Initial Review

By pphlux March 22, 2004

Here is my inital review, as I just purchased this tent and have only used it on two trips. I have never owned a winter tent, although I have been winter camping in the mountains of Colorado for a few years in the three season Dana Design Mojo. My old tent was acceptable in cold weather, although I would never use it if there was a threat of wind, as there is a lot of mesh under the fly.

This tent is pretty easy to setup after you've done it a few times. I had set it up once when I picked it up, and again to seam seal it. (which was pretty easy, and they say it is good for the life of the tent, although Bibler supplied plenty of sealeant for more than one use) It was a little different experience setting the tent up outdoors, with a little wind and a few feet of snow. The tent is very sturdy once set up.

The rear vestiblue is _very_ small. I cannot even fit my overnight backpack back there. I find the front vestibule is a good size for cooking and front porch use, but there is not enough room for cooking _and_ storage space.

After cooking some dinner in the vestibule, I zipped up and we began to eat inside. The tent was quickly engulfed in steam, and I popped open the rear and front vents. Only about a 3" crack in the zippers seemed enough to ventilate the tent.

Overnight, the tent stayed very warm. Much warmer than my old, three season tent to say the least. A bit of condensation did build up on the upper portion of the tent, and on the front and rear doors. The doors had much more condenstaion than the ToddTex fabric. There was not condensation low on the tent sides, so my sleeping bag stayed plenty dry. All the icy condensation had disappeared by the time we woke up at 8am (an hour and a half past sunrise, and still well below freezing outside)

I will add some durability information to this sometime, perhaps quite a while from now. From what I have heard, Bibler tents wear very well if you don't rip them.

View Details: Black Diamond Tempest Tent 2-Person 4-Season

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