Overall: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Awesome tent.
ALPS Chaos 2 tent
First of all, I want to say how much I LOVE the pole system. No longer will campers be required to awkwardly hold two separate poles upright with one hand while trying to clip the tent with the other hand like an obscure yoga pose. When the pole ends are secured in the corners of the tent with this system, they are freestanding and very easy to clip. I was a little nervous about the sturdiness of this pole design at first because I've never used anything like it, but it is bombproof. This design also allows for maximized head room while sitting up in the tent.
My wife and I got this tent from REI about five months ago and we've already used it numerous times, most of which have been overnight backpacking trips. The Chaos 2 is lightweight and packs down really well. When it's set up it's very roomy for both of us (I'm 5'11" and still have lots of space to stretch out) and our gear. We keep our shoes and packs in the two large vestibules. Inside the tent there are LOTS of convenient mesh pockets (including a removable overhead mesh pouch) for easy-to-find-in-the-dark essentials: headlamp, glasses, machete, my wife's midnight chocolate craving, sawed-off shotgun for zombie attacks, etc.
The zippers on both the rain fly and the mesh doors are very durable and easy to use, I'm able to open the tent doors with one hand, and I haven't had any problems with them getting stuck.
The last trip we took this on we hiked to the summit of Mt. Juneau in Alaska (3,576 ft elevation) during a torrential rainstorm. After frantically setting it up we cozied up in our sleeping bags and attempted to sleep. While this tent kept us sheltered from the rain and hail, we didn't sleep much because of the wind that picked up during the night. *Note to self: I need to use the guy lines in bad weather.* After we got up in the morning we noticed that the inside of the rainfly had sweat during the night and let condensation into our tent. I think this is normal (I've never had the inside of the rainfly 100% dry after a rainstorm in any tent). However, this was minimal and not concerning. If I thought the wind was bad inside the tent, I was surprised at how much worse it was outside and was impressed by how well the Chaos 2 protected us from it.
The stakes are very lightweight and durable, they haven't bent on me when I've shoved them between the rocky ground.
The footprint is not included with the tent but I would definitely recommend getting it. It is essential to keeping the floor of your tent in good condition.
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| Waking up high and dry after a night of constant rain. |
Two person
Three season
Total weight: 5 lbs. 6 oz. (not including footprint)
Packed size: 6.5" x 22"
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