I currently have the Big Agnes Fly Creek HV UL2 and love it. It's light, fast to set up, and quite roomy. The only issue I've had with it was during strong winds in Florida. The wind was strong enough that it flattened the foot area of the tent. Since it wasn't supposed to rain, I just took the rain fly off and let the mesh allow the wind to blow through. Perhaps reworking the guy ropes might have solved the problem, but I didn't try.
That said, I'll be replacing it this winter. As an old guy with a bad back, the end entry on the Fly Creek has gotten to be too much for me. I'll most likely be replacing it with a Durston X-Dome 1+, which has a nice wide side opening.
Admittedly, both these options are above your price range, and the Durston isn't available at REI.
Regardless of what you get, do a shake-down campout in your backyard. It's a lot easier to deal with learning a new tent, or finding out that a piece is missing, in your backyard, than 30 miles away in a campground.
Similar vein I love my fly creek UL 2. Perfect for 1 person, super light and simple. Fits my partner and I fine. I wish I got the tiger wall 2 tbh just to have a little extra room and two entrances, worth the extra weight for backpacking as a couple. Fly creek is so perfect for solo backpacking though
I am using a Big Gnes Fly Creek 2, and it's fine for me and my wife. Was in a rain last summer on and off for several hours and stated dry as a bone. I think it's right at 1 kg trail ready, maybe slightly less. Easy setup and takedown.
I'm 6'3" 210lbs and my wife is 5'3" and similarly proportioned. We've use a Flycreek UL2 for more than a decade. It is fine for us for weekend trips where we are going to be moving regardless if weather. I don't want to do more than sleep in it.
My current over-40 and several-previous-surgeries body would like a bit more headroom and a side door or two rather than the end loading design. I use a hammock for solo camping.
The zoom ul is a good lightweight summer pad but notorious for sleeping cold for its r value. Their sleeping bags/quilts are nothing special either comparing them to cottage companies. Where they shine is their tents. The tigerwall and fly creek ul series semi freestanding tents were the gold standard for backpacking before high end trekking pole tents swooped in. They are still great products though and depending on your use could be worth owning. Their skyline ul stool is overpriced and doesn’t belong in a ul thru hiking bag but is nice to have for shorter trips and other uses outside backpacking. It’s very light and compact so it can come in handy if you need a portable chair for anything.
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1
The North Face
Wawona 6
86% positive of 132 users
Spacious vestibule, strong in storms, but rainfly tricky solo.
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