The Mineral King 3 has a full rain fly, which you can roll up halfway or completely remove for epic stargazing. It also comes with a groundsheet (aka footprint) to protect the tent floor. At $500, this modified dome-style tent isn’t cheap, but it represents substantial value. Many tents with similar profiles—such as the Big Agnes Dog House 6—either cost more or require you buy the tent body and attachable vestibule separately. The Wawona doesn’t come with a footprint—few tents this size do—but it’s otherwise all-inclusive, and it is compact considering how much livable space you get.
It allowed me to discover the natural beauty that defines so much of Georgia. And everyone I’ve put on this board — friend, brother, and even octogenarian father — immediately fell in love with it. The kayak seat also moves out of position a little too easily, so I’ve begun troubleshooting ways to attach it more securely. But those are quibbles when weighed against the ability to carry this backpackable boat to wherever you’d like to enter the water.
From a negative perspective, the weight is indicative of a lack of high quality material and components used throughout the shelter. The included carrying bag does not have wheels to aid in transportation, but at only 29 lbs. We don’t find that to be a noteworthy drawback as the nylon handles and shoulder strap work just fine in carrying the tent. The legs are locked into place with old school metal push button locks, something you won’t see on many modern pop up tents now-a-days.
However, the current is often very strong, causing many recreational tubers to miss the desired river exit. That usually means a prolonged ordeal of waiting for river guides or police to come to rescue them. We got to ours with a couple of hours of light to spare after traveling 20 miles ozark trail canopy tent — twice the distance of anyone else I asked. Traveling downriver by a lightweight, inflatable paddleboard is certainly an efficient means of transportation. I’m not sure if that elevates ISLE’s Pro Series into a new class of “inflatable hardboards,” as Blakeney refers to them.
The rain fly has an additional tent pole, too, to support the vestibule. Overall, these poles—all of them aluminum—contribute to a particularly sturdy structure, with or without the rain fly. During our testing, our Base Camp shrugged off both a rainstorm and a desert windstorm as if they were nothing. Despite losing some headroom in comparison with the Kelty Wireless 6 and The North Face Wawona 6, both of which measure six-foot-four in height, the Base Camp 6 offers a substantial six-foot-two.
The tent weighs just 16 pounds, less than any other family tent we tested for this guide. The separate fly, which covers the upper half of the tent, uses a third, shorter “brow” pole to form protective peaks over the door and the back window. In our tests, an experienced camper took only about six minutes on the first try to set up the tent body alone and stake it out. Getting the fly placed and staked properly took about five more minutes.
The Sundome’s tarp is clearly a budget material, but for what it was, we found it user-friendly. It’s easy to mop up after wet paws and spills, and it doesn’t hold moisture. It’s unlikely to be as durable, though, as the softer, stronger polyester found in our other picks. Finding a small, light tent is the logical ozark trail instant cabin approach when you’re backpacking. But with car camping—the industry term for what most people consider just camping—you’ll likely be parking next to your campsite and unloading. If you won’t be carrying your tent more than a couple hundred feet, more space means more comfort (as well as more room for your stuff).