Eureka!

Solitaire AL Tent: 1-Person 3-Season

‘Goldilocks’ saga…

Familiarity:

I gave it as a gift but have feedback to share

Size Bought:

One person

To be continued…. Have ordered 3 tents so far this season First order - too big Second order - too small - great for one smallish hiker Order three - has been just right…

Fantastic one man tent that I have used for multiple 2 week long backpacking trips. Loved the sewn on rain fly and how easy it was to get in and out, extremely breathable too. Its light weight and easy to set up and take down so it is great for a beginner or experienced hiker. Only problem is had was the fiberglass tent poles got cracked and broken after a lot of use over the course of 4 years, but its all in all fantastic tent.

It deserves a lesser star than 1.

Poor material and it will cost more money in buying new poles and repairing holes made from the poles breaking. The zippers stick very easily. It is a simple design and has potential of being an excellent tent but falls short on so many levels with the materials and tons of small improvements that can be be made. The custom poles was a nice thought for making it lighter weight but they are no count. I am on my 3rd set. This time I will not be using the Solitaire poles. I will be making my own and giving to my young son because I can't return or sell it. Pre-molded/ bent aluminum poles, better fabric, completely sealed tub, waterproof zippers, reflective color coded parts, the ability to be more flexible in wind, and protect better in rain just to start. The tent updated designs need to be coming from hikers and campers with experience and not an R&D lab.

A surprisingly great choice for lightweight travel

I’ve only taken my Eureka Solitaire on a few trips so far but already it has FAR exceeded my expectations for a tent in this price range. I was looking to replace my 2 person backpacking tent because I wanted something smaller I could take fastpacking in a 30L bag (and I did not want a bivy sack). Besides being lightweight, the tent can easily be stuffed into a 6L compression sack (and be compressed down even smaller). The size itself is a huge win if you are one person traveling in the backcountry. I wasn’t sure how I would feel about the attached rain fly but I am really liking it so far. Where I live it is quite dry, but I could imagine that setting up in the rain is a lot easier when you don’t have to fiddle with finding/arranging your rain fly. I haven’t had any issues with condensation inside the tent, even though I have woken up with condensation on the rainfly. When staked properly it seems to do quite well keeping moisture out. With the rain fly completely closed the tent also warms up very well. With the rain fly completely rolled back, you get unbeatable views of the stars and a very easy way to enter/exit the tent. For this style of tent I wasn’t expecting to have much wiggle room, but I can very easily fit my sleeping gear on one side of the tent with plenty of room to spare for my pack, clothes, contact lens stuff, etc around me. The pocket inside the tent is great for quick grab stuff you might want in the night! No big complaints so far. A little hard to stake down well in rocky terrain. I knew when I bought it that I would have to shimmy myself into the tent and that there wouldn’t be any room to sit up. Minor drawbacks when considering how small it packs down. If you are looking for a lightweight companion and don’t want to pay the Durston or Hyperlite price tags, give the Eureka Solitaire some serious consideration!!

Outstanding solo tent

I purchased this tent 28 years ago and glad to see it’s still being made. It’s an exellent solo shelter, keeps you dry & bug free and weights little, great all around solo lightweight shelters and sets up in a minute, mine came with aluminum pre-curved poles and they are still going strong.

Work up WET.

It was not raining outside. The moisture from me sleeping and from the ground could not escape and made everything in the tent wet. No air flow. I had it step up via the instructions. I had it pulled tight. But no air flow. Moisture on everything. I went to get out of my tent and hit the netting and I had a face wash. I had to keep the front flap open so I could get air to breath. I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THIS FOR ANYTHING BUT THE TRASH. Waste of my money. I am 5'3" on a good day and I had to low crawl in and out of this tent. Can't get dressed in it at all. By the next morning the netting was almost hitting my sleeping bag. The ropes don’t keep it tight. I have an Eureka black out 4 man tent and love it. just no the Solitaire AL.

The Solitaire is an excellent lightweight tent

The Solitaire is an excellent lightweight durable tent. The poles for the solitaire tent are another story. Where do I get new poles for the solitaire because the feet end of the pole (short pole) broke the second time I’ve set it up and slept in it also the entrance pole (long pole) has started to crack in one area.

Best bike packing tent in existence

My favorite things: it packs down incredible small and is super light, so it's literally the best bike packing or light and fast backpacking tent I've found. It's durable. And the full sky view when the fly is rolled back is fabulous for summer evenings and seeing the stars but not feeling the bugs. I also love that it has a vestibule so I can pull my bike bags under cover overnight. I wouldn't have thought a minimalist tent would come with a vestibule, but for no added weight or girth, it makes the difference between it being a tent and a shelter, for the better. I've not had any trouble getting in, as some have written. I just enter it at the vestibule end like a regular tent. I'm 5'10", for reference. For bike packing, I can fit this entire tent (poles and all) into my frame bag or my seat bag, so like I said, it's perfection unless you like a ton of covered real estate (and are willing to carry it). For me, this lets me ride fast and far, but is immensely more comfortable--night and day--than a bivy sack.

Best Value in a Dependable Small Tent/Large Bivy.

It is the best value out there but know what you are buying and make sure it is right for you. It resembles a bivy sack but it has a vestibule, it is more spacious and has structure to it rather than sleeping in a waterproof bag. It is almost as light as a bivy and packs almost as small. I use mine primarily for bikepacking. I've tested it in cold, steady rain and in the hot and dry, in the wind and back in the mosquito infested woods. It does everything I need it to do and it packs up very nicely when I hit the road for another day of riding. You can't beat this price for a solid, waterproof, breathable, lightweight tent. With that, know that you are buying a minimalist shelter that takes a certain technique and a little practice getting in and out, including getting in and out of your sleeping bag. Once you are settled in, it is plenty long and wide enough for my 6 foot senior frame, spare clothes and whatever other small items I would rather keep inside my tent. You are not going to sit up once you are inside it. If that is not your style, consider spending more for a slightly larger, heavier and taller side entry tent. I did upgrade the stakes with a set of more compact and lighter straight aluminum stakes. For me, the Solitaire AL checks all of the boxes for what I need to see the world from two pedal powered wheels. I know I can depend on this tent for a good night's sleep after a long day on the road or trail.

Nice little tent, but.....

Bought this a couple of years ago. Have used it once, as I only use a tent when I have to, rather sleep outside. But, being 6'2", it is tough to get into. I went through the top zipper, and even that wasnt easy. But, sure seemed to hold up well, and would do fine in a storm. Not much room for the possibles though. I mean, if you have to get in through the front, and that is where you would store stuff out of the rain. Anyway, it is light and packs small, and is easy to set up and take down, and will work fine for my needs, when I need it. I do wish it had a side entrance capability though.