Your tent has to be a wee home from home. Fannying about, struggling with adjustments and not being relaxed means that the whole point of being there is being lost in a fog of shite gear.
The ruffled blue affair you see above is a Mont Bell Ultralight Superstretch DownHugger #4. This hits the markers for simplicity and function very well, and I’ve been using it in a variety of conditions over the past few months.
It’s comfy, the stretch seams are soft and you don’t feel constricted by them, the warmth is good as the fit is close at all times. The plain hood has a drawcord that I initially thought was a bit haphazard, but actually it’s low friction cord/cordlock interface means when you need to get an arm out it slackens easily under pressure and you just tighten it up again rather than fishing for the cord lock to slacken it. The lack of a shoulder baffle meaning it’s good policy to always keep the hood cinched a bit, although the stretch means that there less gusts of hot air pushed out when you move in your sleep.
I’ve got it wet a couple of times but the water hasn’t penetrated the fabric, and it compresses easily and lofts well evey use. The sign of a good quality down fill.
Which all takes me to a thought I had. There must be an optimum stretch point where the down dispersal is just right for best insulative qualities. Wee folk wouldn’t be so hard done by, but big, or indeed fat folk may have to try before they buy.
There’s so little features there’s very little actually talk about, all I can say is it works very well. I haven’t been cold in it, and it’s exceptionally well made.
I have Mountain Equipment Lightline – good but heavy, but I like the elastic pulling it in tight. Also I have a Marmot Atom. I like the weight, but miss the tight fit of the Lightline. Those Mont Bell’s look real good. Do they do 6’2 ones as well or am I going to have to save up for a PHD bag?
They do three sizes of each model, I’ve got the regular and it’s spot on for me.
It’s hanging up airing out just now, I’ll do a measure tomorrow and report back!
I’ve got a ULSS #3 that I’ve been very happy with. Light, warm, and packs down to nothing. Great 3-season bag.
Aye, good kit. I’ll see how mine does as it gets colder. I wonder if wearing clothing will be less or more effective with the stretch seams?
That is a very strange photo to see on your site PTC, the tent being white looks like a tarp, a wobbly looking pot with a windshield looks a bit like a meths stove, it all looks a bit like an American SUL type camp. Thank God you bought the Snow Peak mug, no purple and I suspect you nicked the photo from someone else!
That’s true, it doesn’t look like my stuff at all does it?
The thing hanging down just above the door is the SilvaL4 headtorch in the wee pocket, also in view is a Camelbak silver bottle, very unusually the blue and orange of a Source bladder and more familiar my Optimus Terra solo pot at a jaunty angle. That’s the Gregory pack in there as well, show the internal space quite well.
It is a very light coloured tent right enough. Pre-faded, makes you look hardcore :o)
The rear pole on the tent looks as if its been puled away off to one side, is it a squinty tent or is it just the photie angle?
Nah, it was me pitching it in the dark for the first time in ages.
It was fine though, the outer was tight enough. So there’s room for being tired and emotional at camp time and getting away with it :o)