Review Abstract The North Face Stratos receives a five star rating from our reviewers. This gear provides easy setup, roominess and is very durable being able to "stand up to the elements" of the season. While there was some complaint about this gear being "pricey" most felt for the quality provided, the investment is worth it. "It's hard to go wrong with North Face."
Summary: I have owned this tent for several years and have used it extensively. I hate to say it but I wore out this tent. All three poles have set curvature and one pole will not come apart at one juncture. There are a couple holes in the pole sleeves from having the poles stick thru the sleeves when assembling the tent. The main tent front zipper and the rainfly front zipper are both broken. The rainfly zipper won't even budge and the main tent zipper closes about 1/3 on one side and 2/3 on the other side. The tent leaks extensively in the rain--probably due to the broken zippers. The tent has been pancaked twice in high winds and I mean outrageous high winds. Last week I had to hold up the tent inside with both of my legs or else the tent would of collapsed. Winds were at least 80 mph. Everything in the tent was soaked in the morning. What a drag! I was a little upset that the tent let me down and exposed me to life-threatening conditions. However, I still love North Face tents and I bought a Mountain 25 Summit tent today. This Mountain 25 tent is supposed to be indestructable. We'll see.
For the average Joe the Stratos tent will last two to three lifetimes. For the hard core user you'll probably get 6-8 years out of it.
I got a lot of great use out of this tent. But if you are faced with life-threateniong winds and rain you may want to consider upgrading. The poles are just not strong enough to sustain gusts to 80-90 mph. Also, the zippers are too light-weight to last a long time with hard use.
I only used this tent as a 1-person tent and it has plenty of room for me and all of my gear. I give this tent the highest rating there is because it has served me well in the most extreme conditions on the planet. I don't expect to have a tent last forever so I am not upset with my purchase.
Customer Service: I have used their customer service a bunch. They replaced one 2-man tent and fixed one sleeping bag and one backpack.
I can probably send in my Stratos but I am kind of ashamed at the condition the tent is in. I took the tent into a local repair shop and the guy is still probably laughing.
Similar Products Used: Nothing beats North Face.
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Summary: I have owned my Stratos for 8 years now and at last count have spent 279 nights in this tent. I use this tent not only for personal use but I also used it in the past while guiding hunters here in Alaska. I have used several other types of mid sized tents, and the Stratos beat them all hands down. Set up and tear down time, durability, comfort, and piece of mind knowing I have a reliable shelter I can depend on.
It will sleep 3 adults with room to spare, the dual doors and vestibules make it perfect for two. It is not an ultralight tent nor was it designed to be, but it is in my opinion the best tent in its class.
Once on a spring bear hunt along the Alaska coast the weather went sour with winds sustained at 60 to 90 mph and gusts over 100, of the three tents my Stratos and two made by MSR, the only tent without damage and still standing a day and a half later when the weather cleared was my Stratos.
I can only hope North Face someday realizes what a great tent this is and brings it back to there product line.
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Summary: we have used this tent for 2adults/2children (5&2) with a queen size air mattress and plenty of room for our stuff...just looking online for a similair tent which would hold our now growing 2adult/3child family especially as they are getting older...love this tent and will keep if for our kids to use when they are old enough to be in it on their own...never had a problem with rain/leakage/etc...have had the tent since about 1998+/-...and don't see where people are saying there isn't enough air!...the sides both can fold down to expose a massive amount of screen AND you can even take the rain flap off on beautiful/clear/rainfree nights and see all the stars while you sleep...we have taken this primarily around NE...in the cold wet of Acadia National Park in Maine in May when it always seems to rain each year...to the backyard in Rhode Island...and over to Nova Scotia where we watched the stars!...also have slept very comfortably 4 adults in Vermont! and i think it is acutally a 6 person tent if you put your stuff outside the tent (which i don't like to do personally!)...we have also taken it backpacking on a very hot weekend in July in VT (which turned to rain the second we reached the peak to set up) and like others have said it can be divided up between packs if needed and setup i think is easy and should typ. be done in the house or backyard first...why would you ever set up for the first time in the middle of the woods with no stores around you??? maybe it's just that i lack those male genes? anyway...i think this tent is no longer made, but if you see one on ebay def. grab it...there are pictures on www.outdoorreview.com too if you need to see it! We were choosing between this and a moss tent at the time and didn't want to pay the price for a moss when this was so similair!
(would rate 5 stars, but...with 2 adults and 3 kids not working anymore...and the price was steep for a tent to us at least at them time, but the tent has lasted us almost 10 years and still looks like it did when we bought it and performs as well as it did then!) Also...my husband is a great read the directions/take your time/do it right the first time type and maybe that is what is needed to keep the seems waterproof...we will see on our next tent purchase!
Customer Service: never needed any!
Similar Products Used: none of my old tents even come close!
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Summary: Although I love this tent, I would not recomend it for summer camping. It is very hot, heavy, and the rain fly is a pain to setup. My camping is now limited to car camping with the wife and I am jelous of my friends who have the cheap $99 5 person Kelty tents. My Stratos is really overkill for car camping. Its also very hot in the summer time and I am forced to use the rain fly because the main test does not keep all the water out. The rainfly traps in all the heat making it unbearably hot in the summer. However, if you are looking for a great winter, 4-season tent, this is a wonderful one.
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Summary: Good quality tent that will hold up and keep you dry. A bit caught in between car-camping and backpacking. Too heavy for backpacking and not as big as some might want for car camping. Flexibility of opening or closing large windows is nice and not as common any more. Third brow/cross pole can be tricky to setup. One of my pole sets has permanent curvature. Nylon can shrink a lot after it is wet which may have caused the curve in the pole. Overpaid slightly at the time(1998) but quality materials and design that has held up well.
Customer Service: Have not used.
Similar Products Used: Kelty Mountainview 4; various lighter backpack tents
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