Big Agnes - Fly Creek UL4

Big Agnes UL4, but with a tarp instead of the fly. roomy, airy and bright, keeps the bugs out, good connection with the surroundings, pretty light per person. also nice to cook under if it rains.

You need to count the dog as a person. We are a family of 3 with 2 mini Aussies who together are like a small person. We have the Big Agnes UL4 for this reason. It's 5lbs but my husband and I share the weight. Before this we had two 2 person tents so honestly it's the same either way you slice it. I've seen some UL teepee type tent options that fit more people, but they are PRICEY too. I agree with others... You might be better off with two 3 person tents. You're gonna need that space!

Looks decent. To throw in a suggestion/ consideration - rei near me has a pre owned store. When i first went tent shopping i randomly decided to stop there, and scored a big agnes UL fly creek tent for under $100 , looked kike it had maybe been on 1 or 2 camping trips, was a big score. Might be worth checking out

something like the Big Agnes Fly Creek. Avoid the "solution dyed" ones, they literally stink. Not great in a storm, but super lightweight and big inside.

General comment on the BA Fly Creek: If you're considering the Fly Creek, get the Tiger Wall instead. It is basically the same sent, but the difference is having two side entrances on the Tiger Wall vs. a single rear entrance on the Fly Creek. With two adults (especially two adults and two kids), you'll be tripping over each other if you do not make having _two side entrances_ a must-have feature for a _backpacking_ tent. If you were getting a car camping tent, which would be much larger and spacious, you could get away with a single entrane. But not a backpacking tent. TL;DR - Fly Creek is a great tent, just probably not the right design for your application.

I worked at REI and I have 2 BA tents and love both of them. I've used the Fly Creek in very harsh weather and have never had a drop of water get inside, nor a stake pull loose, nor a rip, or broken pole. It's free-standing and to me that's very important. If you take care of it you will have that tent for 20 or more years. Is it worth $50 a year?

It's pretty similar in specs and price to my Alps Koda 1, which is simple, reliable, and totally bombproof, but I kept thinking I'd upgrade it to something lighter and fancier. Finally upgraded to a Big Agnes Fly Creek, which I hated. Resold the Fly Creek and kept the trusty old Koda after all.

The Big Agnes Fly Creek uses the same material and was the highest rated tent on several of those Halfway Anywhere PCT surveys for a few years, it was my primary pre-UL tent and survives to this day like 8 years later as my loner, and it's the tent used by the professional guides at the local outdoor shop. It's plenty durably. The Copper Spur is similarly rated on those surveys. They're both covered by Big Agnes warranty. Yes, they're very durable. You would, however, save over a pound by switching to the TarpTent Hogback. When the Copper Creek isn't on sale, you'd also be saving literally hundreds of dollars with the Hogback, too ... which is nice.