I have more than 30 years backpacking experience, starting with Scouting as a youth. I am currently the High Adventure Leader for a Scout Troop. I try to get out once or twice a month, plus at least one week long trek each year. My trips are of two types. First, I am hiking the Pacific Crest Trail in sections, and generally use a lightweight approach on these typically solo trips. Other trips involving family involve more traditional backpacking equipment. Terrain varies from sea level to 14,000 feet (4,300 m), desert to mountains, and trail to cross country, occasionally including snow travel.

This is the first of three reports of the Six Moon Designs Europa II tent and details a backyard set-up of the Europa. Future reports will describe my experiences with the tent over two and then six months.

Product Description:

The Europa II is manufactured by Six Moon Designs, whose owner, Ron Moak, has thru-hiked the Pacific Crest and Appalachian Trails. The manufacturer's website at http://www.sixmoondesigns.com has a detailed description of the tent and ordering information.

The Europa arrived by Priority Mail in a corrugated box in fine condition. Included were:

Tent, with guy lines attached (See description below), 26 oz (737 g)
One aluminum pole with shock cord insert, 3.5 oz (99 g)
Silnylon stuff sack, 0.5 oz (14 g)
A single page of notes and instructions

The total weight of all items included is 30 oz (850 g). Adding six Easton aluminum tent stakes (available from Six Moon Designs but not included) adds 3 oz (85 g) and brings the total weight to the advertised 33 oz (936 g). The instructions recommend using a ground cloth of Tyvek or some other material, which will add another 6 oz (170 g) or so.

The tent is made of 1.1 ounce silicone nylon (silnylon) and is available in kelly green or light blue. (I like my light blue.) I measured the floor at 89 inches (226 cm) long, 59 inches (150 cm) wide at the entrance and 54 inches (137 cm) wide at the back. These are about 1 inch (2.5 cm) less than specified, which I will attribute to the seam allowance. The height just inside the front door is 41 inches (104 cm) and at the rear 24 inches (61 cm).

The instructions say to "seal exposed outside seams with a Silicone based seam sealer" such as SilNet (not included). Because commercial tents are typically sealed from the inside, but it looked very difficult to apply to the inside of the seams on the Europa, I emailed Ron Moak to confirm I should seal the outside of the seams. He quickly replied:

"Sealing the outside does make the job easier. Also since your sealing with silicone vs. polyurethane (used on most commercial tents) the bond between the sealer and the tent is much stronger. This eliminates the need to reseal the tent multiple times."

"In addition polyurethane coated fabrics are only coated on one side. When the tents are made, the coated side is always on the inside. When you waterproof them, you need to apply coating to coating. With silicone waterproofing, the silicone is completely impregnated through the fabric."

The seams around the front mesh door and the rear mesh are double stitched. Most other seams are single stitched and unfinished on the inside. In other words, the inside of the tent there are two short fabric flaps visible at each stitch. Often, the stitch is finished by either sewing a binding fabric over the two flaps or by folding the flaps flat against the fabric and adding a second row of stitching. A more sophisticated approach is to use a flat-felled seam, where the two flaps are folded under each other so the edges are completely hidden and then double stitched. A flat-felled seam has less tendency to pull open slightly under tension and keeps the fabric ends from unraveling. I asked Ron why the two long seams running the length of the roof are only single stitched. I would have expected flat-felled (double stitched) seams here. Ron replied:

"In our first tent we bound all the seams with tape. However, this added step simply added weight and cost to the tent, without any real benefit. The wind forces on tent in that direction aren't that great so the added expense of a flat felled or traditional lap-felled seam isn't needed. The silicone fabric isn't prone to raveling so it doesn't need the added protection."

My initial set up indicates that there is not much tension on the major seams. I would emphasize the need to seam sealing these (and other) seams, however, to help ensure they are waterproof.

The front door is entirely of no-see-um mesh, with a zipper along the left and bottom of the triangular opening. There is no solid door in front. The cantilevered front is intended to shelter the front door to prevent rain from getting into the tent. This assumes that the tent is pitched with the rear of the tent into the wind. The screen door can be pulled back open by a small loop and toggle if desired. There are also two other elastic loops near the top of the door inside the tent which could be used for hanging rain gear to dry, or to block the wind.

The rear of the tent has a single Easton aluminum pole which creates a hoop shape. The area under this pole is also of mesh, with an overhang which is staked out to allow air in but keep rain out.

Mesh also extends about two-thirds of the length of the lower half of each side of the tent. This mesh is protected by fabric awnings which easily stake out. This effectively provides the benefits of a double wall tent to keep your shoulders and torso away from any condensation on the walls of the tent.

Attached to the tent are a short guy line for the rear and two side pullouts and a longer guy line for the front pole. All have fixed knots except for the front which is has a taut line hitch for adjustment. There are no "heavy" cord tensioners on this tent! Two additional pullouts (without lines) are available half way up each side wall for use in heavy winds.

The floor of the tent is also 1.1 ounce silnylon. As mentioned, a ground cloth is recommended to protect the floor from punctures and abrasion. I usually cut footprints from cheap 2-mil plastic available in large rolls at the local home improvement store.

Set-up: The printed directions are concise and easy to follow. They start with instructions to seal the seams, and even include instructions on making your own silicone seam sealer.

Pitching the tent is quick and easy. First is a warning to watch for hanging branches or sharp sticks and rocks that could damage the thin fabric. Then:

Stake the two front corners of the tent.
Push the pole into the sleeve above the rear window. The sleeve is also made of the same 1.1 ounce silnylon.
Insert the ends of the poles into the grommets in webbing at the rear corners of the tent. I guess I'm spoiled in that I expected there to be a pocket on one side so I didn't have to move from one side to the other. I noted that the webbing was bar tacked to the corner of the tent fabric and was not part of the rear seam itself.
Stake out the rear guyline tight.
Insert the tip of a hiking pole into the front grommet and place the handle of the pole on the ground. It is recommended that the pole be 48 to 50 inches (122 to 127 cm) high.
Stake out front guyline and adjust tension as needed.
Stake out side windows.

It was easy to enter the front door, as the door is not divided by the front pole. There was just enough headroom to sit up and take off my shoes. My adult son and I found we had enough room to be comfortable. While we had room for some gear inside, our packs would have to stay outside. There are small mesh pockets on each side of the tent. Laying one sleeping bag out showed that the rear window would not be fully blocked.

Initial Impression: I am very impressed that a real tent can offer room for two adults and weigh just 33 ounces (936 g). It was also very easy to set up, although I found I tended to pitch the front taller than optimal. Lowering the front pole to the recommended height improves the tightness of the roof line. So far, ventilation appears excellent for a single walled tent.

Construction is generally very good, although I found two locations on the bottom of the rear window where the mesh was pulled too tight while sewing, resulting in slight perpendicular tears in the mesh. One of these tears results in a very small hole in the mesh. I will simply take care of this when I seal the seams.

The tent exceeds the expectations I got from the website. In particular, the head and shoulder room at the front of the tent is better than I expected from the photographs on the web.

Next: This weekend the Europa II will enjoy an easy backpack in the Laguna Mountains of San Diego County. Camps will be at a 5,500 foot (1,700 km) meadow and 4,200 foot (1,300 km) forested canyon. In mid-November it will be pitched atop a mile-high (1,600 km) desert peak to enjoy the Leonid meteor shower. Subsequent trips will include more Southern California mountains.

During this test I will focus on my comfort and ease. How roomy is it when I'm stuck inside in a storm? Does the "Advanced Condensation Management" system really minimize condensation, or will it rain down upon me when I bump the ceiling? Does the "tripod front support" really create a "very rigid front" in erratic desert winds? Does the long tunnel-shaped tent withstand wind without the flapping keeping me up all night? Can I enter and exit the tent in the dark without knocking over the front pole and guy line? And, finally, can I really set it up in "under two minutes" so I can sit by the stream and be lazy?

Read more reviews of Six Moon Designs gear
Read more gear reviews by Bill Jeffrey

Initial Report

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