Review on Hyke & Byke Zion Lightweight Backpacking Tents - 1 and 2 Person Dome Camping Tents with Footprint and Dual Doors by Chris Long

I received the new Zion 2 person tent this afternoon and set it up in my backyard. I discovered Huyck and Bike while shopping for sleeping bags for Philmont Scout Ranch. I bought a couple of 15 degree packs and was very impressed with them. They were good holdalls and perfect for our Philmont hike. Lightweight, warm and durable. So I decided to order this new tent from Hyke and Byke. I'm not the most knowledgeable camping reviewer in the world, but I've spent many nights camping as a scoutmaster for my sons' squad throughout the year. At Philmont we used MSR's Scout tents. As you would expect, this tent material feels less durable compared to MSR, although I would assume it weighs about the same. During installation I liked the pole and how easy it was to install. Essentially, the stem is a single piece that locks into place at an angle, aided by an elastic band that runs through the center of the stem. The poles connect to the tent and patio with eyelets and stay in place thanks to the tabs at the ends. The tent body then snaps onto the pole, making it very easy to set up and take down quickly. Compared to my old Kelty 2p, this tent has a lot more vertical walls and lots of room, especially overhead, for a 2p tent. I'm 6ft 2in and there was plenty of room and shoulder room to sit in the tent. There wasn't much room for me from start to finish, but I didn't feel cramped. great ventilation. There were also storage pockets in the corner and one hanging from above. The rain cover fits well on it. I was expecting to find grommets where it connects to the bar but I didn't find any. the rain tent is attached either to the tent floor or to the ground if the tent is equipped with only one tent. Nice feature. It seems that the only way to connect the front sight to the bar is to tie straps, which seems impractical. It comes with stakes and reflective guy wires to complement the visor but I didn't use them for this setup. The tent rose quickly and fell quickly. I was worried about putting it back in the bag it came with and took about twenty minutes and four tries to work on before it came back. I even tore the packaging a bit which was a little disappointing for the lubrication. The bag has to be bigger, otherwise I'd better roll up the tent. Either way, putting it back in your pocket could slow you down. Overall I think this is a great value tent and for me a nice improvement over my old Kelty. I'll take this campsite in a few weeks and maybe be able to give an update.