We've just got back from a 3 week summer alpine vacation to
Austria/Germany/Switzerland and as you've probably gathered from the
news it's not been the driest or best of alpine seasons.
Although, with some regular repairs and maintenance needed, it kept us
warm and dry when most other campers were regularly drying out sleeping
bags and clothes, our more than 10 years old Quasar is nearing
retirement age.
This year we had yet another section of pole snap (this has been a
regular occurrence throughout its life), but also the zips are now
failing, the groundsheet is wearing thin and regularly needs patching,
and the flysheet is so UV damaged that it easily tears and is also
patched and duct taped in several places!
So I'm thinking of what to replace it with?
The Quasar ETC (extended tent canopy) is not our only tent. We also have
a Macpac Stellar (which we bought and used on a tour of New Zealand) and
a Hilleberg Nallo 2 GT, which both give us options for lightweight
camping under most conditions. My wife also has a Hilleberg Akto which
she bought for her solo backpacking trips. However the Quasar ETC, with
its very stable geodesic structure and large covered canopy, was our
tent of choice when camping in winter and under harsh conditions, or for
use as a large 'basecamp tent' for extended vacations.
So I'm after another all-season all-weather geodesic, with plenty of
room for two and all their gear, plus sufficient space to cook in
comfort under the canopy in harsh weather. I'm also happy to pay a
premium for good design features and build quality.
Terra Nova still sell an updated version of the Quasar ETC, and TNF, ME,
and Mountain Hardware both market tents of a similar design to the
standard Quasar (ie not ETC). However one feature I disliked about the
Quasar was that you had to erect the inner first and then put on the
outer. This means it is difficult to keep the inner dry when erecting or
taking down the tent in wet weather. The other off-putting experience
with our Quasar has been the poles (I know several others who have
experienced similar problems to ours).
Looking at the Hilleberg website I see that the 'Tarra' (slightly
smaller than our ETC) and the 'Saivo' (slightly bigger) would also seem
to fit our requirements and also offer the possibility of separating
inner from outer when tacking down in wet weather. I'm so far very
impressed with the design and construction of our Nallo and our Akto.
Does anyone have any recommendations or disrecommendations for these or
other similar models of tent?
Cheers,
Mike
--
o/ \\ // |\ ,_ o Mike Clark
<\__,\\ // __o | \ / /\, "A mountain climbing, cycling, skiing,
"> || _`\<,_ |__\ \> | immunology lecturer, antibody engineer and
` || (_)/ (_) | \corn computer user"