Last month I had to cancel a TrailStar order due to an unexpected bill. At the time I chose the yellow silnylon version, which looks stunning in photos. Now I'm getting ready to submit a new order, and I'm rethinking my colour selection. Grey and yellow seem to be much more common than olive brown, and maybe that's why I'm considering the latter. Olive brown looks less translucent than the others. Does that translate into better shade and cooler temps in summer?

If you own, or bought and subsequently sold any of Ron's tents or tarp shelters in olive brown, do you have any regrets not going with another colour choice? If so, why?

Think stealth camping. Order brown and blend in with Nature.

Besides, would you want to spend a day inside a yellow tent if you needed the rest? Not me. I'd want the extra shade of a brown canopy.

I posted this elsewhere, but I'll share my thoughts again...

I agree the yellow looks fantastic for photography purposes, but is otherwise my least favorite of the color options.

I like to be able to camp discreetly, so I think the olive brown is pretty cool. Had I known that was a color option when I ordered my Trailstar a little over a year ago, I would've gone with it. Somehow I missed it and instead I ended up with the default gray. The gray isn't bad, I don't mind it really, since it's just a shelter, but if I did it over, I'd go with the olive brown for a darker tone and to add a little variety to my (entirely) gray shelter collection.

would you want to spend a day inside a yellow tent if you needed the rest?

That will depend on the circumstances.

Eric's profile mentions "Mojave Desert" for a locale. I might agree with him for southern California ... except that a reflective coating might be even better. There are other locales where the sun don't shine (often anyway) ... yellow makes for a more cheerful inside in those conditions.

EDIT: Many factors influence color desirability ... definitely a YMMV issue.

Edited by jcolten on 04/03/2012 17:57:42 MDT.

I have the yellow duomid, and I really like it. It always helps me wake up in the morning, and at night it is dark and I don't really notice it. That said, if I could choose (I purchased mine off gear swap) I would pick the brown simply because of stealth. I have to take a different shelter whenever I am trying to be secretive, which is quite often.

Bugs seem to like the yellow, my Supermid must seem like one GIANT flower. Don't have much to compare it to though, has anyone else compared a yellow with an olive brown or grey side by side? Alas, I cringe when people complain about bugs when they're out CAMPING. I love the yellow though, bright in the mornings and looks stellar in photos, wouldn't trade it for anything (OK maybe a cuben version...)

I had an Olive Duomid. Would go that color choice again. Discreet. Excellent shade. Private. Can't tell you if it was any cooler as I am underway during the day and try to pitch in shade to begin with.

Thanks folks. No major negatives for this colour so far. I fully understand the preference for a bright colour in PNW, but here in Colorado I think the darker colour would be to my advantage much of the year. Another thread raised the concern of brown in hunting season. I'd get that for clothing and perhaps a rounded shelter, but for something as angular as the TrailStar's lines...really?

Another thread raised the concern of brown in hunting season. I'd get that for clothing and perhaps a rounded shelter, but for something as angular as the TrailStar's lines...really?

I (and my brothers) grew up hunting and had safety and responsibility drilled into to us by dad every time we went out. I know a lot of great guys who hunt the way I was taught and count them as good friends but I have also known many who were absolute jackasses in their intentional behavior and some more who were simply ignorant. It is wise to allow for the worst ... for me that means staying out of the woods during certain hunting seasons but at a minimum it oughta mean being d*mn visible if your are out there.

"Does that translate into better shade and cooler temps in summer?"

Yes, the darker the silnylon, the better it shades, and the cooler it is, though we did not test black. Dark green was the best for this effect, that we tested.

Positives: Stealthy, provides better shade, cooler, more privacy (a relative term for a tarp), maybe less attractive to bugs

Negatives: Less photogenic than other options, avoid using during hunting season, less 'cheery' than yellow in gloomy conditions

Any other reasons to avoid olive brown? If not, I think we have a winner.

Thanks all!

Edited by lotuseater on 04/04/2012 08:33:45 MDT.

I have a white TT Sublite and olive Solomid. IMHO you should pick the color based on if you want to be seen. Sometimes I do, other times I don't.

While not offered necessarily by MLD, others have silnylon in various colors. I was thinking orange - blend in nicely with the fall foliage, safe for a area where hunters might be present and if caught in a heavy snowstorm, very easy to find against the white. Plus I believe orange actually is less translucent than yellow.