Shelters - Single Wall Tents

Evaluating the wind and snow loading of shelters for ultralight backpacking in inclement conditions. Read More...

News from the cottage industry is conspicuously absent from Outdoor Retailer, where even modest booths can be more costly than a serious gear-buying habit. So, here are a few new and noteworthy pieces of gear from smaller manufacturers that were either released late in 2011 or are coming in 2012. Keep these items on your radar as you prepare for the coming season! Read More...

Commentary on the (lack of) gear you can love from the cottage industry. Read More...

Backpacking Light staff pick their favorite gear/cool dealio/thingy-dingy of 2011. Read More...

This single-wall, three/four-season, tipi-style shelter is the largest tipi in the VersaShelter line. A significant amount of the weight savings comes from the use of an all carbon fiber pole. Read More...

A versatile shelter with a unique design, the Pentalite manages to bring something new to the realm of pyramid tent design: a large floorspace and optional full bug protection without a full-height inner bug net. The size, weight savings, and flexibility of this design make it a good candidate for a group backpacking, car camping, or base camp use. So far, so good, right? Read More...

On paper, the palatial space and bare-essentials engineering of this tent make it appear like a dream come true for ultralight group travel. How does it actually perform in the real world? Read More...

Capable of handling all four seasons as either a single-wall floorless shelter or a fully bug-proof double-wall tent, the Nallo 4 GT can easily be tailored to meet a wide variety of environmental conditions. Is it the right tent for your family backpacking outings? Read More...

Tired of solo trips? Ditch the tiny tarp for one of these multi-person shelters and share the weight with your friends and family. You may even save a few ounces! Read More...

We found lots of new lightweight shelters and sleep gear this time. We present them together in this article so you can compare them more easily. Doing so brings out some realizations regarding weight, roominess, and cost. Read More...

The show is underway and we are finding loads of new and interesting lightweight gear to report on. Enjoy! Read More...

These Cuben Fiber shelter systems are among the lightest out there, consisting of a tarp, mesh insert, and front beak and providing five useful shelter options! Read More...

Backpacking Light staff pick their favorite gear/cool dealio/place of 2010. Read More...

Two-pound free-standing single-wall solo tent with lots of interior usable space, good ventilation, good wind and storm protection, and it sets up in one minute! Read More...

To test his latest creation, a sub-5-ounce pack, Jamie filled it with the rest of his MYOG kit and took to the Great Smoky Mountains. Read More...

Summer OR is underway! We begin our coverage with new products from small companies who specialize in ultralight backpacking gear, including some new names. Read More...

A quality, lightweight shelter that's easy to assemble, but does a condensation issue leave us all wet? Read More...

A three-pound solo shelter made of almost-magically breathable eVENT fabric and designed for alpine climbing, it can handle wild weather, but is it comfortable to live with? Read More...

Nemo Equipment Inc. throws their hat in the trekking-pole-supported-shelter ring with the Meta series of single-wall tents. Read More...

Henry Shires performs his magic once again – the new Tarptent Moment has one hoop pole, two stakes, sets up in less than a minute, and has loads of room for one person. Read More...

This new single wall tent provides convenience and ventilation, plus loads of room for one person and gear and can accommodate two people when needed. Read More...

Two-person single wall tent with a twist: one side is double wall, so the fly can be rolled up in good weather for extra views and ventilation. Read More...

At 25.2 ounces for the Refuge and 15.8 ounces for the "world's lightest two-man" Refuge X, Six Moon Designs now has two of the lightest floored single-wall shelters on the market (and the only floored tent made of Cuben Fiber). Were the design compromises and added expense worth the weight savings? Read More...

Backpacking Light staff pick their favorite gear of 2007 Read More...

With over 38 square feet of floor area, this single person tent has the highest area to weight ratio in its class (single wall shelter with floor), but it has a few flaws. Read More...

Lightest bug-proof one-person shelter on the market. Read More...

Score another winner for SMD – the Lunar Duo is a well-designed, roomy, lightweight, well-ventilated single-wall tent for two people. Read More...

Extremely versatile and lightweight four-season, four-person, single-wall, free-standing, breathable fabric tent. Read More...

The Convertible creates a new “Light Four-Season Tent” category, and the Mirage will challenge the lightest three-season single wall tents currently available. Read More...

Fourteen new lightweight single wall tents, some with breathable fabric Read More...

A preview of new products at ORSM Read More...

This four-season, one-person, single-wall tent is made of a fabric claimed to be more breathable than eVENT. Read More...

Based on the previous Outdoor Designs tent, the Rab Summit Extreme is a rare eVENT tent that provides the ultimate in single wall breathability. It is built to handle the most extreme alpine environments and has few peers in its extreme mountaineering niche. Read More...

Single wall tents made of the more-breathable-than-Gore-Tex eVENT fabric caused a lot of excitement upon their introduction a few years ago. At last, a nearly condensation free single wall tent was possible. Then suddenly, eVENT tents were no longer available. Now a new wave of fabrics touted as “highly breathable” are appearing in single wall tents. What happened? Are these new fabrics as good as eVENT? Read More...

Introduces some major advancements in single wall tent design and provides user friendliness not seen before in a single wall tent, but there are a few details that could be refined. Read More...

Ultralight (just over 2 1/2 pounds) single wall tent with a bathtub floor and plenty of space for three adults - or maybe the whole family. Read More...

Lightweight single wall, two-person shelter with lots going for it: quality materials and construction, ease of set up, interior space and headroom, and storm worthiness – but it has one major problem. Read More...

Tarptent introduces the 1+ person Contrail, a throwback to the original minimalist Tarptent, but loaded with refinements and new design elements. Read More...

At just over 1 ½ pounds, the Squall Classic improves on the original Tarptent Squall design with bathtub floor, spinnaker cloth construction, Easton aluminum stakes, and guyline adjusters. It drops significant weight from the Tarptent Squall 2 but does it go far enough to justify the cost? Read More...

Possibly the finest 2-pound two-person shelter on the market - providing you don't intend to use it above tree line in intense winds. Read More...

Winner of the 2005 Lightitude Award for best single wall shelter, the Squall 2 improves on the classic Squall with several important updates. Read More...

Tarptent returns to its roots with a new fast and light bivy-weight 1-person tent. Read More...

One-person, single-wall, free-standing, breathable fabric, 28 ounces. Read More...

A 3 lb Tent Withstands 136 mph Winds Read More...

Black Diamond adds two new light weight, single-walled shelters to their Superlight line. Read More...

This radically different Tarptent is destined for greatness, but needs a few refinements here and there. Read More...

Slick, two-person inflatable single wall tent. Read More...

There are lighter and roomier silnylon tents, but this is the lightest freestanding breathable fabric (Epic) solo tent on the market. Read More...

New 4-person adventure racing tent that accommodates two normal people and weighs just 2.9 pounds. Read More...

This upgrade to the classic Virga is a quarter pound heavier and includes some nice improvements, and some changes that need more tweaking. Read More...