Initial Report Six Moon Designs Gatewood Cape

Date: April 12, 2006
Tester: Rosaleen Sullivan

Age: 56 years
Gender: Female
Height: 5’ 9’’ / 1.75 m
Weight: 180 lb / 82 kg
E-mail: rosaleen43 (at) msn (dot) com
Home: Eastern Massachusetts, USA

Tester Background/Style
I’ve been backpacking off and on for about 20 years.   My normal gear includes a hammock, down bag and jacket, hiking poles, and an alcohol or fuel tablet stove, gear subject to revision for each trip. I also enjoy making gear, and often nudge myself out of a design daydream on the trail. Preferred trips last 3 days, but I have backpacked 10 days straight. While most of my journeys are within New England, I’ve hiked in the Grand Canyon, the length of the Smokey Mountains, and other trails far from home.

Manufacturer:  Six Moon Designs
URL:  http://sixmoondesigns.com/
Year of Manufacture: 2006
MSRP:  $110 US
    
Product Specifications
Product Information from the website
     Weight:  11 oz. (312 g) (everything but stakes and pole) (Measured weight
     within 1 oz (@ 11.1 oz (315 g)
     Capacity:  One (person)
     Coverage:  35 sq. ft. (~3.25 sq m)
     Packed Size:  8" X 10" X 1.5", 120 cu. in.
     (.2x.25x.46 sq. meters) (.023 cu m)
     Color:  Green, Gray & Blue (Cape under test is blue.)
     Stakes Required:  6 (not included)
     Ships With:  Cape, Integrated Stuff Sack, Guylines
     Materials:  Canopy: 30D Silicone Nylon/ Zipper: #3 YKK
     Suggested Use:  Ultralight Backpacking/Day Hiking
     emergency bivouac
     Features
          -Full 360 Degree protection when set up as a shelter or worn as rain gear.
          -Full Zippered Entrance makes entering and exiting the shelter a snap.
          -Adjustable Vestibule Height allows you increase ventilation while
           maintaining adequate rain protection.
          -Side Hooks for shortening the long sides when worn as a cape.
          -Floating Canopy allows the canopy to be set to different heights
          depending upon conditions.
          -Integrated Map / Night Stash Pocket with zipper closure to keep
           stuff contained. Pocket also doubles as the stuff sack.
          -Center Pole Support significantly improves the ability of the shelter to
            handle wind and snow loads.
          -Ultra-light Waterproof Canopy is made from high strength
          -Extremely Easy Setup requires only six stakes.
      

Product Description and Initial Impressions
Six Moon Designs has produced an interesting piece of gear for the ultralight crowd.   The Gatewood Cape that I am testing is bright blue silnylon, better for visibility than for “stealth camping.”  My measured weight of the test cape, 11.1 oz (315 g), is only about a tenth of an ounce (~86 g) over the manufacturer’s listed weight of 11 oz. (312 g).  The generous hood slips easily over my head and neck and snugs around my face with a simple drawstring.  I can find almost no flaws with the construction or materials.  Some of the stitching is slightly puckered, but reasonably straight and even.  (Anyone who has wrestled with sewing silnylon can appreciate the difficulty in dealing with this “love-hate” material.)  The cape features two covered slits through which I can easily slip my arms, and a front zipper opening from bottom hem to neckline.  The zipper has a double-pull, so that it can be partially zipped into several positions, such as closing only the torso part of the zipper, allowing better ventilation of the neck and legs.  The sides have some hooks available for securing them up and out of the way as desired.  There is a front pocket that can store maps, eyeglasses, lights, etc., as one hikes, or while the cape is used as a shelter.  This pocket is also the cape’s storage sack.  Inside seams are reinforced with bias tape.  In shelter configuration, the double pull zipper can again be partially or fully zipped, as desired, to control venting, and the pull can flip to the inside for ease of manipulation.  A toggle-style button and a loop of elastic are positioned to facilitate holding one side of the shelter open as needed.  The cape also comes with a small harness that hooks into color-coded grosgrain loops.  In the center of the harness is a grommet that fits the tip of the user’s hiking pole, which is used as the shelter’s tent pole.  This harness seems to distribute the tension of the suspension system around the neck seam and protects the hood from the pole’s tip.  One guy line leads from the harness to the ground.  There are six grosgrain loops around the perimeter of the shelter, to which one attaches loops of lightweight braided twine.  There was enough twine supplied to cut six pieces, each fourteen inches (0.36 meters) long, for the six inch (.15 meter) loops, plus two decent lengths for additional guying from the two reinforced side loops during heavy wind conditions, or for keeping the fabric away from the sleeper’s head and feet.  I did not anticipate needing the 6 loops, or the harness from reading about the cape at the Six Moon Designs website.  Other than the rather intelligent harness system and the extra twine and loops, the cape is as I expected.  Guylines are listed in the specifications, but I missed them when I read through the site.  The cape came with an instructional hangtag, explaining the set-up procedure.  Fortunately, I read through it before taking the cape to Boy Scout camp and (unfortunately) losing the card.  The tag has an advisory to practice setting up the shelter at home before depending on it for the trail, and seam sealing instructions.  I’ve tried on the cape and set up the shelter twice.  It was slightly awkward the first time, but easier the second. I think the advice to practice is sound.  This Gatewood Cape intrigues me and I look forward to this test.

Test Plan
I will be using the Gatewood Cape for overnight and weekend backpacks in Eastern and Central Massachusetts, as well as along the Appalachian Trail (AT).  I am preparing for an extended hike in Pennsylvania along the AT later this week during April school vacation.  During May I likely be back to local adventures, and once school ends in June, I will be free to travel more extensively.  Late winter and early spring in the Northeast can have a wide range of temperatures from summer-like warmth to winter snow conditions.  Sometimes we experience samples of three seasons in the same weekend.  I expect easily to see altitude ranging from sea level up to around 3000 ft (~900 m), periods of dryness alternating with liquid or frozen precipitation, and temperatures ranging from 20 to 90 F (~-7 to~32) during the test period.  By June, any precipitation I encounter will likely remain liquid.  I hope to take advantage of proximity and spend some hiking time in the “Deep South,” after a family function.  Because of varying trip lengths and conditions, I will likely be able to test the Gatewood Cape as a poncho to protect both me and my backpack while hiking in misting to hard, driving rain, and possibly some snow.  I will be sure to try the Gatewood Cape as a ground shelter for several nights, and attempt to set up that shelter while already under it as a cape.  I am also interested in exploring the possibility of rigging the cape as a hammock fly.  In the spirit of weight saving, how can I not explore eliminating my hammock fly?  This could take some creative thought and I like challenges.  A quote from the web site:
     We're introducing our new WickedLite Series of gear designed for hikers looking at the pushing the limits of weight.

Things to look for or test
        -Protection from elements: 
        -Does the cape actually keep my pack and me dry in
          rain (or, possibly, snow)?
        -Does the shelter keep my gear and me dry?
        -Does each set up give me wind protection?
        -If needed, how comfortable is the cape or shelter as
         sun protection?   
        -Cape construction:  Materials, stitching, pocket, straps,
       zipper, reinforcements, and attachment points. 
       -Is the stitching straight, even, and balanced?   
       Thread: strong enough in use?
       -Are hooks, reinforcements, or attachment points well
       located and functional?
       -How easy or difficult is the cape to set up as a tent?
       -How easy is it to manipulate the zipper, from the inside
       and outside?  Do varying pitches affect this? 
       -Are the stake loops sized and located for easy use? 
       -Does the door stay open easily and is its fastening user-
       friendly or awkward? 
       -Do the side take-up hooks actually help keep the long
       sides out of the way as intended while using the poncho?  

  Extra Features:  Is there any part of this plan that can be
        also utilized in shelter-mode, such as attachments for a bug net
       or a clothesline?
       -Is the pocket intended as a map pocket/gear stash/stuff
       sack functional/useful?
       -How well do these features stand up to trail use? 
       -Silnylon is fragile compared to many conventional 
       rainwear and tent fabrics.  If repairs are needed, can I
       make them, or do I have to send the cape back? 
       -If customer service is needed, how am I treated?   

    Comfort: 
       -Does the Gatewood Cape afford good ventilation while
       being worn or used as a shelter and protect from the 
       elements at the same time? 
      -Does it offer any wind breaking protection to the wearer?   
       -Can flapping be controlled during windy conditions, not
       just in shelter mode, but also while being worn?
    Ease of set up: 
       -How easily can the shelter be rigged and the pitch
       modified for more or less airflow? 
       -Is it practical to set the shelter up in the rain while still
       wearing it, or do I need to completely remove it first?
       -When used as cape does the hood slide over my head          
       easily?  Can I adjust it for comfort and protection or
       ventilation easily? 
      -Does the cape fit and slide over a pack easily?
      -How has Six Moon Designs worked out the pole 
       placement inside the Cape for supporting the shelter
       without damaging the fabric?  Six Moon Designs provides a hub-
       like harness to trap the pole tip and hold up the shelter at the
       neckline seam.  How this will wear will be seen over time.
      -Does using the shelter require an adjustable pole, or will a
       fixed-length pole work?  (I’ve tried one of each set up.  So far, no  
       problem.)

Other potential points of interest:
       -Can I rig the shelter as a fly replacement for my
      hammock?  (The best of two worlds!)
       -Opaqueness:  Does the Cape afford any privacy for
       changing clothes?  This is not a quality issue, but can be of
      interest.

Likes: Very light, promises good ventilation and versatility.
Dislikes:  Overly bright, but “pretty.”   My personal preference is to carry gear in more
subdued colors.

Thanks for reading my report,

Rosaleen Sullivan