Nothing sucks more when you’re on a long trek than hauling around unnecessary weight and heft. Sea to Summit’s ridiculously light Specialist tents aim to dominate the ultralight category and not be uncomfortable pieces of crap in the process.
They weigh just 625 grams for the Solo, and 846 grams for the duo, but if you use your trekking poles instead of the included ultralight aluminium 7075 poles you can cut roughly 200 grams off your pack weight. That’s nuts. Then they wrap up so small, as you can see, they’re just a bit taller and wider than your typical Nalgene bottle. My shoulders are sighing with relieve already.
For all that, they aren’t just miserable plastic sacks stuck to a couple sticks, like so many other ultralight categories. See how the floors aren’t a straight angle, but come up a bit and then go in? That translates to more usable space and less cramping of your toes when you’re trying to sleep. The Duo has two separate entrances, and they both have vestibules for storing your gear out of the rain. They even have little storage pockets for your flashlights and other small items. That kind of attention to detail is typically left out of ultra-light gear like this. They’re due out in March, and they’re going to be very tempting for the weight-conscious (or weight-obsessive) backpacker. If I can get my hands on one before then, I’ll put it to the test and let you know if it’s as good as it looks. [Sea to Summit via GearJunkie]