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Backpacker Magazine – November 2010
Time-Tested Gear: Tents
A-frames, domes, party tents–we've tested them all.
The North Face VE-25 (Courtesy Photo)
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Tags:
- Gear |
- Tents |
- Winter camping |
- Sleeping bags |
The North Face VE-25 | Black Diamond Bibler Ahwahnee | X-ray Power |
Editors’ Choice Hall of Fame | Field Notes | Expert Wisdom |
See all Time-Tested Gear
Field NotesEditors’ Choice Hall of Fame | Field Notes | Expert Wisdom |
See all Time-Tested Gear
“Always stake down even a freestanding tent! In the early 1990s, some BACKPACKER testers were drying a (pricy!) mountain tent on a Peruvian glacier, when a capricious gust cartwheeled it away and over a 1,500-foot cliff. Adios! Days later, they came across some campesinos with the tent strapped onto a burro, and they didn’t have the heart to ask for it back.”
—Dave Getchell, Gear Editor, 1988-1994
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READERS COMMENTS
Garbage
I purchased my VE24 in 1982 and used it well for a few years. Then we moved to the beach and mostly cruised a Cal 30. In 1992 we retired to Bend Oregon and I dug out my wonderful family fort. Alas, the floor was sticky. I returned it under the TNF Warranty and soon received a new VE25. I also have a solo favorite, the Black Diamond Firstlight at 2,11.
You gotta love SD tents and I'm happy to see at least one model reach the H.O.F. For many years, my first generation Lightning 2 had been my "go to" 3-season tent. Although I've recently gone more lightweight with my Tarptent Rainbow 1, my SD Lightning and SD Stretch Dome 4-season create a pretty good, personal tent inventory.
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