4 season hiking tent

mic

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id like to know what your 4 season hiking tent is and how well it performs
as i am looking into buying one some time in the next year

thanks for your time
mic
 

briansnat

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id like to know what your 4 season hiking tent is and how well it performs
as i am looking into buying one some time in the next year

thanks for your time
mic
What they call 4 season tents are, for the most part, really just winter tents. They tend to be on the heavy side and a bit much to cart around all year round and they don't have the ventilation necessary for comfort in the warmer months. I'm sure there may be exceptions, but they probably won't be cheap.

So I use an old Walrus 4 season tent for winter and a 3 season tent for the rest of the year.
 

ppine

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In a forest a Whelen lean to with a fire in front is hard to beat. It is old school but very cozy. It goes against the grain of modern backcountry types. I do not like to lie inside a tent for 14 hours or more waiting for the sun to come up in winter.
 

ponderosa

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I'd love to sleep in a lean-to, as long as someone else was the one waking up to feed the fire.
But I agree with briansnat that it's pretty tough to find one tent for year round backpacking unless you're in a pretty mild climate. The weight of a tent that can handle a snow load is just not something I'm willing to carry outside of winter.
 

mic

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thank you for your replys
i have 3 hiking tents i have a one for summer that is all fly mesh that has fly, i have a 3 season bivy for when im out by my self and i have a winter tent as well wich is as old as the hills and needs replacing.
as for the fire 90% of my hikes are in national parks and fires are not aloud i use to use a tarp for hiking but the whole idea of waking up with a deadly snake in my sleeping bag has made me a tent man :D
 

ppine

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I have camped in the snow with a lean-to, canvas tents and
with 3 season tents. I have never owned a 4 season tent.
 

Cappy

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I wasn't sure what yall talking about at first. every thing I own is 4 season course it dont snow here but half a dozen times........a lifetime:Bounce::p:Biggrin1::Happy::Tongue: Sorry good chance to check out some smileys
 

ppine

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A 4 season tent is heavy and too specialized to use the whole year. They cost a lot. Unless you are a winter mountaineer, climber or overnight x-c ski enthusiast there is really no reason to buy one.
 

briansnat

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I have camped in the snow with a lean-to, canvas tents and
with 3 season tents. I have never owned a 4 season tent.
Some 3 season tents work just fine in the winter, unless you're dealing with a heavy snowfall, then you could have serious issues. I've used my 3 season tents for most of my winter camping as long as there was no now in the forecast. In the mountains though I always bring the 4 season in the winter because you never know when it's going to dump.
 

briansnat

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Hey what happened to the edit button? The above should read "I've used my 3 season tents for most of my winter camping as long as there was no snow in the forecast."
 

Cappy

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The only bad thing about this new format is the appalling lack of the edit button. If you type as bad as I do and occasionally. drink while you doing it, well lets just say I miss it dearly.:Yo:
 

vinovampire

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Winter means such different things in different parts of the world and at various elevations. Also, the likely number and size of the people in the tent is another obvious factor. If 90% of the time I'll be sleeping solo in my tent, and the other 10% of the time with a SO, then I'll be looking at a much smaller tent. During the winter I find that I take up an even smaller amount of space than during the summer, because anything I don't want freezing is in my sleeping bag with me or under me for extra R-value on the snow. You might think you'd need more space, due to the extra gear and general bulk, but that has not been my experience.

As others have mentioned, if you're at a relatively low elevation where you're unlikely to get much snow or high winds (and often wind can be mitigated with good site selection), a 3-season tent could be fine.

At the next level, you could consider some of the "all season" type tents, like the
REI Arete ASL 2. It's not a mountaineering tent, but seems like it would do well in most winter backpacking conditions while not being as expensive as many of the mountaineering-type tents. Another option here would be some of the various pyramid tarps like the GoLite Shangri-La or BD Beta Light.

If you're looking for something that's (a) more of a winter backpacking/mountaineering tent and (b) for one or two people who don't mind being cozy, you could consider the BD FirstLight or Mountain Hardware Direkt 2. In deeper snow you don't have to dig out as big of an area, since they have small footprints. They shed snow and wind, and are pretty light and inexpensive as 4-season tents go. My girlfriend and I use a FirstLight during the winter months, and it's been working well for us. I like the small, cozy feel.

If I were planning a multi-week winter expedition to Alaska, I would most likely spend the money on an BD I-Tent, Fitzroy, or something in that category.

Hope this helps a bit. Good luck with your purchase!
 

mic

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thank you a helpfull post indeed
i hike in some bad weather at time you have help make up my mind thanks
 

ppine

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For winter mountaineering and mountain climbing a 4 season tent is probably a good idea. For everyone else a 3 season tent is normally sufficient.
 
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