Reviews > Shelters > Tents > Eureka Gossamer > Owner Review by Brian Tannehill

Name: Brian Tannehill  
Age: 29
Gender: Male
Height: 5’ 7” (1.7 m)
Weight: 175 lbs (79 kg)
Email address: bj(at)tannehillclan(dot)com  
City, State, Country: Lompoc, California, USA
Date: 12 May 2004

Backpacking Background:

I am fairly new to backpacking, but I have hunted/fished/camped all my life in East Texas, Colorado, and California. The majority of the hunting has been done from a well established basecamp, venturing out from there for the day. Because of the young kids I have (2, 8, 10), I mostly do weekend overnight camping trips, or day hikes Geocaching anywhere along the central coast of California. I am also an avid mountain biker. My two oldest kids are boys and are getting to the point where they can come out more hiking and camping with me. I am looking forward to this in the future. For now I live in the Central Coast area of California (Lompoc, Santa Maria area), and am surrounded by many different areas from beaches to mountain regions ranging up to 5,000 feet (1,500 m), with the temperatures averaging about 60 F (16 C) degrees year round.

Product Information
Manufacturer: Eureka!
URL:  www.eurekatent.com
Mfg Pack Weight: 2 lbs 14 oz (1.3 kg)
My weight: 2 lbs 15 oz (1.3 kg)
Dimensions: 2 ft 8 in x 8 ft (0.8 m x 2.4 m)
Area: 16 sq. ft (1.5 sq m) + 5 sq. ft (0.5 sq m) for the vestibule
Internal Height: 2 ft 2 in (0.7 m)
Pack Size: 5 in x 12.5 (0.1 m) x (0.3 m)
Poles: 2 Poles, 8.5 mm 7000 Series Aluminum
Floor/Fly Material: 2.2 oz Taffeta nylon with 1000 mm coating
Roof/Netting Material: 40D No-see-um

I bought this tent used from a good friend of mine in Colorado, he bought it new, to use as a backpack tent for him and his dog. He had used it a few times, and sold it to me, because it would not fit him, his dog, and his gear comfortably at night so he wanted to upgrade. Bear in mind that he is about 6’2” (1.88 m), 215 lbs (98 kg), and his dog is about 30 lbs (13.6 kg), so this tent made for cramped living quarters for them.

As for me, I am 5’7” (1.7 m) and this tent fits me great. I have used it with me, my beagle, and all my gear (about 40 lbs (18.1 kg) of gear so far), and we all fit fine into the tent. It fits a full sized basecamp model Therm-a-Rest, with my gear stored at the front of the tent in the vestibule, and the dog roaming around between my head and my feet. The tent is 2 feet 8 inches (.8 m) wide by 8 feet (2.4 m) long and 2 feet 2 inches (.7 m) tall at the peak. At the peak of the tent is where the first pole is inserted. The second pole goes in just around the foot area. The vestibule is then staked out from the head of the tent. The tent has one door at the front, and I have to slide in feet first to enter the tent.

Setup of this tent is very easy. It has two poles made from 7000 series aluminum that slide into the front (or head) and rear (or foot) of the tent. Basically the inner part of the tent is pitched first. The fly is permanently attached to the tent behind where the first poles are inserted, and then pulled tight over the full length of the tent and staked out beyond the feet. There is a second fly that is also attached to the sleeve and can be staked out at the head of the tent or rolled back for star gazing. The floor and fly of the tent are made out of a 2.2 oz taffeta nylon with 1000 mm coating. The sides and roof are a 40D no-see-um netting, which provides great ventilation. On the flip side of that it can get really cold inside the tent. I have slept comfortably down to mid 40's F (4.4 C). I use a bivy and a sleeping bag rated to 30 F (-1.1 C). On one trip it got down to around 32 F (0 C), which made it really cold.

I have not had the chance to test the tent in the rain but it did however get covered with dew a few times. I do not think I had the fly staked out tight enough as the weight of the dew made the fly sag and touch the no-see-um netting and the calf area of my sleeping bag. That combined with my thrashing when I sleep made the dew soak through an area about the size of a softball onto my bag.

I love how small this tent packs down. I have always used big 5-6 man tents for everything outdoors, and this is a big change from the norm for me. It packs up very small, and weighs about 3 lbs (1.4 kg) total. Overall length when packed is 17 inches (43.2 cm) and 6 inches (15.2 cm) in diameter. The no-see-um netting works great but will not survive a beagle breaking into the tent in the morning (as mine did). She ripped an 8 inch long hole into the netting that I had to repair.

As for the tent itself, I love it. Being claustrophobic is not helpful for sleeping in this tent. It is a place to sleep, not to hang out in. It has plenty of room to roll over at night, even sit up on my elbows to grab stuff or move around, but having to slide into it from the top is very awkward for me. I haven’t had to change clothes in it, but from the looks of it, I can’t do it comfortably.

Pros:
Lightweight: 2 lbs 15 oz (1.33 kg)
Packable: 17 inches (43.2 cm) and 6 inches (15.2 cm) in diameter.
Roomy enough for one

Cons:
Inside could get wet if initially set up in the rain
Not free standing, must be staked out properly
Roomy enough for ONLY one.

Brian

Reviews > Shelters > Tents > Eureka Gossamer > Owner Review by Brian Tannehill