I’m on their site now. I gotta admit, these look sweeeet! Damn, I love gear. 
I’ve only been in it once, we were going to do a few trips down some rivers in Bozeman area two summers ago but weather didn’t work out while we were there. He loves it.
Also, that Bucks Bags Bronco pontoon boat I have I bought used in '96 and it still works great. I’ve only had to replace some velcro straps to hold the stripping apron. In fact, before I bought the pram I wanted to replace the Bronco with a newer model and was always hoping something would break on it to justify the purchase. But alas, it’s still hanging in my garage, the same condition it was when I bought it in '96.
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I’ve seen people using those in Colorado before. They look pretty sweet.
That Flycraft video got me hyped as frick.
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Not sexy at all, but I loved camping out of a minivan. Incredibly versatile, plenty of room for a small matress and gear, useful for everyday needs. I traveled around the country for six months in a Dodge Grand Caravan and then kept using it to go camping with friends. I’ve never enjoyed tents for some reason. Helped me feel some sense of privacy and sleep comfortably. I often used a small propane heater inside.
I will also say, hammocks are underrated.
Random image but I’ve hiked with something like this and it is small and comfortable. I enjoyed it far more than sleeping on the ground in a tent. … Though also, kinda the opposite of the minivan.
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I’m considering a Chevy astro/gmc safari which you can get AWD and is an easy conversion to full 4WD. Either that or truck camper. Or nothing. I just like considering stuff.
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We rented a van that had the middle row of seats ripped out and the back set would fold down. It worked really well for camping. With the back seat up there was a ton of room in the back for gear. With the back seat folded down it made a platform big enough for two to sleep comfortably.
We used to take two week canoe trips in the boundary waters, but this is a backpacking story.
We arrive at Glacier Nat’l park and tell ranger we plan to hike up to Cracker Lake. He says to expect heavy winds. We say sure.
That night, the wind starts building. It would bunch up on one side of the mountain until it spilled down our side, followed by a lull until it built up again.
By the middle of the night, the tent was not flapping, it was buzzing. Seemingly straight-down blasts of wind were flexing our tent poles and making sounds like a National Geographic special about Arctic blizzards.
Then it would go away and and be peaceful and you’d think that had to be the worst of it, then ten minutes later it all started again.
Finally, a tent pole buckled, ripped a hole in the fabric, and plastered the top of the tent against our bodies. We just held the flattened tent against ourselves so it would not leap around so much. Then the wind died, the remaining poles pulled the tent back into position, and we said that’s gotta be the worst.
Spent the rest of the night periodically holding the tent against us while it galed out there.
Moral: in really heavy wind, take the poles out and just hold onto the tent fabric.
North Face repaired the tent under warranty, which was excessively nice of them.
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Cool. I have told this story before, but I had a 6-man tent from REI that was at least 10 years old. One of the poles broke in a windstorm. I went to REI looking to buy a replacement pole. They didn’t carry that tent or those poles any longer. They gave me a full refund for the tent. I didn’t ask for any refund. The refund was for almost $80 more than the replacement at REI cost at the time, so I got a replacement plus a pair of shoes.
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REI is great, IMO. The membership dividend is prettay good as well. YMMV, but I find their staff is usually very knowledgeable and knows their respective categories pretty well.
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Their down bags get excellent reviews too. I’ve been meaning to grab one during a holiday sale.
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Did you have fiberglass poles? Those are horrible. Next time you buy a tent, get one with aluminum poles. The tent will be more expensive but the poles will last years. My tent is 10 years old and the poles still look new.
I have a down bag from REI. It’s great. I sometimes have to take it off even when it’s 30 degrees in the tent. It’s good down to 0 degrees.
I have a 20 degree bag but I sleep so hot I think it’s good down to zero.
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Elite move: If you backpack and use trekking poles, get an ultralight tent that utilizes said poles. I don’t track my kit weight (I should but I’m fat so it doesn’t really matter) but it is a substantial weight reduction.
Do you mean trekking poles that you hike with? Your tent incorporates those?
Yup.
Cool.
I bought a Big Agnes backpacking tent a long time ago. It’s super light and small.
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