then.
2) My Clip Flashlight has very little mesh. It's hot in the summer. The newer Clips have a full mesh inner tent.
3) The Clip Flashlight has very little headroom and a cave feeling due to the sloping roof line.
And most of all my Clip Flashlight comes in around 4.5 lbs.
Last fall I was backpacking and met a retired couple in their mid-60's out backpacking. They were trying out a new tent. They have plans to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail in 2012. Since I'm an Appalachian Trail 2000-miler and thru-hiked it in 2001, we had a lot to talk about. We camped together for one night. Anyway, they were a bit upset that their new tent was much too small for the two of them. I told them I'd gladly take it off their hands if they ended up replacing it.
This past weekend Susan and I drove 3 hours down to their 400 acre tree farm in Wisconsin. We stayed the day talking all things AT and backpacking. AND they sold me their Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2 and foot print for $150. They only used the tent for 6 nights. So it's brand new. The tent and footprint retail for $360. I set it up in the front yard the next day. It went up in about 3 minutes.
Very cool pole design that allows it to be freestanding.
Lots of mesh and lots of headroom.
It's small for a two person, 28 sq ft vs 32 sq ft in the Clip Flashlight. I would never use it for a two person. I prefer a small two person tent like this for solo camping so I have a little bit of room for my backpack when hiking or panniers when I'm bike camping.
This tent has all the things I was looking for. It's freestanding, lots of mesh, headroom, and light weight. It comes in at 3 lbs 6 oz. More than a pound lighter than my Clip Flashlight. The only thing I would change if I could, would to have a tent just like this but with a side entry door. Other than that it has everything on my checklist that I wanted in a new tent. Can't wait to try it out.
Here it is last month on a S24O bike camping trip.
I've had plans for awhile for bigger and longer self supported bike adventures. One was to happen this year. That is until Susan had a major health issue earlier in the year. My plans have been pushed back until 2012. Part of the planning included a list of equipment I wanted to upgrade or replace. As much as I have come to love the Clip Flashlight, there are several reasons I wanted to upgrade to another tent. The reasons are
1) It's not freestanding. You have to stake it out or it won't stay pitched. Slightly limits your choices of surfaces you can camp on. It's not an issue backpacking in the backcountry most of the time. But in developed areas, some areas I might camp in don't have soft ground that you can easily drive a tent stake into. There was no such thing as a sub 4 pound 2-person freestanding tent in 1999. Tent technology has advanced since then.
2) My Clip Flashlight has very little mesh. It's hot in the summer. The newer Clips have a full mesh inner tent.
3) The Clip Flashlight has very little headroom and a cave feeling due to the sloping roof line.
And most of all my Clip Flashlight comes in around 4.5 lbs.
Last fall I was backpacking and met a retired couple in their mid-60's out backpacking. They were trying out a new tent. They have plans to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail in 2012. Since I'm an Appalachian Trail 2000-miler and thru-hiked it in 2001, we had a lot to talk about. We camped together for one night. Anyway, they were a bit upset that their new tent was much too small for the two of them. I told them I'd gladly take it off their hands if they ended up replacing it.
This past weekend Susan and I drove 3 hours down to their 400 acre tree farm in Wisconsin. We stayed the day talking all things AT and backpacking. AND they sold me their Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2 and foot print for $150. They only used the tent for 6 nights. So it's brand new. The tent and footprint retail for $360. I set it up in the front yard the next day. It went up in about 3 minutes.
Very cool pole design that allows it to be freestanding.
Lots of mesh and lots of headroom.
It's small for a two person, 28 sq ft vs 32 sq ft in the Clip Flashlight. I would never use it for a two person. I prefer a small two person tent like this for solo camping so I have a little bit of room for my backpack when hiking or panniers when I'm bike camping.
This tent has all the things I was looking for. It's freestanding, lots of mesh, headroom, and light weight. It comes in at 3 lbs 6 oz. More than a pound lighter than my Clip Flashlight. The only thing I would change if I could, would to have a tent just like this but with a side entry door. Other than that it has everything on my checklist that I wanted in a new tent. Can't wait to try it out.