backpacking tent reviews

The Nemo Hornet Osmo 2p ultralight backpacking tent.

Review: Nemo Hornet Osmo 2p Ultralight Backpacking Tent

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Ultralight Backpacking Tent
Nemo Hornet Osmo 2p
$430, 2 lbs. 1 oz./948g
backcountry.com

Sleeping in this ultralight tent while backpacking a section of the Arizona Trail along the Gila River in the first days of April and backpacking southern Utah’s Owl and Fish canyons loop in early May, camping in Idaho’s City of Rocks in June, and backpacking the Nigel, Cataract, and Cline Passes Route in the Canadian Rockies in August, I had a chance to not only test its performance, but also to consider the unique little niche it fills. If you’re seeking the lightest and most packable shelter that possesses all the ease of use, protection, and convenience of traditional double-wall tents as well as a degree of livability that will suit many backpackers, the Hornet Osmo 2p offers much to like.

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The MSR FreeLite 2 backpacking tent.

Review: MSR FreeLite 2 Ultralight Backpacking Tent

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Ultralight Backpacking Tent
MSR FreeLite 2
$465, 2 lbs./907g
backcountry.com

MSR’s newest version of the Freelite 2 immediately baffled me. I wondered: How can this double-wall, two-door, three-season, semi-freestanding tent weigh anywhere from three to nine ounces less than very similar tents in this category that have basically the same design… and still have more interior space? Searching for some explanation other than some implausible, sudden, radical shift in the laws of physics, I took the Freelite 2 for a spin in Arizona’s Aravaipa Canyon and on two backpacking trips in the Canadian Rockies—and found many ways in which MSR’s latest versions of its Freelite series distinguish themselves from a pack of doppelgangers.

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The SlingFin Hotbox tent.

Review: SlingFin Hotbox Four-Season Tent

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Ultralight Alpine/Four-Season Tent
SlingFin Hotbox
$650, 3 lbs. 9 oz.
slingfin.com

Through three cold December nights camped at over 8,000 feet in Idaho’s Boulder Mountains, snow fell hard enough that I had to dig this tent out a few times. All that cold, white smoke was great for two reasons: the backcountry skiing my kids and I did—and testing the Hotbox, SlingFin’s answer to the challenge of creating a lightweight tent built for alpine climbing and other four-season adventures.

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Slingfin 2Lite ultralight backpacking tent.

Review: SlingFin 2Lite Ultralight Backpacking Tent

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Ultralight Backpacking Tent
SlingFin 2Lite
$505 (includes seam sealing; $30 less to order without seam sealing and do that yourself)
2 lbs. 10 oz. for the 2Lite, 2 lbs. 6 oz./1191g for the 2Lite Trek
SlingFin.com

Backpackers seeking an ultralight, two-person tent with decent space and solid performance in a range of backcountry circumstances actually have several good choices these days—including six of my 10 picks for the best backpacking tents. And yet, there are many reasons they should consider the 2Lite from SlingFin, as I concluded by the first night of a long hike through the High Sierra in August, when strong gusts pounded our camp at nearly 10,000 feet all night.

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Backpackers camped in the backcountry of Wyoming's Wind River Range.

Review: Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2 Solution Dye Ultralight Tent

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Ultralight Backpacking Tent
Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2 Solution Dye
$450, 2 lbs. 3 oz./992g
rei.com

If you’re shopping for an ultralight tent with two doors that doesn’t require an engineering degree to pitch, the Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2 has long had much to recommend it—including a weight of 18 ounces per occupant. Now, B.A. has made the latest update of this laudable shelter even more appealing to weight-conscious backpackers, with fabric that’s highly resistant to UV degradation and comes with substantial green cred, thanks to a production process that uses radically less water, energy, and chemicals.

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