Bushwalk Australia

Can anyone advise on a suitable lightweight went for NSW summers? My wonderful Minaret is just too hot. I'm looking for something with good ventilation even with fly on as there haven't been many nights in the past few years I've been confident enough in the weather to leave it off.
I have heard PE holds up better than nylon in Aussie sun but that would limit me to the MSR tents.

Thankyou in advance.

I have the Minaret, Mont Moondance 1 and Duolight.
I agree the Minaret is a bad choice for summer, but excellent in the target environment of foul weather, rain, hail, a bit of snow and wind, which is sheds with consummate ease. My last use of that tent was in Noojee in mid-March where I was hammered by rain, hail and wind. Then the temperature warmed up and the whole thing became very stuffy.

Winner for summer is: Mont Moondance 1 or 2, mesh inner version for summer, full nylon for four season.

Not tent will withstand persistent exposure to the blazing Australian summer sun.

I travel with a Tarptent Protrail Li for 3 seasons in NSW. It's not to everyone's liking because it's not great when it comes to livability but ultra light (UL)

I had a Tarptent Rainbow and it's also UL and very livable.

Love DCF as a tent material but if you call it a day early afternoon, those tents cook in the afternoon Sun. Just something to be aware of and you get around that easily enough by setting up on dusk. Even better after the dew falls.

So I'd recommend a Tarptent, Zpack et al. but if you're not tall, the china rip-offs like Naturehike are fine.

If condensation is an issue for you, I've always wanted an MSR Hubba. Great tent but you've got that extra weight to carry on your back.

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I haven't got a specific recommendation but I reckon there's two main criteria you need in a summer tent - it needs two doors so you can get flow through ventilation, and it needs to be able to handle a decent electrical storm. To get two doors it may have to be a 2 man tent. The Mont Moondance 2 mentioned above would fit the criteria, but there are plenty of other choices out there.

Thank you both. It really seems like the Moondance is the way to go.

Protrail was my first UL tent, I was just a bit tall for it.

The Moondance 2 is getting up there in weight.

Depending on budget, the Tarptent Stratospire Li that I use is nice and light for a 2 man tent and super good for ventilation!

PS. I use the all mesh inner. I’m sure that helps!

JohnnoMcJohnno wrote:I haven't got a specific recommendation but I reckon there's two main criteria you need in a summer tent - it needs two doors so you can get flow through ventilation, and it needs to be able to handle a decent electrical storm. To get two doors it may have to be a 2 man tent. The Mont Moondance 2 mentioned above would fit the criteria, but there are plenty of other choices out there.

Can you elaborate on how one tent would handle an electrical storm over another?

spittle wrote:Can you elaborate on how one tent would handle an electrical storm over another?

If the ripstop grid in your tent fabric is made of metal, it forms a Faraday Cage and offers some protection from lightning. Not suitable for ultralight walking.

spittle wrote: Can you elaborate on how one tent would handle an electrical storm over another?

I just meant the tent has to be strong enough to be able to deal with a possible summer storm, including potentially violent winds. The only time I've ever had a tent pole break was during such a storm, tent completely flattened, all gear soaked. I guess what I'm really saying is that a summer tent may still have to handle some extreme weather conditions, so in my opinion it still needs to be reasonably strong.

ribuck wrote: If the ripstop grid in your tent fabric is made of metal, it forms a Faraday Cage and offers some protection from lightning. Not suitable for ultralight walking.

Possibly true, but I still wouldn't be camping on a ridge if there are storms forecast.

ribuck wrote:

spittle wrote:Can you elaborate on how one tent would handle an electrical storm over another?

If the ripstop grid in your tent fabric is made of metal, it forms a Faraday Cage and offers some protection from lightning. Not suitable for ultralight walking.

I’m sure there’s a opportunity there to make a fortune going viral on YouTube if someone did a field test.

ribuck wrote:

spittle wrote:Can you elaborate on how one tent would handle an electrical storm over another?

If the ripstop grid in your tent fabric is made of metal, it forms a Faraday Cage and offers some protection from lightning. Not suitable for ultralight walking.

I'd think the current of the lightning would melt any light wire structure. Consider when it strikes 'earth' that is mostly sand glass is formed making a structure like roots of a tree... Each wire would need to be some 2 cm in diameter. It would be more effective to erect a metal pole ... the higher the height the greater the area made 'safe', though you'd want to guard against the voltages that result from the current flow through the earth.

In practical terms .. just get low, be the lowest point in the sounding landscape.

I had the Tarptent double Moment with mesh inner. It was the coolest tent I have ever known - great in the tropics (jatbula Trail and Hinchenbrook Island). You could lift up the sides, open the ends and twin vestibules to get airflow. The single Tarptent Moment has the same features.
At the same time, it was remarkably storm worthy in gales and heavy rain.

The Dan Durston x-mid one person tent has a full mesh inner option and two opening doors for ventilation. It can be pitched to hold the fly well above the ground to create a bottom air gap all around the base too.

It can also be pitched with the inner mesh tent by itself (no fly) by purchasing (or making) the conversion kit.

crollsurf wrote:Love DCF as a tent material but if you call it a day early afternoon, those tents cook in the afternoon Sun.

So true! Most tents (big or small) tend to get very warm in afternoon sun, but single wall DCF does feel a little bit like being under a magnifying glass at times. Throwing your quilt/bag(s) and jacket(s) over usually makes things more bearable... and fluffs up your quilt nicely