Eureka Zephyr

Review Date
July 18, 2003

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Reviewed by: markj1(Unregistered User) ,  Backpacker

Price Paid:  $75.00 at e-bay

Summary:
A good tent, pretty simple, very solid. The poles use all clips rather than sleeves for very easy setup (less than 4 minutes).

POSITIVES: clever venting design; spacious for a solo tent, especially with vestibule space; a very good price used; a decent price if new.

DRAWBACKS: on the heavy side for a solo shelter, the stakes that came with mine are junk.

Customer Service:
N/A

Similar Products Used:
Sierra Designs Meteor Lite

Review Date
February 11, 2002

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Visitors rate this review
1.00 of 5, 1 votes

Reviewed by: ruger9(Unregistered User) ,  Backpacker

Price Paid:  $139.00 at Arkatents.com

Summary:
The best solo tent out there. Yes, it's a little heavier than the solo "hoop" tents, but it can withstand 4 seasons.
This tent is super roomy, has 2 huge vestibules, is extremely weatherproof, and packs down small (12" long).
Eureka may not have the "coolness" associated with it that North Face, Marmot, or Sierra Designs does, but this tent is VERY cool. I agree with a poster below a mesh should be added to the rear access door for use as ventilation, but it vents pretty well as is. Nice weather? Put it up without the rain fly, and you've got MAX ventilation plus a HUGE panaoramic view out the full-side door mesh. I can't say enough about this tent. Trail weight is about 5 lbs- about 1.5 pounds more than the ultralight hoop tents, but it'll take anything nature can throw at it

Customer Service:
Arkatents was very helpful & answered all my questions, fast shipping (FREE shipping, actually!)

Similar Products Used:
LL Bean 2-person dome, various "car camping" tents

Review Date
October 21, 2001

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Reviewed by: Anne Harpe(Unregistered User) ,  Backpacker , from Austin, TX USA

Price Paid:  $109.00 at Campmor

Summary:
I had my eye on the Zephyr before it mutated into the Mountain Pass XT. Then Campmor dropped the price to $109, and I couldn't get one fast enough. I immediately headed out to the Apache National Forest in AZ and set it up (easy). At 4 AM I awoke to a buffeting, driving rain. But all was well, absolutely no leaks - not even in the unprotected zipper in the fly, which had concerned me. The following 4 nights the temperature dropped to around 20° and the tent was toasty warm. Moderate condensation formed on the inside of the door wall, but no drips. My down bag stayed completely dry. Even with a thin coating of ice, the fly did not sag.

This tent is very roomy for me but I'm only 5'3". The dual vestibules are larger than I expected - and very useful. I love the fact that the whole lengthwise door wall unzips - makes it easy to get in and out, and makes the tent a nice napping shelter. In spite of the kinda goofy circular door in the fly, I think this is a much better layout than the typical solo "tube" tents. Definitely 5 lbs. worth of shelter.

Only two concerns: attaching the fly made the end walls of the tent sag between the poles. I haven't figured out how to correct that yet. And, I wish the rear vestibule access hatch had netting so it could double as a critter-proof vent in warm weather - I fear the tent is going to be a little stuffy in the muggy Texas springtime.

All in all, a most servicable tent, relatively stable, very cute, lots of features (the face vent in the door was a nice surprise) and a great value..

Customer Service:
haven''t needed?

Similar Products Used:
REI camp dome, Eureka Timberline 2 and 4, an ancient North Face two-man, and misc. cheapo tentse

Review Date
August 11, 2001

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Reviewed by: Phil(Unregistered User) ,  Paddler , from Bremerton, WA

Price Paid:  $119.00 at Campmor

Summary:
Just a follow-up to my last review. Last week spent 4 nights in my new Mountain Pass XT (1 man) tent.

Liked the quick setup and tear down time. Only two poles and small amount of tent/fly fabric to deal with. View out of the fly window is useful to see what the weather is like before getting up. Window runs full length of door so vista is excellent.

At 3' by 8', room is adequate to store additional material with area under vestibles useful for boots, paddles, pack, etc. pocket at each end of tent means you can only reach one normally and its a single pocket. Also, its only a single pocket. Someone else had the good idea of suspending a pocket from 2 of the four loops at the top of the tent.

I mentioned Easton poles in my last post, thats an error. The poles look to be very well made but don't have a name on them. Each pole is made up in 12" parts so the whole tent is very compact and saves me much room in my kayak for storage.

I haven't experienced rain with this tent but noticed that all major seams are taped by mfr with exception of seams around the fly zipper. I sealed these but even if they leak, it shoudn't leak into the tent.

I found that the full fly keeps the tent comfortable even on cool nights in the 50F range with only door netting. I think this can be explained by body heat in a fairly small tent volume. On a warmer night, i had to leave the fly door unzipped to have enough cooling.

There's a lot to like about this tent, only two drawbacks are heavy steel stakes and poor pocket size and location. Found that only 3 stakes are necessary for fly and thats enough for tent as well under most circumstances.

Campmor is presently selling for $109.

Similar Products Used:
None

Review Date
July 11, 2001

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Reviewed by: Phil (Unregistered User) ,  Paddler , from Bremerton, WA

Price Paid:  $119.00 at Campmor

Summary:
My existing 2-man tent was taking up more space in my kayak than i could afford for longer trips. When i read your reviews on the Eureka Mountain Pass 1xt, i knew that this was probably the right tent. The 1XT was only 2 1/2 lbs lighter than my 2 man tent, but more importantly for a kayaker, it was only a 5.5" by 12" bundle.
I just got the tent and was able to put it up without reading the instructions, intuitive and fast. Nice Easton poles and i found no deficiencies on the tent. Fly was easy to put on with snap buckles. Good system. I like the fact that you can close down most of the ventilation on a really cold night. Should be plenty warm. Ventilation looks well designed. Nice access to the rear vestible for equipment that doesn't need to be inside. Big door for access to the tent. Also liked the short time to disassemble and pack the tent. Was able to get it all back in the roomy bag the first time. Kayaking takes a lot of gear and its useful to have space inside a tent to lay it down. This room has enough space for that equipment as well as a comfortable sleep. You can sit up with comfort and look out the fly window. Nice design all around.

Similar Products Used:
Eureka Timberline 4-man, Sierra Designs Night View CD,