Cotopaxi Techo 3

Our take It can be hard for groups to keep everything in its place in cavernous tents, but organization lovers rested easy in the Techo thanks to a whole bunch of storage options. Four interior mesh pockets, a gear loft, and an optional clear-plastic tablet sleeve ($9) positioned for movie watching ensure there’s a spot for all your toys. All those pockets line the guts of a stable tent that withstood thunderstorms with 30-mph winds, while a pair of pre-teens lounged around watching movies on an iPad. Two 10.5-square-foot vestibules provide more storage. The burly materials and extra storage add to the overall weight, but if you’re packing in an iPad, we suspect you don’t mind. On fast-and-light trips, leave the canopy at home and fastpack the fly and footprint for 4 lbs. 1 oz.

The details Mesh walls made for little condensation in rainy and humid North Carolina conditions, even with three people on board. The polyester fly held a taut pitch, and the 70-denier nylon floor proved so durable that our tester left his groundsheet at home. The 42.5-square-foot floor is close quarters for three adults, but the near-vertical walls make for ample elbowroom.

Trail cred “I’m an AT thru-hike ultralight snob of a backpacker, and I still chose to pack in the Techo for family trips since I knew the gear sleeves were a hit with the kids. Happy kids equals happy camping!” said our tester after at trip to Virginia’s Grayson Highlands State Park.