Bryanseye
Adventurist
I feel I need to preface this review with a disclaimer about my bias of The North Face (TNF). My first good shell jacket came from the TNF outlet in Cabazon, CA before the area turned into a SoCal version of Las Vegas. I still wear that shell, with the rotted away zipper gaskets and the patched rip in the sleeve proudly displayed like a good war scar. That was during my time of exile in the Mojave while Uncle Sam gave me everything else I needed. Afterwards I went to college, and holy hell I was surrounded by the TNF logo adorned fleeces. I have never been one to subscribe to brand elitism, but maybe TNF wasn't just out to be the best, maybe they just wanted to make a ton of money off their namesake.
I'm being pretentious I know, it is a business afterall, but it made me very cautious going forward in my gear selections knowing that the price may not indicate the product so much as the marketing, and I can't recall buying anything with that familiar logo since. However, just like a Jeep Rubicon being a sorority girl's vehicle of choice, the end user does not define an item. I needed a new tent, so did I get the barbie'mobile, or the offroad machine?
First off, it's just a family/car camping tent. I have already set the bar pretty low, but if I want outside time with the fam, I have to keep them dry. My criteria was this: Enclosed vestibule area, no sectioned fiberglass poles to snag and seperate, simple yet sturdy design, and of course the typical weather resistance and ventilation.
This tent had all of these, and an interesting twist that it was a single wall design. This meant that once you erect the tent, you are done. No fighting with the additional rainfly, which is especially relevant for the larger 6+ designs. I was suspicious, but intrigued.
Our first field test was a weekend in the Elkmont Campground of The Great Smoky Mountain National Park. It rained 50% of the time, so it was a great test for the weather resistance, and we got in after-hours to test the ease of set-up under only headlamp illumination.
Setup: Fantastically easy for a tent this size. Time has not softened the agony of pitching the Sears canvas cabin tents when I was a kid (get one side up, the other falls), but this was nothing like it. I laid out the generic groundcloth and unrolled the tent. (Hint: during a backyard shakedown I rolled it back up so that the non-vestibule side was at the end. That way I always know where to position the tent for the area before unrolling). Stake 6 tieouts and thread the 2 large gold aluminum poles from corner to corner. At this point it is a basic dome style with a bunch of left over material. The large grey pole sets the forward wall, and the small grey pole supports the vestibule with is the only section that is not free-standing and needs to be staked taught on the end.
Performance: The Smokies were keeping their namesake on this trip, and there was never much time to dry out between downpours. No matter, the single wall design still held out the water. The larger vestibule made a great place to deal with wet shoes and keep all the non-bear bait gear. It wasn't until the last morning that I noticed a drop of water at the base of the sidewall. I think this may have been simply condensation with all the humidity in the still air.
Likes:
Roomy. 2 double air mattresses would fit, with some footspace underneath, and there is plenty of headroom. TNF lists the floor at over 86 sq/ft and 80" ceiling.
Storage. Each corner has pockets and there is a row of pockets between the double door opening. The main vestibule can be entered from either side, similar to a motorcycle tent, and has another 44 sq/feet of space. On the back of the tent is another door that leads to a small sheltered area.
Ventilation. Two kickstand vents on opposing sides capture any breeze, while both interior walls are full mesh. Two large opposing windows beneath the vents can be opened when it isn't raining. The air was humid and still for much of the weekend, but the tent never felt worse inside than out.
The waterproof map material instructions were a nice touch.
I'm being pretentious I know, it is a business afterall, but it made me very cautious going forward in my gear selections knowing that the price may not indicate the product so much as the marketing, and I can't recall buying anything with that familiar logo since. However, just like a Jeep Rubicon being a sorority girl's vehicle of choice, the end user does not define an item. I needed a new tent, so did I get the barbie'mobile, or the offroad machine?
First off, it's just a family/car camping tent. I have already set the bar pretty low, but if I want outside time with the fam, I have to keep them dry. My criteria was this: Enclosed vestibule area, no sectioned fiberglass poles to snag and seperate, simple yet sturdy design, and of course the typical weather resistance and ventilation.
This tent had all of these, and an interesting twist that it was a single wall design. This meant that once you erect the tent, you are done. No fighting with the additional rainfly, which is especially relevant for the larger 6+ designs. I was suspicious, but intrigued.
Our first field test was a weekend in the Elkmont Campground of The Great Smoky Mountain National Park. It rained 50% of the time, so it was a great test for the weather resistance, and we got in after-hours to test the ease of set-up under only headlamp illumination.
Setup: Fantastically easy for a tent this size. Time has not softened the agony of pitching the Sears canvas cabin tents when I was a kid (get one side up, the other falls), but this was nothing like it. I laid out the generic groundcloth and unrolled the tent. (Hint: during a backyard shakedown I rolled it back up so that the non-vestibule side was at the end. That way I always know where to position the tent for the area before unrolling). Stake 6 tieouts and thread the 2 large gold aluminum poles from corner to corner. At this point it is a basic dome style with a bunch of left over material. The large grey pole sets the forward wall, and the small grey pole supports the vestibule with is the only section that is not free-standing and needs to be staked taught on the end.
Performance: The Smokies were keeping their namesake on this trip, and there was never much time to dry out between downpours. No matter, the single wall design still held out the water. The larger vestibule made a great place to deal with wet shoes and keep all the non-bear bait gear. It wasn't until the last morning that I noticed a drop of water at the base of the sidewall. I think this may have been simply condensation with all the humidity in the still air.
Likes:
Roomy. 2 double air mattresses would fit, with some footspace underneath, and there is plenty of headroom. TNF lists the floor at over 86 sq/ft and 80" ceiling.
Storage. Each corner has pockets and there is a row of pockets between the double door opening. The main vestibule can be entered from either side, similar to a motorcycle tent, and has another 44 sq/feet of space. On the back of the tent is another door that leads to a small sheltered area.
Ventilation. Two kickstand vents on opposing sides capture any breeze, while both interior walls are full mesh. Two large opposing windows beneath the vents can be opened when it isn't raining. The air was humid and still for much of the weekend, but the tent never felt worse inside than out.
The waterproof map material instructions were a nice touch.
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