Megan Cochran

I recently bought this two person tent for myself and i've got to say that I'm pretty impressed. I am going to say that 2-person is meant to mean 2-people who don't pack like their preparing for catastrophe... If you want to fit your portable Tv and all you other excessive items in this it's just not going to fit with two people. However, two people with one backpack and some boots and coat a piece and you'll be fine. Cozy but fine. The vestibule isn't huge so you might have to get creative, but it can be done. I recommend this tent highly. It packs small, it's idiot proof to set up and the rain fly is unpenetrable. To anyone using tents in high rain weather I recommend one thing on top of your rain fly and i call it the moat. Build yourself a "moat" around your tent where your rain fly meets the ground and the water will collect there instead of running toward the footprint of your tent. The water usually seeps into the ground and i've never had a problem even in monsoonal season camping. Good luck and enjoy your tent.

Bottom line if you're in the market for a sleeping pad you're better off spending whatever difference there is in price on a therm-a-rest mattress of some kind. This particular model is overkill if you're in the market for something small, light, or summer season in nature. However, i bought this model specifically for winter backpacking and I couldn't be happier. I'll obviously use it in the summer unless i need to save some precious inches of space in my pack. I work as a helicopter rappeller for the forest service in the summer and we've used the thermarest trail and prolite series extensively. Frankly, we beat them up pretty hard and out of 40 therm-a-rests we might have two get a leak per season.. which is impressive when they are dropping 250 feet out of a helicopter in a cardboard box onto god knows what rock or shale infested mountain side. I wouldn't waste my money on any other sleeping pad out there.

I've recently purchased the vario dual filter after having many experiences with katadyn in the past. It is a great filter with easy pumping and a really fast flow rate compared to others of it's size. I appreciate the low cost and also the very affordable replacement filters etc. I recommend after long treks with this to make sure and clean it very well... try to put it away as dry as possible on the road and when you get home dry it well before putting it back together. I've found that the ceramic plate will appear dry but it really isn't.. a good way to dry it is to put it on a paper towel and let the dry paper seep the last bits of water out of it.. make sure to turn it over and dry both sides! I work as a helicopter rappeller and we use other katadyn models like this in remote areas and i've been very impressed in the past so when i was reasearching one for my personal use katadyn's vario was my choice.. I spend a lot of time in giardia filled waters and i've never had a problem. I bought a katadyn microfilter water bottle for a friend before she left for brazil about a month and a half ago and she said she's used it with the tap water and had no problems. I will be taking the vario with me for a two month excursion to nepal... I'll let ya know how it does!