Tents for Motorcycle and Bicycle Camping

Background

My military career included training in the Army version of camping. Accommodation for my youthful  motorcycle camping excursions was a large plastic sheet covering me and the motorcycle - spacious but breezy and open to insects. Later on the trusty orange pup tent without a fly kept the insects at bay, but performed poorly wet (I know why they call it "bath tub floor") or windy conditions.

 Thirty years later my hobbies include motorcycling and bush walking with occasional back packing and bicycle touring. Holidays often include a week or two of camping.

The Climate

South Australia has a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers with about 500mm of precipitation per year around Adelaide. Winters are cooler and wetter and the overnight temperature seldom falls below freezing. For drier and warmer conditions we head north or inland.

Tents for Motorcycling and Hiking

I have accumulated five tents. The heaviest - not for not for hiking. The lightest - not for motorcycling.

Eureka Yellowstone Trekking Tent

Based on years of experience we use a Eureka Yellowstone dome style tent with an Australian rating of 3 to 4 seasons. The interior of the tent is clipped to 2 alloy poles and the fly uses an extra half bow to increase the useable area of the two peg out vestibules. It weighs about 3.7 kilograms or 8 pounds. It has enough space clothing to be stored inside the tent. Other items were stored in the vestibules or in the motorcycle panniers or trunk box. The inside of the tent has a screen mesh panel near the peak of the dome. The two side doors have zippered panels that cover the screen. temperature and humidity is regulated in cool conditions by increasing or decreasing the amount of uncovered screen in the doors. Hot and humid weather would be a problem, but we encountered none of this in Alaska or the Yukon. 

• Dome style 2 1/2 bows, interior of tent clips to poles
• interior length 228 cm interior width 152 cm interior height 115 cm
• Mass 3.7 kg
• Roll size 50 by 16 cm
• 2 doors, 2 vestibules
• purchase alloy and plastic pegs separately.
• 2 person
• generous side vestibules / entries
• 2 vents in fly, screen and covering panels on doors, mesh panel in ceiling.

Eureka El Capitan

This tent is an update of the Eureka Yellowstone. The interior doors are now offset toward the entrance in the fly. The interior door each use a single curved zipper A low level vent is incorporated in two sides of the fly. The area of the mesh panel in the ceiling of the interior has been increased. The colour is brighter. The skirting at the bottom of the fly in the vestibule area has been deleted - the fly is sufficiently close to the ground - I avoid camping in drifting snow.

Snowgum Walkabout

• two large hoops that cross each other at the ends, interior tent clips to poles, fly attaches to poles with velcro tabs and to the pole/corners with buckles and adjusting straps
• Interior length 210cm, width 90cm,  height 110cm
• mass 2.3 kg with bag
• 1 person, one side entry, one vestibule
• includes thick alloy pegs, add your own guy ropes and pegs
• generous entry vestibule, with top vent and top and bottom zippers on fly door.
• mesh panel in ceiling and mesh panel in door with zip open cover

Eureka Moonshadow Lightweight Tent

• one large hoop and one small hoop at the foot end of the tunnel, interior tent clips to poles.
• Interior length - 225cm, width 145 cm, height 115 cm
• mass 2.2 kg
• roll size 40 by 14 cm
• 1 to 2 person, front entry, 1 vestibule
• Includes thick alloy and plastic pegs.
• moderate size front vestibule / entry
• mesh panel in door and ceiling, no vents in fly

Walrus Micro Swift Lightweight Tent

• one larger hoop and one smaller hoop at the foot end of the tunnel,  poles slide through pockets of interior tent.
• Interior length 230 cm, maximum width 82 cm height 62 cm approximately
• Mass 1.5 kg
• Roll size 35 cm by 16 cm
• 1 person, front entry
• Includes alloy pegs
• Very small front vestibule,  narrow entry
• mesh panel in door and upper sides of tunnel, top and bottom door zips for larger vent area
• not free standing - must be pegged out.
• straps included to allow set up of fly only
• An entry mat will assist with removal of footwear prior to a feet first (upward facing) entry into tent. The mat can assist with head first (downward facing) exit from the tent allowing footwear to be put on as part of the exit process. Good knee and hip flexibility  is needed with this tent. 

Kathmandu Lansan Light

• one larger hoop and one slightly smaller hoop near the middle of the tunnel,  poles slide through pockets of interior tent.
• Interior length 20 cm, maximum width  120 cm at the hoops and tapering to 100 cm at the foot
• interior height at the door hoop 100 cm approximately
• Mass 1.85 kg
• Roll size 35 cm by 16 cm
• 2 person, front entry
• Includes alloy pegs
• front vestibule, for gear storage
• mesh panel in door and sides of tunnel
• not free standing - must be pegged out.
• Fly is 40D nylon with a vent at the foot end. The entry door can be zipped from the top or the bottom, to increase high level ventilation. 
• Corners and stress points are gusseted to help distribute the forces.
• Folded length of poles 52 cm, 46 cm - not ideal for my current bicycle bicycle touring panniers 

Factors to Consider When Selecting a Tent

Wind

Spending a night in a tent with a gusty breeze will indicate how well the tent will handle stronger winds. I sleep better when it is quiet. Flapping of the fly can result in a restless night. Generally, tents with shorter the unsupported span of fabric flap less. Higher tents are subject to greater wind load. The acute angles of dome style tents help to guide the wind around the tent. Wind does not move around steep side walls as easily.

Of course pitching the tent in a sheltered area will help to avoid the stronger gusts. Camping near the top or a rise overlooking the ocean can give a splendid view. However I have found such locations are subject to frequent and continuing changes in wind direction throughout the night.

Warmth

Interior warmth depends on the volume and surface area of the tent as well as the heat source and surrounding temperature and wind speed. The ventilation also affects the rate at which heat is lost from the interior to the fly. If the ventilation area to be modified, then the user can choose between warmth and humidity. A weighted plastic bag draped over the ceiling screened area can further reduce the infiltration of chilled air in winter.

Moisture Control

In winter, excessive moisture in the interior of the tent can result in condensation and dampness on clothing and sleeping bags. Too much ventilation and the interior temperature may be lower than desired. The Eureka Yellowstone, El Capitan and Snowgum Walkabout tents have zippered fabric panels over the windows and an mesh panel at the peak of the dome. Ventilation and warmth are controlled by the size of the opening in the zipped panels over the door screen. The fly on this tent has adjustable vents over the vestibules. 

The Moonshadow tent has no vents in the fly. The inside of the fly is usually  wet in the morning. The foot of the sleeping bag often gets damp from touching the interior wall which is then pressed against the wet side of the fly. The mesh panels on the door and in the ceiling of the tent  do not have zip over covers thus there is no method for controlling ventilation .

The Walrus Micro Swift is a very small tent and has a mesh door and panel in the top of the tent's interior. The doorway in the fly zips from the top on both sides of the doorway. This enables the top of the doorway to effectively assist in ventilation control.

The Snowgum Walkabout offers ventilation control by way of the window cover along with the ceiling panels to minimise condensation. As well, the door zipper has sliders at both ends of  the zipper. For cold weather camping I clipped plastic rubbish / garbage bags to the support poles to cover the screen ceiling panels. This substantially decreased the draft and allowed more heat to be retained in the tent. Cold nights in South Australia are usually dry - condensation on the interior of the tent was not a problem.

Rain

The fly on the Yellowstone dome tent has flaps (skirt) which touch the ground in the vestibule area. This helps to keep the rain out. The fly over the head and foot ends of the tent does not come close enough to the ground. Rain and water get onto the interior tent because of this. The El Capitan tent does not have the vestibule flaps which touch the ground. The groundsheet must be positioned to avoid retaining rain.

The fly on the Moonshadow tent does not reach the ground and rain gets onto the interior tent at the sides and ends because of this.

The Micro Swift  fly goes closer to the ground and this keeps the interior dry. The Micro Swift has a small entry - not sheltered by a vestibule. In wet conditions  it would be difficult to enter or leave the tent without transferring some precipitation. 

The Lansan Light performed well in some heavy rains in New Zealand.

Interior Height

The Micro Swift is small tunnel tent about 60 cm interior height at the tall end, this prevents an occupant from siting up. Crawling on hands and knees is possible, by deforming the tent. The interior contacts the fly which may be wet in the morning. Getting dress involves rolling onto ones side since the interior height is less than knee height inside the tent. The interior height is a compromise that some hikers are willing to make, but motorcyclist will usually find a way to make room for a larger tent. More recent variations of this style of tent have the entry and vestibule to one side of the longitudinal axis - at the taller end of the tent - making entry and exit easier and providing some useable vestibule for wet weather. I used the Micro Swift during a two week early spring bicycle tour along the Mawson Trail in South Australia. The dry weather was favourable for that tent. Through applying creative force I was able to adapt to the dimensions of the tent - sleeping offset from the longitudinal axis of the tent and placing needed clothing and equipment on the opposite side. I piled the pannier bags in the entry way / vestibule before zipping down the door at night. Using the lighter tent offset the extra mass of the sleeping bag that I needed for the morning ground temperatures close to freezing.

The Yellowstone, El Capitan and Walkabout all offer more than 100 cm interior height. The interior ceiling of the Moonshadow is pointed, so the maximum height is only available over a small area. The Lansan Light is cylindrical at the head end and it I am able to sit upright in it. 

 Conclusion

Camping and hiking usually involves compromises  with mass, volume, performance and price. Carefully define your requirements. Outdoor magazines such as "Wild" publish equipment comparisons. Inspect set up examples of the tents that might suit your requirements before making a decision on which tent to pack or carry. A vestibule area can increase storage space with a small increase in the mass of the tent.

Last modified 13/06/2009

mcewingg@optusnet.com.au