advice sought on tent purchase

Hi. I am looking to buy a 2 man tent. Features I value are lightweight, packs down small, roomy when assembled, good in the rain, and hopefully fairly priced. I would be willing to spend around $350 if you all agree that some tents really are worth it but would rather find something that fits the bill for under $250. Also, does anyone has experience with using just a footprint and fly when camping? Some of these tents have that option and I don't know if it is something i'd take advantage of. By the way, I usually camp in temperatures above freezing. I am pretty short (5'4") and if I share a tent it would mainly be with someone around the same height. Here's a list of what I am looking at so far:

Kelty Salida: $159, 2 man, 4 lb, 8 oz, 88 x 55 inches, 1 door

REI Passage 2 Tent: $159, 2 man, 5lb, 5oz, 90x 54 inches

MSR Hubba Hubba 2P tent: $329.95, 2 man, 4lb, 8 oz, 84 x 49 inches

Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2 tent: $339.95, 2 man, 3lb, 1oz, 84 x 52 inches

Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2: $369.95, 2 man, 2lb, 10oz, 86 x 52 inches

Big Agnes Copper Spur UL2 $399.95: 2 man, 3lb, 7 oz, 90 x 52 inches, roomier, both recommend footprint sold separately

Marmot Limelite 2 person tent: $219, 2 man, 5lb, 88 x 54 inches, comes with footprint, and you can just setup footprint + fly in warm conditions! Check if weight includes footprint

Marmot Early Light 2 person tent: $229, 2 man, 5 lb, 5 oz, but 3 lb 6 oz with footprint plus fly, 2 doors vs 1 on limelite.

Sierra Designs Flash 2: 2 person, $339, 4 lb 6 oz, 85 x 50 inches, fly connected to tent always. 2 doors

North Face Tadpole: 2 person, $219, 5 lb, 4 oz, pitch sold separately plus fly/poles: 3 lb 11 oz, 85 x 50 inches.

Big Agnes Jack Rabbit: 2 person, $299, 4 lb 5 oz, 90 x 52, 2 lb 15 oz with just footprint/fly/poles.

Thanks so much for anyone who can chime in with their advice!”

Some other excellent 2-person tents to look at, from some of our innovative "cottage" manufacturers. Many of these have more internal space than the "standard" big manufacturer tents. Google for the websites.

Tarptent: Double Rainbow, Cloudburst 3 (new), Stratospire 2, Scarp 2 (4 season)

Six Moon Designs: Lunar Duo, Haven (combination of Haven tarp and Haven bug net, purchased separately). For extra lightness, the Haven tarp is available (when not out of stock) in cuben fiber (and more $$$)

Lightheart Duo from Lightheart Gear

Mountain Laurel Designs Duomid plus bug net (again, purchased separately)

For real lightness and quite a few $$$ over your budget: Z Packs Hexamid Twin. Bathtub floor and beak are extra. Mine, with beak, bathtub floor, guyline and stakes weighs just one pound!

How far above freezing? What about humidity levels? In short, where and when do you plan to mostly use the tent? This will determine whether you need a two-wall tent, and whether all-mesh walls will be a valid choice. (All-mesh can be a poor choice in below-freezing temperatures, but it can also be a poor choice when wind moves a lot of sand or dust around.) Although they're not my personal preference (for subjective, not objective, reasons), you really should look at the "cottage" tents OM recommends (I've seen friends use them, and they are indeed excellent choices.)

I've used the Hubba, Fly Creek, Seedhouse (a heavy Fly Creek), and the Copper Spur. (Caveat: I've mostly used the one-person versions of these tents but, other than space, the two person versions are identical. Two people will, however, produce more moisture from respiration, so you may have more condensation issues than a single person would.) All are good tents. I found the side-entry doors more convenient to use in the one-person versions, but they were also heavier than the end-entry tents.

My current tent of choice is the Fly Creek 2, because of the extra room. This mostly eliminates the inconvenience of the single-person end-entry tent I mentioned above. (By the way, most of your two-person tents are more like one-and-a-half people, which is fine if you're hoping for a close and intimate relationship with your tent mate, but not so good for us married guys hiking with buddies.)

Personally, as a tent hating hammock swinger, I wouldn't get anything that did not meet some pretty specific criteria. For trips when I must take a tent, it needs to have a side entry, be much lighter than my hammock setup, set up easy, be nice and roomy and hold all my gear plus me, and not hit me on the head when I sit up. A vestibule to put my shoes in is also desirable.

Tents do add a few degrees of warmth, but, should never be considered on that criteria alone since they are actually supposed to protect you from weather. Warmth is the primary function of the pad and sleeping bag. Keeping you and your sleeping bag dry and out of the wind is the primary function of the tent, with bug protection coming in third since that's about comfort and not survival....

I have a Lightheart Solo that sets up with my trekking poles. I actually like it. Standing up inside the tent (the door is sloped, my feet are on the tent floor while all my body is outside and through the door) has been a surprisingly handy feature when trying to get into shoes without dragging the muddy boots inside and getting everything dirty... yes, I am a fan of being clean.

The awnings are attached at the center line, but can be rolled up out of the way making it a bug proof net tent. And, setting it all up so the stakes are in the right place makes it easy to leave the door side rolled up, then reach out and deploy the fly from inside the tent if it starts to sprinkle.

So, from my perspective as a tent hater anti-ground-sleeping hiker, it all adds up to a pretty nice little package that fits in my front pocket of my ULA pack along with a light polycryo ground sheet. And it kept my stuff dry in a drenching downpour for an hour and a half, while sheets of rain flowed down on it and under it in rivers.

I just sold my Sierra Designs tent, had previously sold a tarptent, and am now left with a one season (single wall tipi) winter tent, my hammock gear, and the Lightheart - am feeling pretty solid in being able to handle anything in comfort and style.

I'll never do an end entry or a cramped tent again.... If i had to share I would get a MSR Carbon Reflex 3. It's roomy, and light as any 2 person - and has more room. Wonderful tent for being, well, a tent. I'm 5'7" and shared it with a 6'5" buddy, and had a few inches to spare all the way around.

I own/used the Kelty Salida, Hubba Hubba, Fly Creek UL2.

The Kelty is the best bang for the buck. I used to use a Grand Mesa 2 and transitioned to the Salida for a bit. Great tent, adequate rain and wind protection. It is completely bomb proof and uses more of a conventional two pole cross design. I like this tent very much and always recommend it to backpackers on a budget seeking to lighten their load from older 5 lb tents. Only problem - single door, climb over your buddy style.

The Hubba Hubba is a very big tent and from my experience, is adequate in freezing temperatures given you build proper protection around your tent. I like the double vestibule, and the inner tent.

The Fly Creek UL2 is a great UL tent. It is somewhat freestanding, but will require you to stake the tub to maximize the size. It is OK when properly ventilated, but it is also made with very thin materials. I really think Big Agnes hit the mark with Fly Creek UL2, BUT, it is expensive and is a snug fit for larger folks. I purchased mine new for $250, but I believe the retail on this thing is closer to the sub $300s. For that price, you can get a TT Rainbow or Double Rainbow.

As Glenn mentioned, unless the walls are vertical (as on the Tarptent Scarp 2), you'll probably want the 3 person version of most of those tents unless you don't mind sleeping very close to the other person. Dimensions within 4 inches or so of each other are irrelevant. Tent manufacturers measure differently, and generally to their advantage. I have both the Copper Spur UL1 and the Scarp 2, and I've tried and then sold other tents. I think my choice in your case would be the Copper Spur UL3 or the Fly Creek UL3, depending on your tent weight vs. entryway convenience preference.

I don't find the footprint/fly option appealing generally. I'd just use an 8x10 flat silnylon tarp if I don't want walls.

another option is the new Golite imogene ul2. 2.3lbs 2 man for $250.

I didn't think to comment on freestanding. In my own (admittedly biased) opinion, no tent is truly freestanding. If you want the vestibule to deploy properly, or the rainfly to have the optimal separation from the inner tent, you'll need to stake it out. I don't consider "freestanding" to be of any practical advantage in the woods.

Last three day backpacking trip, I set up my non freestanding Lightheart tent on my patch of flat next to the creek on our second day out. My buddies were sharing an REI Half Dome "freestanding" box kite. A gust of wind picked it up and rolled it away toward the creek. It wasn't even windy, just a little breezy, and it was a good thing one of them was at the creek filtering water to intercept it before it swept across the canyon into the trees.

Then there was the Morro Bay campground, full of 8 person Coleman Behemoth Tents with furniture inside them. Everyone was out kayaking while the tents rolled around in the wind, like huge nylon tumbleweeds.... My little 2 person tent had stakes on each corner and fortunately aluminum poles, since one of the massive tents ran over it!

I don't believe freestanding is necessary.

Yeah, I forgot about the entertainment value of "freestanding" tents!

Well that sure had me laughing

I wish I had a video camera back then. I could have put it on Youtube with all the other "flying tent" videos.

I have an REI Halfdome "boxkite". Properly erected, with 10 stakes, it is pretty well immovable. OP shpuld add this to list, as much more usable room than the Passage. I got mine for $50 at an REI garage sale, not a mark on it that I could find. Even better is the quarter dome, but that can be pricey, even in a garage sale. Neither are the lightest of tents, but they are good, and near bomber if erected properly.

Agree that "free standing" is not needed, and leads to a false sense of security. I think my favourite two person tent would be a tarptent Statospire 2, but a) I can't afford it, and b) I prefer, when possible, to use my hammock & tarp set up.

The Box Kite (aka half dome) is a good bomber basic tent - I wonder at times if they get them made for the brand by Kelty as they are similar quality. (This is standard practice with REI, their poles are actually Komperdell for example).

And it's also possible to get Big Agnes or any other brand sold at REI at their gear sales for a song. Repaired tents often work as well as brand new.

What about the Black Diamond Mesa? Is there a reason why that one wasn't mentioned? Too heavy perhaps?

Howie

There are certainly cheaper five pound tents on the market than the Mesa...

For what it is worth, my wife and I use the Big Agnes Copper Spur 2. We have close to 1,000 miles with it in about a year and could not be happier with the purchase.

Not on the list, but I've just picked up the Big Agnes Scout UL2, and am pretty happy with it.
I've been a tent-hating under-the-stars kind of guy for well over a decade now, but after a mosquito-ridden July in Tuolumne Meadows, I turned to the dark side.
I settled on the Scout because it functions just like my awning: you stake it out and prop it up with trekking poles, but it has a bathtub floor. I'm mostly happy with it. Spacious enough for my needs, decently ventilated, but could use some mesh on the door. (might make that a MYOG project someday.)
Other pros: easy to set up. Personally I hate lugging around tent poles, I hate having to set them up and take them down, I hate how complicated "freestanding" tents are. My life's philosophy is "Keep it simple, stupid!" and this fits the bill. The setup is nice because you just stake it out, add trekking poles and instant shelter. Done and done. It's light, it's decently thought out, and I think that when set up with a minimum of common sense, offers very good protection from the wind and elements.

Dislike: The fact the trekking poles go inside the tent. Not a deal-breaker, though. They can be outboarded using about ten feet of paracord and a couple extra stakes, like an awning.
The door. It could be screened with a velcro-open shutter window without adding too much weight. Whatever. It also has those stupid baffles over the zipper to keep the rain out.
I've never had some serious "Das Boot" moments in any shelter where rainwater poured through the zippers like the hull of a stricken U-boat. Those baffles could have been effectively replaced with laminated zippers.

Nonetheless, I'm very happy with it. The idea of owning a tent still bothers me, but I think I'll largely relegate it to winter use, keep the ol' awning in service for spring and fall and summer out in the open.
Hope this helps in any way.

I just bought the Marmot Pulsar 2P. I haven't actually used it yet but I am sure it is just what I need for my four legged friend and I. Set it up in the back yard. I have totally upgraded all my gear and so now I can call myself an ultra light hiker I think.

Howie