I have some complaints about the Slickrock, but it has ended up working really well for me, especially for being so light. I used it in the Sierras and got caught up near a ridge as storms rolled in. The Slickrock took a pounding of three hardcore storms on night, without leaking at all. On the other hand, condensation was a problem on the single-wall portions on clear nights. It sleeps two well, but I think that might have created the condensation problem. Overall, I think it does what it's supposed to - it's light, packable, and waterproof to the extent that such a light tent can be. If you are heading somewhere that gets a lot of rain though, I would probably use a different tent.

Similar Products Used:

None

Bought this tent for its light weight, free standing setup and 3-4 season ability. The weight is phenomenal! It weighs less than half of my previous 2-person tent. Since I primarily hike solo, this tent is perfect. It is roomy enough to hold me and all my gear comfortably. Even though it is only a half fly, I spent 14 hours in a torrential rain setup on rock (no stakes) in the Smokies and the only leak was the welt where the door tie back is stitched in. I would carry this tent instead of a bivy any day. I have yet to try it in snow, but plan to shortly.

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Eureka Timberline

I bicycled across the United States with this tent. 4800 miles and 93 days, camping all along the way. I love this tent. It is lightweight and compact - perfect for backpacking and/or bike touring. All summer it never leaked. Even though the vestibules were exposed, nothing ever got wet. I highly recommend this tent. Unless of course you are over 6' tall. I am 6'0" and I just fit. And be aware: condensation can be a problem with this tent. It's unique 1/2-fly design saves space weight but there is a trade-off with ventilation. Sleep with your head near the vented end - it helps. The double-doors are nice. It also held up OK in the wind.

Really light tent. Every one who gave this tent a bad review doesn't know what the purpose of this tent is! it's not made to be used in extream wet weather, or for climbing everest with, it's good for biking and light weight treaking in dry area's. However i used this on the west coast trail and it keeped me drier then my friends Timberline. It DOES have good ventalation in the desert. I used it in Utah and it was fine when it rained, when it wasent raining it just dident use the fly. I also took this tent up Mt. Robson, where it preformed flawlessly! i just used a kestral fly isent of the Half fly.

Customer Service

pretty good.

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TNF Mountain tent]
TNF Kestral
Eureaka Timberline
Marmot Area 51
MEC Snowfield

So far, this is the lightest 2-person, freestanding tent that I have seen. It's bat-wing design does have a few disadvantages. But, they should not be called flaws because TNF was aware that some sacrifices had to be made to create such a super-light tent.
I have used this tent on a 10-day, trek at Philmont Scout Ranch. While backpacking at Philmont through the Sangre de Cristo mountain range of northern New Mexico, my crew and I encountered plenty of rain storms. This tent performed extremely well overall.
I did encounter a one disadvantage (not flaw) of the bat-wing design.
The top edge of the fly does not completely extend over the bottom of the doors. As a result, a small amount of water drips in when entering / exiting the tent.
Although the vestibules could be slightly larger, my tent mate and I kept our boots under them every night during heavy downpours - not a single drop touched them.
For increased protection from horizontal rain, or heavy winds, the wings can be pulled through red loops on the side of the tent. This almost completely blocks wind or rain from entering the sides of fly.
The tent stayed well ventilated because of the half-fly. For increased ventilation, the tent also has two vents (one on top & one in back) that can be opened.
Overall, this tent performed extremely well. It is super-light tent that can withstand semi-harsh conditions. The perfect tent for an ounce-counter with high standards.
And as with all TNF products, it is backed by a life-time warranty.

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Sierra Designs Half-Moon
Eureka Timberline

sweet tent. i've slept in it on the beaches of thailand, in the woods of canada, and in the mountains of nepal. the complaints about size are a bit confusing - i'm just under 6' and shared it with a guy at least 6'3" without any big problems (mind, we left our packs outside). hey, if you want a himalayan hotel, be ready to carry 30lbs on your back and spend 2 hours pitching it.
you must have an eye for ventilation and wind direction, but really this extra bit of planning is a small price to pay for such low weight, compactness, and good value.
very intuitively designed with lots of clever features - pitches in seconds. might not stand up to Really wild weather as well as heavier tents, but with tents it's always about compromise. and this is a great one!

Customer Service

none

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the works

Plus:
-Light
-Easy Set Up
-Self Pitching
-Relaxing Colors

Minus:
-Condensation
-Ventilation
-Limited/No Vestibule
-Directional Weather Proofness
-Good ventilation at only one side
-Stakes/Guy Lines
-Small (6 feet adults stay away)

Yes, it's light and looks good. And it's really easy to set up. For simple back packing in moderate weather this tent is ideal.

I did some spring-camping in Yosemite: conclusion even two sub 6 feet adults (I'm 5'9") will have a hard time fitting in (no problem because it was really cold).

I did some camping at the rainy side of Maui with heavy directional winds and rain. No leaks, and my boots sayed dry in the wingy-vestibule. The humid climate did expose the ventilation and condensation problem. I woke with my own sweat dripping from the ceiling on my head.

But here's the thing with -what I call- directional weatherproofness, where a tent will be rain or wind proof only if for one direction. Sometimes, the terrain in not completely horizontal. In Maui, the wind and rain comes from one direction, but the combination of terrain-slope and wind direction made it impossible to sleep at the ventilation side of the tent as I prefer to sleep with my head higher than my feet.

Pitching and packing the tent is done in minutes, which was just what we needed before new rain sailed in.

I would never use this tent in hot and rainy environments where wind direction is unpredictable. Getting wet is bad!

Customer Service

None

Similar Products Used:

None

I bought this tent for the incredable weight to room ratio and ease of setup. On the first trip I bent all of the stakes while trying to get them out of the frozen ground, so I ended up buying some much stronger and light replacements. I took this tent on many backpacking trips in all kinds of conditions. The inside condensation was a huge problem for me as well as waterproofness in the rain. Continually my gear would get wet inside. Anything on the floor would get puddles of water under it, even on clear nights. I took it to South Dakota on a 4 day backpacking trip, and it rained every night but one. I got soaked every night. There were two of us sleeping in it which made the problem worse. Where the sleeping bags would touch against the sides of the tent long puddles would form and that side of the bag would get soaked. Everything touching the walls got soaked, and it dripped from the ceiling. I'm not going to try to solve the problem with a footprint, cause why should I pay more money and sacrifice weight, just to stay dry. North Face claims the tent will keep me dry w/o it. I will never use this tent again, I only use gear that I trust in.

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N.F. Darkstar sleeping bag, Jansport backpack, Coleman stoves, Petzl headlights

First, no outdoor product will suit every need or every situation, there are always compromises. Having said this, I am very pleased with the Slickrock for all the situations that I have encountered with this tent. The tent is extremely light and packs very small for a two person tent. It is extremely easy and quick to set up.

Condensation is a very minor problem (no worse than most tents)but can be controlled by sleeping with your head at the mesh portion of the tent, opening the vents and properly positioning the tent with respect to the wind. As far as leaking, I have had no problems to date. In addition to the factor taped seams, I sealed the outer portion of the seams with Seamgrip. As for the "vestibule", there is no room for a pack, but I have never put my pack in the vestibule anyhow (just put your pack cover on if you expect rain). There is plenty of room for your boots and unlike other reviewers, mine have never gotten wet.

If you want the Taj Mahal, expect to pay alot more and expect to carry alot more. If you want a good, lightweight 3- season tent that won't break your back or your wallet, you would be hard pressed to find a better tent

Customer Service

No experience

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Various

I use my Slickrock tent primarily for bicycle touring. I just finished cycling across the United States, and my Slickrock was used for over 100 nights (90 of those all in a row.) This tent is the ultimate for cycle touring; it's extremely light, it packs down very small, and setup is very quick. I'm 6'0", and that's about the maximum height that this tent can fit. As far as condensation problems, it can occasionally be an issue, but sleeping with your head under the mesh side of the tent takes care of that issue most of the time. Even though the 'batwings' are partially exposed to the outdoors, I've kept gear in them during rainstorms, and everything has always kept dry.

A word about waterproofness: This tent went through quite a bit of rain during my trip, and stayed bone dry until it had around 70 days of use in it. At that point, water would occasionally start soaking through the floor, and started soaking through the single wall portion of the tent. The problem quickly got worse. By the time this tent had around 100 days of use, any rainstorm would get the inside of the tent very wet. (It didn't leak through seams, it just soaked through. Recoating the floor solved the problem of water soaking in from the ground, but the single wall material was still a major problem. I took it to a North Face dealer, and we both agreed that the leaking was caused by UV damage to the single wall material. Granted you don't want to leave your tent out in the sun all year round, but when you use it on an extended expedition like this, it should be more durable. The North Face dealer replaced the tent on the spot, which salvaged my respect for North Face.

The verdict: This is an awesome tent, especially for cycle touring. My only warning is if you plan to live in this tent for an extended amount of time, be warned that extended exposure to the sun could cause the single wall material to start leaking.

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Various tents from Sierra Designs and North Face.