Rain in the PNW has sent me in search of a new tent

[olliecamper]

We go camping in the Pacific Northwest in the early and late summer, when we run the risk of anything between beautiful sun and torrential downpour during any given week. Last year, our decades-old Coleman revealed that it was no longer sufficient to deal with rain. Since we're from San Diego originally, this was our first experience with how lousy rain can be.

We no longer have that tent (trashed it on the spot). We do have a canopy, so having a dry place to lounge seems reasonable with some extra just-in-case tarp and some aligator clips. Keeping with HogSnapper's suggestions elsewhere, I'm trying to avoid getting a mansion-style tent.

We're a couple with no intention of having kids, but we do have a corgi. We might add a bonus corgi eventually. They're small, and tend not to take up a whole lot of room.

I'm looking for something that's waterproof, windproof, and tall enough to stand up in. I'm 5'11". Canvas isn't really an option, as it can sometimes be difficult to pack a tent out dry. Just really need a spot for clothing/essentials -- the rest of the storage can stay in the car.

The Alaska Guide 8 looks good, but is probably overkill in terms of the room we need. I couldn't find the Guide 6 for sale any longer (anyone know what happened?). Likewise, the REI Kingdom 8 seemed like it might be overkill, and we don't really need a secondary screened room. While wind and rain are issues, bugs usually aren't as prevalent. Besides, deet.

So wise and worldly campers -- can you help me out? I'm looking for this tent to last at least 5 years with maybe 3-4 camping trips a year.

[olliecamper]

Re: Rain in the PNW has sent me in search of a new tent

Also thinking about maybe a Hobitat 4?

[Hikenhunter]

Re: Rain in the PNW has sent me in search of a new tent

Anything from REI is going to be returnable so I would consider what they have to offer.Likewise Big Agnes and Kelty market good products. Personally I have never had a problem with Eureka tents but the feelings on Eurekas performance seem to be mixed. What ever you choose the 2 most important things you want to be sure of are that the rainfly goes all the way to the ground and that the tent has good ventilation. Personally I am considering replacing my tent this year and I'm considering either the Eureka Tetragon or the Eureka Equinox. JMO.

[Joyous56]

Re: Rain in the PNW has sent me in search of a new tent

Lots of talk about rainflies going 'all the way to the ground'. My Eureka Timberline 4 has a rainfly that goes within 6 inches to the ground.....tell me that's sufficient. The rainfly extensions on each end go about 8 inches out to protect the windows....I've never had a problem with rain getting in.

Can you really find rainflies that go 'all the way to the ground'?

[NYCgrrl]

Re: Rain in the PNW has sent me in search of a new tent

Lots of talk about rainflies going 'all the way to the ground'. My Eureka Timberline 4 has a rainfly that goes within 6 inches to the ground.....tell me that's sufficient. The rainfly extensions on each end go about 8 inches out to protect the windows....I've never had a problem with rain getting in.

Can you really find rainflies that go 'all the way to the ground'?

I've seen tents with ground level rain flies (think the Cabela Alaskan Guide has one) yet I remain confused.
My rainfly ends about ...10"-12" from the ground, the tent has 6 windows and I've camped through the beginning of Hurricane Irene with nary a drop of water in the tent or issues with the tent imploding. The campground was closed down the next day for the remainder of the storm by state edict and I doubt if any tent would have survived the further damage Irene caused. I wonder if part of the problems some are having is not guy-lining properly, if at all. All this talk is reminding me that I MUST waterproof my Paha Que' screen tent; it did leak at the roof last year.

[olliecamper]

Re: Rain in the PNW has sent me in search of a new tent

Well, we mostly camp in good weather. It's just when weather does arrive, it can get a little wonky. We need more words for rain -- we've got a very light rain that blows sideways with very little provocation, for instance. Most of the folks local to me have little advice to give *other* than "get a fly that reaches to the ground."

I don't mind laying out some initial funds if it means that the item I'm purchasing is going to be around for a while. And we're not sure where we'll be living in 5 years' time, so having an almost-4-season tent would give us some flexibility. Having one in which we can stick a cot means that I won't have to shell out for a more permanent arrangement for a while. Suddenly $600 is looking like a good investment. Probably will just use our tarp rather than the liner though -- the reviews on that look sort of crummy.

However, given the $200 difference in price and the current "we only camp when the weather's not too tremendously horrible" requirements, think we could get away with the fiberglass poles? It looks like I could change 'em out later: http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabel...les/909790.uts We're staying mostly in KOA-equivalents for the near and foreseeable future though.

The Eureka Equinox looks like a good one -- I've added that to the list of considerations. Also looking at the Big Agnes Big House 6 & Flying Diamond 6. I've read the "what to look for in a tent" post at the top of the forum, as well as most of those in the last 4 pages. I guess what I'm having difficulty with is how to make the decision from here? I think I'm trying to min-max the expected lifetime for the Alaskan Guide vs. the less expensive Big Agnes offerings.

[familycamper]

Re: Rain in the PNW has sent me in search of a new tent

I bought a Coleman Weathermaster off of CL a while back. It's a huge 3 room thing, but comfy. It has the typical little rainfly, but I've never been wet though 4 years of rain. We don't really get that sideways, Texas rain in the Pacific NW. Or at least we don't where I camp in NW Oregon. It's more like showers and drizzle. That tent got some heavy wear and I bought another used one from CL. It was set up almost one time. The man of the house has health issues and couldn't set it up. They never returned it and it set in the closet for 2 years. $50 and I'm set again.
Where will you be camping up here? Depending on the area, you may not need a high end tent.

[olliecamper]

Re: Rain in the PNW has sent me in search of a new tent

We do two primary campouts: one at Grayland Beach (map) in WA, and one at Rasar State park (map).

I'm not really concerned with Rasar -- by the time we get there, the summer is actually in full force. However, we visit Grayland in mid-June, and since it's on the beach, we're usually rolling the dice on weather. I think it's been nice one out of three years that we've gone, but last year was the only time weather was a serious issue.

But after waking up in an inch of water with the dog trying (uncharacteristically) to get into the sleeping bag, I'm really intent on making sure that doesn't happen again. That said, I know that's the freak outlier, and I know I'm unlikely to go camping at a time other than May-September. Decisions, decisions.

Amazon's got a Coleman Montana 8 for $110 (on sale from $219) -- at that rate, it's almost worth purchasing and assuming it only lasts a season.

I hate cost vs. performance decisions.

[olliecamper]

Re: Rain in the PNW has sent me in search of a new tent

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