Eureka Alpenlite 2XT Tent: 2-Person 4-Season

I set this up in the backyard for a couple of days so I could practice using it before taking it out in the bush/trail. I used this in the atlantic winter storm (cape breton, ns) on Dec 20-22 2008. We got roughly 15-20cm of snow/ice with sustained winds of 50-80kmh and gusts up to 120kmh, it performed quite well. This is a comfortable one man or cozy two man tent. If you don't use the vents properly you will get condensation. The last tent I used was like 20 years ago and they have changed quite a bit since so this only gets 4 stars due to my lack of experience with other newer tents. Overall I slept really well despite temps. ranging from -1c to -12c and extreame wind with blowing snow/ice. The fly didn't "flap" in the wind and keep me awake, I made sure it was quite taut and everything was fine. When even a little bit of light hits the fly, the interior starts to really "glow" and brighten things up.
The seams are all factory sealed and the stitching is tight, nothing leaked. Get the floor saver, it's cheaper than buying a new tent. I haven't used this in the field yet but overall the quality is pretty good and I don't anticipate any problems.

It came with 15 7" lightweight alum. "J" pegs, 10 7' ish guy lines with tightners, pole bag, and stake bag. You will need to get some more pegs to fully guyout the fly. The one's that came with it are not durable enough for me and bend easy when staking in rocky ground. Oh yeah it's not really yellow (rain fly) it is a bright almost flourescent orange, you won't lose it in the field that's for sure.

Things I like:
Super easy set-up.
Withstood 120kmh wind gusts without moving.
Sheds snow and ice pretty well.
Great ventilation.
Tons of extra guyout loops.
Decent weight, not heavy but not ultralight either.
Looks cool.

Things I don't like:
Zipper on vestibule is too close to velcro fly attachment and gets a little stuck sometimes.
The middle pole (not the backbone) hovers above the backbone and creates a half inch gap between the two poles, almost like the middle pole is too big (or maybe its just my setup), I wrapped a piece of velcro around both pieces, pulling them together, works good and makes it more solid.
Rear vestibule, kinda usless.

I love this tent. I've had my Alpenlite for about 6 or 7 years now, and it's been camping with me many many times. Nothing has ripped, the zippers dont' get stuck, it doesn't leak, it's easy to set up,iIn my opinion it's the best tent you can buy for the money. I got it at Kittery trading post for about $140 back in '06 I think it was. It has stood up to rain, wind and snow no problem. Again easy to set up and it fits my 6' 3" body and my wife who is 5' 8" just fine. If you are hiking long distances you can find lighter tents for sure, but this is pretty light for a 4 season tent at around 7 pounds. And, if you are not hiking solo you can always split up tent and poles to distribute the load. If you want to take the extra time to set up all the guy lines to the rain fly, this thing is bomb proof. Get one if you can.

I love this tent. I've had my Alpenlite for about 6 or 7 years now, and it's been camping with me many many times. Nothing has ripped, the zippers dont' get stuck, it doesn't leak, it's easy to set up,iIn my opinion it's the best tent you can buy for the money. I got it at Kittery trading post for about $140 back in '06 I think it was. It has stood up to rain, wind and snow no problem. Again easy to set up and it fits my 6' 3" body and my wife who is 5' 8" just fine. If you are hiking long distances you can find lighter tents for sure, but this is pretty light for a 4 season tent at around 7 pounds. And, if you are not hiking solo you can always split up tent and poles to distribute the load. If you want to take the extra time to set up all the guy lines to the rain fly, this thing is bomb proof. Get one if you can.

Excellent tent, bombproof for me, has never let me down in downpours or anything. However this tent says its out of stock right now, but once it is in stock, make sure the price is much less, because eureka sells them directly from their website for 239.

Very easy set-up, perfect venting options. Mine weighs in at 7.7lbs, that's without footprint or extra stakes...I realize its a little heavier than some, but this thing is awesome in a storm when it really counts.

Great tent, especially for the price. I would comfortably compare this with big-name tents costing a good deal more. I use this as as a solo, for which it's not the lightest, but very sturdy and packs fairly small. About the best venting I've seen in any sturdy tent (better than most 3-4 convertibles) allows it to be comfortably used in almost any weather. I might not use it on Denali or summer on the Sahara, but it should work for pretty much anything else. The set up is unusual, but easy enough once you've done it once. The only downsides I can think of are that it has only one door/vestibule and is a little compact for two large people. 4.5 stars

WOW,if you want a two person< four season tent. and money is a concern. then this is the only tent you need to look at and buy. i camp with the boy scouts year round and no matter what the weather i am in this tent. i just got back today. the weekend was cold, snow at night with freezing rain. and i could not have been happier. i had a north face tent and as long as you liked an indoor shower every morning in the tent, all was good. not with this little work horse. there are more vents to shake a stick at. and no matter how hot, how wet it gets out side, there is zero condensation build up. room for you and your gear. very tight for two tho. bottom line this is the last tent i will ever buy. i could not be happy.

If you had to buy one tent. this is it. is it heavy..hell yes. will it stand up to what ever the weather is... hell yes!!! With kids in the boy scouts we tent camp year round. and i wake warm, protected and happy. rain,snow or shine.
unlike my north face bivy that you wake up to a shower in your tent every morning. this tent has so many vents it is not funny. and they make all the difference. room wise, no problem. holds me, my gear and either an extra kid or fat lab dog.
so spend your money here. backcountry will take care of you and you will love there products.

Someone here submitted a Review that was not really a review but a gripe about pricing which put a undeserved negative skew on this great tent's rating :)

I was very exited to use my tent when i backpacked the hermit trail at the grand canyon! But on my 4th night there it started to rain a good bit. the left side of my tent on the seam of the vent started pouring water in! And to let everybody kno i did have the outer shells on it and it still leaked!