tents!
Okay, so we need a decent SMALL tent for such things as me going off with Guiders and for Aprilia and me going off for weekends on windy hillsides (like at the end of the month!) the choices seem to be….
Wynnster Falcon - don’t know the name and I know I swore never to buy a tent if I didn’t know the name ever again after the last fiasco but this does look nice and roomy but is a little above what I want to spend
Vango Beta 250 - again a little more than I want to spend, and only 2 berths for that extra cash (we like 3 so that there’s a bit of space for Aprilia to flail arround in her sleep!) but a nice big porch area for dumping wet coats etc
Vango Alpha 300 - it’s a dome, and domes are stronger, I know, but I’m not sure how much space there is outside the pod for dumping soggy stuff, but it’s much more our price range!
Vango Zetes 300 - this is looking favourite at the mo because it has a bit more porch space (but not as much as the first two) and is a price I can justify!
Arg! like I *need* another tent….. but the Hobbit Hole is way too big really for just 2 of us and for just a few nights even though it’s been shown to be storm proof, the Outwell is lovely but I’m worried that a tall tunnel won’t take kindly to strong winds at Jan and Jonathan’s and the old Argos one really is not fit for purpose any more since the cat ran all over it (and it leaked before then!!)
well, wynsters are a good make, so safe there. i would go for a low lying dome in wind [we bought the evolution 300 for 60 on ebay including postage, and thing that ideal - not dramatically small though! but low lying] i did like the vango sigmas cos i thought they wouldn’t blow away and the plus model you can exit from front or back depending where wind coming from!
Comment by HHaricot — May 14, 2009 @ 11:34 am
if there were only 2 of us, i would have bought this!
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Coleman-Phad-X2-Nearly-New-RRP-149-99_W0QQitemZ160334566883QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_SportsLeisure_HikingCamping_Tents_JN?hash=item160334566883&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1683|66%3A2|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A1318|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50
though the 3 person one better [coleman phad, at present on ebay for silly money
Comment by HHaricot — May 14, 2009 @ 11:37 am
this is the sigma - better than alpha i think
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VANGO-SIGMA-300-BRAND-NEW-HUGE-TENT-CLEARANCE-SALE_W0QQitemZ380123846026QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_SportsLeisure_HikingCamping_Tents_JN?hash=item380123846026&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1690|66%3A2|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A1318|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50
Comment by HHaricot — May 14, 2009 @ 11:39 am
ooh, here is a cheaper plus - i would recommend this, as then you have a dump area seperate to getting in and out area
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Vango-Sigma-300-2008-Model-HUGE-Tent-Clearance-SALE_W0QQitemZ380123847090QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_SportsLeisure_HikingCamping_Tents_JN?hash=item380123847090&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1688|66%3A2|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A1318|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50
Comment by HHaricot — May 14, 2009 @ 11:40 am
just can’t help it! but this looks worth a look - would have to buy some groundsheet material, but not an insurmountable prob!
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=260409258428
Comment by HHaricot — May 14, 2009 @ 11:55 am
but in your 4 actually, i would go for the wynnster or the vango beta
Comment by HHaricot — May 14, 2009 @ 12:10 pm
ROFL! Helen! you star! Must admit I like the Sigma+, they didn’t have them at my local camping shop though so I couldn’t have a good look. Am I right in thinking that the Alpha and Zetes are a bit “cheap and cheerful” rather than serious camping then? Or are you basing it on the absolute need that mums understand (and Duke doesn’t) for somewhere outside the sleeping area to dump soggy things?
Comment by tbirdanni — May 14, 2009 @ 12:18 pm
i think alpha and zetes are a bit cheap and cheerful, the beta seems to have been more carefully constructed [vango seem to have 3 specs of tents - mountaineering, family/real campers and festival/backgardens!] but i think it is the room for soggy clothes that is a necessity! and putting camping chairs out of the rain…
Comment by HHaricot — May 14, 2009 @ 12:32 pm