Tent sugestions

[ahoutzer]

Well, I guess there are no backpackers in this group! Everyone seems to be carrying a small house with them!

[ronhenry4]

i dont know if you have a dicks sporting goods around you but they have a great tent on sale for 99 bucks 6 man can stand up in it and yet compacks into a bag small enough to go on your bike also has a rain awning super nice on my way to get one today.

[a1bummer]

Well, I guess there are no backpackers in this group! Everyone seems to be carrying a small house with them!

 

I used to a lot. At least you might call it that anyway. When I was a kid we would pack up the little red wagon and go out to the woods. I still have the same old fire ring, (an old steel tractor wheel), I used 30 years ago. When I got older I built a trailer for bicycle and carried a lot of stuff with me. Now I'm older and lazier. Now it's the motorcycle, a trailer, and a LOT more stuff/junk with me. If it was just me I wouldn't need, (well maybe not anyway), the trailer or big tent and all the extra junk. But i gotta keep the better half comfy. If she ain't happy... NOBODY is happy.

Edited April 3, 2009 by a1bummer

[CanadianRider]

Well, I guess there are no backpackers in this group! Everyone seems to be carrying a small house with them!

 

A small house!! By the sounds of it some people want a full size barn for a ten!!

For years I carried a MOSS Big Dipper for 4 - a great 4 season bomb shelter of a tent (the Mount Everest expeitions use this same tent). This tent will take 100 mph winds and several meters of snow - it was great for my wilderness canoe adventures in the far north and winter camping. However, I found this tent too big to carry on the bike.

 

Last year I purchased an MEC Wanderer 2 Tent from Mountain Equipment Co-op. This is a small, very light and compact, yet very strong tent. My wife and I did a 17 day trip of the east coast of Canada last summer - two-up on my new bike - carrying all camping gear - tent, sleeping mats, sleeping bags, stove, dishes, pots & pans, food - plus all clothing including rain gear - on the bike - NO TRAILER. (By the way - I am not a small guy, I am 6'4" 250 lbs and I fit very well in the tent with the wife)

 

Being an avid wilderness canoeist - who frequently portages further than I paddle - I know the value of light weight compact gear. I don't want a monster tent that takes me 20 minutes to put up, or blows over in the slightest breeze, or has all that wonderful roof and floor space to spring leaks.

 

We camped on the Outer Banks of North Carolina last summer. Every tent in the place blew down - but not my little Wanderer - it stood fast.

 

I highly recommend MEC (Mountain Equipment Co-op) for your camping needs - look them up online. 1. It is a Co-op, so it is non-profit and any money it does make goes back to the members, 2. membership is only $5.00 for life, 3. ALL products are guaranteed for life with a no hassle exchange policy 4. for our American friends the Co-op is Canadian so you are using Canadian vs American dollars, 5. they sell great gear not cheap Walmart crap - good gear is actually much cheaper in the long run. 6. they do sell a few barn size tents as well for those who insist on performing circus acts inside their tents

[Guest tx2sturgis]

Being an avid wilderness canoeist - who frequently portages further than I paddle - I know the value of light weight compact gear. I don't want a monster tent that takes me 20 minutes to put up, or blows over in the slightest breeze, or has all that wonderful roof and floor space to spring leaks.

 

We camped on the Outer Banks of North Carolina last summer. Every tent in the place blew down - but not my little Wanderer - it stood fast.

 

 

 

I agree. Sometimes smaller is better. Both of my tents are pretty small, and have stood when others blew down or got damaged in the wind...PLUS...when the nights get cool, a smaller tent is much warmer, other factors being equal, because your body heat, even thru the sleeping bag, can keep it several degrees warmer.

[gmarshall]

Someone else mentioned campmor. They have an excellent selection of name brands. When I was a scout leader we used LL Bean dome tents for the adults. Very roomy and you could stand up in them. I believe you get what you pay for. Walmart doesn't sell the best equipment.

 

My 2 cents.

[AABBCC]

There are so many tents to choose from. We can narrow those choices down by ones that fit on a motorcycle or in a backpack and go from there!

 

Yep, space and weight are the limiting factors so that rules canvas tents out. Nylon is a much better fabric for motorcycle camping. Tents designed for backpacking are ideal. Based on season and number of occupants, I own different tents. In the summer, I like a tent that's more mesh than nylon with a removable rain fly. In the winter, a tent with a vestibule is a must have for me.

 

Considering how I use my tent mainly for sleeping; sitting or standing inside is pointless to me. If I required the luxury comforts of home I would not be motorcycle camping!

[saddlebum]

I carry a couple tents that I use most often. I use them backpacking, canoeing and to venture rallies and I love them. No problem standing up either.....You just crawl outside the tent. Of the three A Eurika an MSR and a Big Agness only the Big Agness is three season rated the other two are 4 season rated and tie down well in heavy storms. everything including my clothes, cooking gear and sleeping gear pack right on the bike.

 

I do feel though that its best to spend a bit for quality as I have bought cheaper tents from places like Wall mart and ended up drenched.

Edited June 13, 2018 by saddlebum