How to Buy a Tent
- 1). Decide what type of tent you need. For warm-weather or low-elevation use, a car-camping tent from Costco or a sporting goods store will work fine. For general backpacking and moderate elevations, a three-season tent is best. For mountaineering and winter use, you need a four-season or high-elevation tent.
- 2). Step up to a specialty brand if weight, durability, speedy setup, and resistance to wind noise (tautness) are issues. For a variety of tent options, check out these sites: MarmotMountain.com, Kelty.com, MountainHardware.com, TheNorthFace.com and SierraDesigns.com. Added money buys a lighter-weight tent that lasts a lifetime (if well cared for), pitches easily, resists crumpling in wind (so you don't wake up and find your tent collapsed across your face) and keeps out rain.
- 3). Investigate prices. Three-season tents cost more than car-camping tents. The larger and/or better built the tent, the more it will cost. An average two-person, three-season tent costs $150 to $250. A two-person, four-season tent can cost up to $700.
- 4). Assess usable space. Some small two-person tents are fine in good weather, but can feel cramped if two people plus equipment and a dog are waiting out a storm. On the other hand, two hikers don't want to carry a heavier tent designed for four.
- 5). Shop for tents in person, then buy online if you find a better deal. Crawl in and stretch out. Make sure your feet and head are well clear of the ends. Imagine spending 24 hours in there during a storm. Cozy or torture? Keep looking until you find a cozy one.
- 6). Consider design trade-offs. Taller tents are comfortable but more subject to wind buffeting. A shorter tent is more secure in high winds and is likely to be warmer, but may feel claustrophobic. Vestibules offer a "porch" to stash your gear or to cook in during rough weather. Some tents need staking to stay upright, while others don't. All backpacking tents, even free-standing ones, perform better when staked out. Unless you have a single wall tent, you'll need a rain fly for protection from bad weather.
- 7). Practice pitching different tents. Most are erected using a system of collapsible poles. Some are easier to set up than others. The simplest tents have two interchangeable poles; more-complex designs have non-interchangeable poles. If tent assembly seems like a mysterious art to you, go for the simplest design.
- 8). Buy a single-wall tent, with one waterproof layer for high-elevation mountaineering when weight and wind-resistance are crucial.
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