It has been sooooooooo looooooong in coming that most would have forgot about it. According to the TT site it should be in stock on the 24th of Nov however (?) it is part of the 20% off sale (from $199 to $159)
As much as I like my Contrail, this one looks very interesting. Side entry,small foot print and a more "natural" position for the apex, possibly also making it more wind/light snow resistant. Since most of our wild life is nocturnal, ( I like wombats in particular ) the vent/window at the top end looks nice to me. A couple of changes that I have noticed from the Tyvek version are the added mesh door and the mini porch/rain curtain. It is also a few ounces lighter than the Contrail but this is not that important to me.
http://www.tarptent.com/sublitesil.html
My thanks to the Family Guy for spotting it.
Franco

<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

BF <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

P.S.
Two person Sub-Lite coming soon. Also, Henry says he has a few new models of Tarptents in the works that are almost done...stay tuned to Henry's web-site for more news!

Wombats are OK as long as you are not in their way. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> I personally like the sound of a mob of Kangaroos hopping through the scrub.

I have been looking at these tents for ages dreaming of the day one could be mine, a dream that has been put back further by the aussie dollars collapse.

Seriously, how do you find TT's stand-up to Aussie conditions?

Michael.

A famously brave and ridiculously well-experienced Aussie tripper (big with the kayaks) whose name I don't recall, wrote on a blog that North American trend toward tarps won't work in Australia, where, he seemed to imply, conditions are much more rigorous, and campers are more experienced and wise.

I wrote and pointed out that Canadian ski guides are crazy for Megamids....His reply was extremely gracious....and was something about the idea that it may be even be possible to ski-tour in Australia.....(But I'm still a little skeptical)....

Looks like a very cool tent.

I used an SD Divine Light that was listed at 20 square feet for a ton of trips. I used to like it a lot, still do, I suppose....but 20 square feet is a damnably small bit of real estate.

It's "hair shirt" territory......though more comfortable than a bed of nails.....which by the way, I can definitely handle without undue complaint......

2-person Sublite? Another of the 2-person tents I'll need to consider for me and my dog, assuming it's in the 24-28 oz. category. I'm already looking at the GG Squall Classic (when they start selling them again), the SMD silnylon Refuge and the AntiGravity Gear O2.

Decisions, decisions....

In an email exchange a couple of years ago, Henry said he was working on a 3-4 person family tent, based on the Rainbow. He has another 1 1/2 years to get it into production before my littlest grandson is old enough to backpack and we outgrow the Rainshadow.

A few points.
As you travel you will find that some do think that their country has the worst/best weather/govenment/tax system , whatever...
For mainland Australia, any of the Tarptents will work except for snow season in the alps.
The reason tarps and hammocks are not at all popular here is because we have a lot of bugs ( and some are also not comfortable with snakes, plenty about) and because most of our trees are gum trees (eucalyptus) and you will want to stay well away from them. (they can and do shed branches for no apparent reason)
The strength of the Tarptents is ventilation and generally we need that. The downside is that they are not a "warm tent" but I rather have another 300g in a puffy jacket that also keeps me warm at camp than an extra 1/1.5 kg on a double skin tent year around. Keep in mind that even when totally wet, after a good shake down, my Contrail is still not much heavier than when dry. But for some areas in Tasmania or winter in the Alps I would not use the current line up , but I still have not seen an efficient do it all tent, that is also why I tend to wear different clothes in winter.....
Franco
Australian fauna
AussieBushwalker please keep in mind the opfficial party line : koalas and wombats are warm and fuzzy and that we all drink Foster and eat Vegemite.

I agree that a mob in full flight looks amazing and the sound (if you have the ear to the ground) is to me "comforting" , however the mating call of a randy wombat (close up) is just sensational ( more like scary the first time I heard that, woke up in the middle of the night miles from " civilisation" not knowing what was going on)
Still a favourite moment is just before sunset when the birds go nuts. It's never the same when people are about.

In a Canadian winter or spring, they don't configure tarp tents for "ventilation."

On the other hand, they don't worry about snakes nor bugs in the ski season.

Also the notion that tarp tents aren't warm compared with double-walled tents is correct, but also not relevant to their popularity in Canada for ski touring.

I can only conclude from your post, that, due to spending their lives upside down, all Austrailians are nuts.

Franco,

Thanks for the info. Pretty much confirmed my thoughts on TTs in aus. Good to get the info from someone who has first hand experience.

Yes, hammocks just seem far too dangerous. We have already had far too many people killed by trees dropping branches without notice.

OOPS...OK, I'll tow the line...now where is my Fosters...there it is, next to my Vegemite sandwich <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Birds are always great. All the birds of an evening, Powerful Owls and if you are lucky Barking Owls through the night and Magpies and Kookaburras in the morning. Sweet. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Thanks again for your response.

Cheers,
Michael.

A backpacking tent offers no protection from heavy falling objects... in North America.....That's just a personal opinion, of course.......

Bigfoot, any hints on when the 2-person Sublite (in silnylon) might become available? It would of course require longer trekking poles or, for mine, extenders.

A 2-person version of this tent looks exactly like what I want! I assume it would weigh in the mid-to-upper-20-oz. range, similar to the SMD Refuge, GG Squall Classic, AGG 02? I think I'll wait for this one, especially if there's a chance it will be in production by early summer.

PM'd you. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

BF <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

This would be of interest not only to Lt Wt. backpackers, but also to car campers. If the move to more efficient (and necessarily smaller) cars isn't derailed by the current welcome drop in gas prices, having enough room for gear becomes an issue which this addresses.

Having had 5 kids, we managed the cross-country trips because we had backpacking equipment and not car camping eqpt without having to buy a giant vehicle.

Are you listening Henry?? You have a potential market niche bigger than us UL backpacking folk.

Keith,

Yes, I'm listening....

-H

Always the astute one, eh, Henry <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" /> Keep it up and more families will learn to go in your tent brand direction.

"I used an SD Divine Light that was listed at 20 square feet for a ton of trips. I used to like it a lot, still do, I suppose....but 20 square feet is a damnably small bit of real estate. "


Do you have a picture of that tent ?
The reason I am asking this is because a lot of SD tents have walls leaning steeply inwards making the usable area much smaller than it appears on paper.

Franco

There was an Aussie on this site a few years ago who was planning to use hammocks in Australia - my issue with that at the time was not just the random widowmakers that gums like to drop but the potential for ringbarking the tree, as, obviously, gums don't have the thick bark that pines or a lot of Eurasian trees have and I wasn't convinced that even a broad strap would avoid damaging the tree.

Hi Damian
Yes, I think that some missed the point about the danger of falling branches here, but for all I know, all of the National Parks and guide books that issue the warning could be wrong. It is my idea that you can't stop stones effectively with your head in any continent, however I noted that climbers wear helmets in some areas and not others, I wonder why....
Franco

You are right on the money with this comment. Most gums (you could exclude Ironbarks as nothing seems to hurt them) do not recover well from bark damage. You only have to see how long it takes for damage caused by Sugar Gliders to repair. Not to mention the major scars left by Aboriginals harvesting bark can last for centuries.

So now I can add this to the list of reasons why I wont be using a hammock down under.

Cheers,
Michael.

Good, because I can't get all of my family into the Squall Classic and I think they'd like a trip to Wilsons Prom some time soon.

Damian