I was using a smaller 2-person REI tent when this came on the market and decided to give a larger interior a shot. It's been pitched in British Columbia, the Yukon, every western state and if I go east it'll get pitched there. This has been a no contest best tent I've used. In a snow-wind-ice storm in Bryce Canyon a few years back, I heard people leaving their cabin tents for their vehicles to get out of the weather. I just drifted back to sleep - it has never been anything but a bomb shelter from weather. A bit too bulky for solo backpacking, but what a base camp tent.

Customer Service

Never had to use it

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My little REI 2-person which is still great for solo backpacking, especially where elevation gain is an issue.

My friend has a 2 person Walrus and when we saw this for barely 100 bucks, I had to get it. It has been nothing but splendid as this is my first true tent. It has gone through a major downpour and not even a touch of dampness. I did see the new Arc/4 on sale for 249 and I considered it, but not at the expense of ridding myself of the Arc/3. I love the easy set up and my nephew considers it his new playhouse!

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I recieved for my Walrus for my birthday about a year and a half ago and I love it, I have never spent a bad night in it, even on a backpacking trip during the imfamous ice storm last year when I woke up to find an inch of ice on the fly in the morning (had to chip it off with a stick before packing up). The rapid hub system is a bit hard to figure out at first but after a few trips I was able to get it set up in half the time it took me to set up my last 4 season tent. Walrus also has a great customer service program and backs up their products 100 percent, even when I broke the main ridgeline pole with the hubs on it (which was my fault) Walrus replaced it free of charge and I recieved the new pole in a week. If you are researching tents I strongly reccommend a Walrus, you won't regret it. (You may also want to check out Walrus's site @ walrusgear.com
-Jared

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I purchased the Arc/4, which is the 1999/2000 version. It's larger and has one more pole than the Arc/3. Now that I've used it a couple of times, I can give an early review.

I love it.

The only bad thing I have to say about it, is that the tent poles are not color-coded. You have to set up the poles to determine which ones go into the tent and which ones are used for the vestibules.

The good stuff.

This tent is very roomy, with gigantic dual vestibules that are plenty large for stuffing all of your gear in one end and leaving the other one for entry/exit and boot storage.

I used it during a rainy weekend and didn't have a drop of rainwater, or even condensation, make it inside. Also, the light grey color of the main tent body and rain fly allowed plenty of light to come inside. Riding out a few stormy days inside wouldn't be so bad, especially with the included gear loft and pockets for stowing personal stuff and, even with your packs covered in one vestibule, having a large vestibule for cooking.

As to the complaint below about the doors, they must have been redesigned, because they now open with a side zipper and a floor zipper and can be opened completely to the side.

The set up of this tent is unique, because some of the poles are built into the tent body, but with a bit of practice it goes up nicely.

For a set of very detailed specs and photos of the Arc/4 in use, check out:

http://www.backcountry-equipment.com/tents/arc4.html

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I have spent several stormy nights in my tent and mannaged to stay dry on most of them. One such night two of my friends and I set out in the middle of a tornado watch. We hiked through the down poor and made it to camp in a short time. The other two were unexperienced when it came to storms. However being from Alabama, tornados were almost a weekly thing for me. So I chose the campsite on the east side of a mountain praying that the storm would pass over us and the mountain would help shield us. However I failed to take into account the quickly rising river near by. After we set up camp and pitched the tent we went on a short hike in the rain. When we came back our campsite was ankle deep under water. We quickly rushed over to my walrus tent fully expecting to see it flooded with water and all our gear soaked. However to our suprise inside the tent was bone dry. We quickly packed up our gear, jerked the rainfly of the tent and wrapped it around my pack. Instead of taking down the tent we each grabbed a hub and carried it up the hill to a clearing. There we covered it again with the rainfly and crawled inside to a suprisingly dry nights sleep. Even with out the rainfly the tent shed enough water to keep us from sleeping in puddles (however we only had the rainfly off for a short period of time). My Walrus has earned my trust again and again in many other wet, windy, and cold nights. I have found it to be a stable reliable tent which pulls through every time I need it.

Customer Service

I have had non dealings with the manufactuer yet.

I bought one of these at the REI sale over Labor Day weekend for $199.-. I pitched it, which is kind of weird the first time since the pole array stays inside the tent sleeves because the ""rapid hub"" design does not disassemble. The tent is very stable once it's up. I put the rainfly over it very quickly even though it has it's own poles for the vestibules. I spent a couple of nights in it during rain and thundershowers. Very dry. I was able to have the vestibule open with only the screen in place on the door and no rain came in. My only gripe is that the doors do not have a zipper across the bottom, so it's on the tent floor when opened... seems like a kind of lame design. I have a dog so I have to be careful to roll the netting out of the way when the door opens. Other than the door design, really solid tent. I give it 5 value rating because I saved 100 bucks! :)

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I purchashed this tent after having tried several other brands. The walrus is the best out of the bag tent for water resistance I have seen. The entire tent is seam sealed and ready to go. The double vestibule is well engineered and offers lots of storage space. As far as sleeping arangements go, the tent is rated for three,I would only suggest this if you are family or very good friends. On the other hand splitting the weight of a four season tent three ways is awfully nice. The tent setup is extremely quick and easy in the field. I would recommend that anyone purchasing this tent practice setting it up and taking it sown several times at home before heading out. The rapid hub system can be tricky to take down until you familiarize yourself with the system. Once you have it down setup is a breeze. I usually have this tent up in half the time of those around me with different tents. That time saving feature and ease of use are awfully attractive when a storm is rolling in or when a the light is quicly fading. On my first experience using the tent I was in severe thunderstorm where two tornadoes touched down within five miles of the site. The arc/3 remained perfectly dry. With the guy lines set out everything stayed just where it was supposed to. Overall I believe this is an excellent tent. Walrus gives a lifetime warranty so there is no need to worry. One last caveat. Buy the footprint designed for the tent. You will not regret it.

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