i really hate some people this is an email chain that i am trying to get a quote Me: I would like a quote for these parts Vendor: i got a question Me: i got an answer (couple days later)Me: how is this coming along vendor: i haven't gotten a PO yet me: i haven't gotten a quote yet vendor: ok just le me know when ready
I've always hated this tent, and I'm shopping for a new one. Wife bought it for us years ago, and we've been using it more lately. So, the aggravation of setting it up is harder to ignore with the increased use. Its support poles are all inside, which is stupid. You have to crawl into it, and set it up from the inside. The entrance is a pain to zip closed because of the teepee shape. Anyone here have a tent they love, that isn't too big, or too expensive?
I'm not gonna lie, I love the outdoors, but I hate camping. Set up as many day trips as you want, but lets start and and end them at a place with a bed, a toilet, and a shower. Can be the cheapest motel in the world, but grant me that at least.
We still have our camper, we just don't use it. I've rediscovered why tent camping is so great. It's not a big deal to get ready to go. Throw our bin with camping gear in the truck, pack a bag, whatever toys or gear appropriate for the destination, and the cooler with food and drinks. That said, it has to be a perfect forecast. 0% chance of rain, no higher than the low 80s, nice and cool at night. This trip it got down to 39°, we both slept in layered clothes on queen size air mattress. Kid had the good sleeping bag, and I had layered blankets. We slept good, but it was hard to get out of bed and make coffee in that cold. It was t-shirt weather by 10:30 later that morning.
How many people are you trying to fit in it? Backpacking or straight camping? Backpacking you want your tent to be as lightweight and durable as possible. I have one that props up with my hiking poles, but fits one person. If you're looking for traditional camping, I have the REI Co-op Basecamp 4. Fits 4 people, and the exterior fly keeps the inside bone dry in the mornings.
Straight camping, typically with just me and my kid. We like air mattresses, our current one will fit 3 twins, one for each of us, that's probably the smallest we want to go. So, 10x10'ish. When we go, camping is usually a secondary reason for the trip. We're always doing something, fishing, riding, racing, and just need a place to sleep when that stuff ends for the day. When I say not too big, I see some truly massive tents in campgrounds around here, 12 person multi-room tents. I guess 10'x10' is going to seem huge to a backpacker.
Yeah, agreed. I have a family of 4 with two little kids, the one I mentioned fits one queen size air mattress and probably a camping cot.
I probably need to be in the 6-10 person size range. Lodge, cabin, or geodesic style. Anything with near vertical sides and be able to setup from the outside. Seriously that one posted earlier, has two poles that go together like an upside down V with an asymmetrical little nub on the top in the peak of the tent, then you have to lay down to slide out some extensions that actually take a bunch of arm strength to get them to lock. Sure, it has minimal poles, but it just sucks to set up, and I hate it.
Coleman makes some decent tents for the price. For camping wirh the boys we got one of their cabin tents a few years ago and it's held up well. It's not light and doesn't pack up small, but I'll never camp more than a few steps from my truck with it. The other positive to a larger cabin tent is that as I've aged, I've found I prefer having the ability to stand up while I'm getting dressed instead of sitting on the floor like I have to in backpacking tents.
I’m with you. I camped year round when I was younger. Homemade shelters, tents, snowbanks… I’ve slept in all kinds of things in all weather. Now? “Camping” better involve a nice cabin with AC, hot shower and comfortable furniture. Needless to say, I wasn’t too broken up when years ago our sons decided Boy Scouts wasn’t for them. (It wasn’t entirely the program, they didn’t like. The group of boys they were in with were like the Bad News Bears.)
The queen air mattress that we use is a very tall. Plug it into the truck inverter to blow it up. If you sit on the edge, it's about chair height. Yes I want standing headroom, as much as I can get. The teepee tent effectively had only a small area at the foot of the air mattress, the tallest part of the tent was over the bed. If the tent was empty, it had more.
Yep. That’s why I got the Airstream. It’s 5-star glamping. You can expose yourself to the elements on your terms, then crawl back into the luxurious cocoon and watch some Netflix while braising some beef and drinking some wine.
Our camper has sat unused since 2019. If I knew I was going to let it sit that long, I would have sold it. I do plan on getting it back in shape soon, already bought tires for it. I opened it up not long ago, and I think that when I start working on it, it's going to look a lot like this... But it shouldn't bee too big a deal to get it going again, it was winterized, and totally empty. Doesn't smell of mildew, and no apparent leaks. Just clean it and go thru the systems one by one until it's back right.
As a kid I was always camping year round with scouts. After multiple field exercises and years living in a tent on deployments...I've had my fill. I enjoy being outside, but at the end of the day, I want to sleep under a solid roof. That said, I do enjoy seeing the joy in my boys when I take them camping. They're still to young for anything more than tje backyard, or a state park campsite, but I hope they don't lose interest.