Performance in the Field:

Over the course of 26 days (nights) the most obvious difference in the tent is that it has become slightly faded from sun bleaching. Not so obvious is the tent's continued performance to expectations. The seams remain solidly stitched, guyline attachments show no pulling, peg loops are firmly attached and except for some dried pine sap droppings it remains much as it was when it came out of the box. A couple of areas that I was concerned with, including the pole pocket in the peak and the zippers, have also held up without noticeable wear. I had worried that the stress of tightening the tent would result in either peak poke-thru or zipper failure. The reinforced pocket in the peak shows some abrasion from the pole being twisted around in it but the stitching is tight and the pocket has not torn through. The extra weight of the pole pocket reinforcement and the heavy duty zippers seems to have paid off in durability. (The bottom of the pole shows some wear as it tends to drive itself into soft ground - I would often put a flat rock under it so it wouldn't sink into the earth which has led to some abrasion of the bottom end pole cap.)

Space in the tent was also an initial concern. My first trips in the winter were with my teenage son (5 ft 7 in/1.7 m) and we found the tent roomy enough so neither of us was cramped or rolling into either the other, or the side of the tent. Over the summer I also spent several nights with my 6 & 10 year olds. My 10 year old son would sleep on one side of the tent with the pole between us and my daughter would sleep perpendicular to my son's feet. We all fit without incident except for the time when 1/2 my daughter wound up outside the tent, having worked its way out the rear vent in the night. Even with three bodies exhaling in the tent we generally did not find any issues with condensation (e.g. no face rain from the tent walls!).

However, as the temperatures and humidity went up the tent became more difficult to vent well - primarily when there was no breeze. When pitched in an area with slight winds or breezes, I found that orienting the front into the wind and opening both the top vent and unzipping the bottom of the zipper a foot or two (30 - 60 cm) while also opening the rear vent as wide as it goes provided plenty of ventilation. When the wind died (summer doldrums), I found it nearly impossible to get comfortable in the tent (or out of it for that matter) when humidity levels went high and the nighttime temps exceeded 70 F (21 C). I had hoped that I could follow the Indian tipi trick of raising the edges of the tent higher on the pegs to open a space of several inches (about 10 cm) around the base of the tent. In a tipi that allows air to vent through the bottom of the structure and out the top. In the case of the Vertex I was only marginally successful as the tent pegs had to be more shallowly planted in order to provide the height necessary to raise the edge of the tent base. This tended to lead to the pegs pulling out of the ground while I slept - sometimes I would even watch this happen as I pitched the tent.

The venting issue became significant when the humidity went high and rain began to fall. After all, when rain did not threaten I could always sleep commando outside the tent but when rain came I needed to button up the tent. The top mounted vent needed to be closed or rain fell on my face. With the top vent closed, the tent would get very warm - a nice feature during the cooler spring & cold winter but not what I was looking for on a sultry summer night. A flap that extends away from the tent over the upper vent like the rear bottom vent, perhaps held in place by a perpendicular rod joined to the horizontal vent rod would be sufficient to keep it up & off the vent and keep rain from coming in the opening.

During the winter I found that orienting the tent in an opposite direction from summer was the better choice. With the rear of the tent facing into the prevailing wind, the tent got sufficient venting to prevent condensation but not so much that I lost the advantage of the warmth containment. For some reason snow didn't seem to find its way through the top vent like rain does so I could leave it open in all but the worst weather.

Whether winter snow or summer rain I found that the floorless nature of the tent had no effect on my comfort. Even during heavy rains, the sandy soil typical of the eastern pine forests soaked up the water before it could seep much more than about 3 inches (8 cm) into the tent. Keeping my pad just to one side of the center pole left plenty of room for this seepage without it affecting my gear. After my first trips in the winter I didn't bother carrying either a ground cloth or footprint for the tent. This certainly cuts the carry weight and makes setup even quicker. By the way, since it must be pegged down, pitching must always be done on ground or snow - rocky outcroppings are out of the question.

Overall Impressions:

Overall, I'm very pleased with this tent. Its combination of performance, comfort and low weight during winter camping isn't typical of the other 4 season tents I've used in the past. Its ventilation issues with high humidity weather are not significantly different than most of the other single-walled tents I have carried with me. The only more comfortable accommodations in similar hot weather were either double-walled tents where the interior is no-see-um netting and the fly was removed for ventilation or a hammock hanging from the trees. In fact, my experience with the tent was mirrored by a friend's who liked mine so much he bought his own (his wife made some comments about $400 tarps but he's happy and she just doesn't understand). I know I'll continue to use it when camping with tentmates (non-hammocking) or during the colder months when I retreat to the ground for warmth.

Pluses:

- Taut pitch provides water resistance (never leaked during this test period)
- Steep sides allow snow to slide off the tent
- Warm during the winter
- Near vertical front wall allows for a lot of headroom while sitting and the floor diameter provides sufficient space to keep me away from the walls.

Minuses:

- Price
- Hot during the dog days of summer
- Inability to open the top vent during rain storms

My thanks to BackpackGearTest.org and Titanium Goat for the opportunity to test the Vertex 5.