Taurus Outfitter Series (2/4-Person)

Here’s the big 10 person we use at Cub Scout/family camp. Has held up through storms, and was necessarily for parental sanity with four of us in a tent for a week. https://www.walmart.com/ip/5180321072?sid=28ef4639-2609-4540-b5a0-2fce6b09f99f Coleman instant cabins have several sizes on Amazon but are sometimes cheaper through Coleman’s actual website. Not super great for high winds. https://a.co/d/2jv0b64 Alps Mountaineering Taurus 4 or 5 person. If you’re in scouting for the long haul at some point someone is going to tell you about Hiker Direct where Alps offers their products to scouting families at a discount. Not everything here is great, but my older child’s scout troop nearly all have their “outfitter” level of tents which are a bit more durable and have held up pretty well even in super high winds and bad storms that have ripped the Coleman instant cabins apart. Again, can’t standup in the four person, but can in the Alps Taurus 5 person. 4 person: https://a.co/d/8ogxWoq On hiker direct I want to say it was around $170. 5 person: https://a.co/d/8rs2kOR

Alps mountaineering Is tough on their own, but they make an outfitter series that seem i destructible. Heavy AF, but we got a hand me down set from a scout troop, 5 years ago and we're still rocking them monthly with no problems.

I like the Alps brand for car camping gear. They also have an outfitter line with heavier materials,  larger zippers, etc. https://alpsmountaineering.com/tents/outfitter.html

I have the Alps Mountaineering Taurus 4 Outfitter, but last week I wanted a bigger version so ordered the Taurus 5 Outfitter. I camped five nights in it last week, and it was very windy—gusts to 40 mph. The tent held up like a champ. BUT—here are my recommendations. 1) Take some paracord and two extra stakes along. The tent comes with cord to stake out the rain fly at each corner, but there are no stakes or cord to stake out the four side loops at ground level, two on each side. 2) Use some of that extra cord to make longer zipper pulls for inside the two vestibules. If the fly is wet with rain, reaching out to grab the vestibule zipper will bring you in contact with the fly, drenching you. Tie extra cord to those zipper pulls and leave it lying on the ground leading to the door for dry unzipping. 3) Consider bringing a push stick along for rezipping the vestibule. You won’t be able to push that longer string you just installed. I bring a wooden stick with a fork on the end for rezipping. It was sold to be an oven rack puller and pusher but literally any forked stick will do.

I have the Alps Mountaineering Taurus 4 Outfitter, but last week I wanted a bigger version so ordered the Taurus 5 Outfitter. I camped five nights in it last week, and it was very windy—gusts to 40 mph. The tent held up like a champ. BUT—here are my recommendations. 1) Take some paracord and two extra stakes along. The tent comes with cord to stake out the rain fly at each corner, but there are no stakes or cord to stake out the four side loops at ground level, two on each side. 2) Use some of that extra cord to make longer zipper pulls for inside the two vestibules. If the fly is wet with rain, reaching out to grab the vestibule zipper will bring you in contact with the fly, drenching you. Tie extra cord to those zipper pulls and leave it lying on the ground leading to the door for dry unzipping. 3) Consider bringing a push stick along for rezipping the vestibule. You won’t be able to push that longer string you just installed. I bring a wooden stick with a fork on the end for rezipping. It was sold to be an oven rack puller and pusher but literally any forked stick will do.

In my summer tents the inner tent is mostly mesh. This is great for ventilation and to keep cool, but in winter the coastal Pacific winds blow into the tent. I have 4-season sleeping gear but wind chill inside the tent seems foolish so when looking for something more rugged and less exposed I found the Alps Mountaineering Taurus 4 \[Outfitter Series\]. The Outfitter series also has a Taurus 5. I've had excellent luck with the Alps tents, and the Taurus is an obvious upgrade from my Alps Meramac 3 which was only $145 USD \[with footprint\]. The fabric is much heavier, the zippers are rugged, it has a full fly, and the aluminum poles are stiffer than the fiberglass one on the Meramac. The Taurus does have good ventilation but most of the inner tent is not mesh. I've seen the Taurus 5 Outfitter for just under $300 USD \[with footprint\]. [Taurus 5-Person Outfitter | ALPS Mountaineering](https://alpsmountaineering.com/taurus-5-person-outfitter.html)

In my summer tents the inner tent is mostly mesh. This is great for ventilation and to keep cool, but in winter the coastal Pacific winds blow into the tent. I have 4-season sleeping gear but wind chill inside the tent seems foolish so when looking for something more rugged and less exposed I found the Alps Mountaineering Taurus 4 \[Outfitter Series\]. The Outfitter series also has a Taurus 5. I've had excellent luck with the Alps tents, and the Taurus is an obvious upgrade from my Alps Meramac 3 which was only $145 USD \[with footprint\]. The fabric is much heavier, the zippers are rugged, it has a full fly, and the aluminum poles are stiffer than the fiberglass one on the Meramac. The Taurus does have good ventilation but most of the inner tent is not mesh. I've seen the Taurus 5 Outfitter for just under $300 USD \[with footprint\]. [Taurus 5-Person Outfitter | ALPS Mountaineering](https://alpsmountaineering.com/taurus-5-person-outfitter.html)

Three years ago, seeking a tent with more space, I bought a cheap Alps Mountaineering Meramac 3 \[with a footprint $145\]. It's a solid - conventional dome tent, and has held up well. The only issue I had with the Meramac is that the tent fly doesn't fully cover the entries, and since it rains in sheets on the PNW coast, I bought an Alps Taurus 4 \[full tent fly/aluminum poles\]. The Meramac with excellent ventilation is for Spring/Summer, the Taurus with less ventilation is for Fall/Winter. Alps has several 6-man tents that you might like. I'd take a look at the Lynx 6 person. Between value and price, Alps has hit a sweet spot.

My first super-cheap Alps tent was a pleasant surprise, so I recently bought a Taurus 4-person Expedition tent for the fall/winter season. I needed a rugged tent that could manage heavy coastal PNW winds and torrents of rain. I haven't tried Alps gear other than their tents, but somehow they have managed to provide good value for a fair price.

For easy summer camping, you might want to look at the Alps Mountaineering Meramac 4-person dome tent \[$143 plus $40 for footprint\]. It's a conventional 2-pole tent with 1 pole for the door openings. I've used the Meramac 3-person \[not available\] for 3 seasons on the PNW coast and it has withstood some heavy summer squalls without problems. These tents are simple to pitch and a very good value for the price. I was so impressed with the inexpensive Meramac I bought the Alps Taurus Expedition 4-person \[heavy duty\] for the harsh storms of coastal PNW during winter. Good luck.

Need more info. Is it just you or are you with someone? Alps Mountaineering Taurus4 outfitter is a very popular car camping tent. Very well made, durable and has a great rain fly.

3 person minimum for two to sleep comfortably. Need to decide if you want room to stand up or not. Full size cots (normal bed height) or low profile cots (4” off the ground) or just sleeping pads on the tent floor? A couple options to look at. I own both and can confirm they do VERY well in Washington state. We use them once a month for Boy Scouts camping. Alps mountaineering Lynx 3 or the Taurus 4 if you want more room Browning glacier 4 if you want 6’ high for standing and full size cots. All those options have a rain fly that goes all the way to the ground with vestibules for keeping gear out of the rain (chairs, coolers, muddy boots etc)

Scouts also have to be within 2 years of age to tent together, making a 6-8 person tent unrealistic in most situations.

If you are scout camping, no one wants a 6-8 person tent. Trust me. 4 person tent at max. My personal recommendation is to register with Hiker Direct and purchase an ALPS Taurus Outfitter in a size you deem appropriate. Probably 2-4 person. The tent is very affordable through HD and is about as durable as you can get while still being easily packable.