Fly Creek UL4

I love my “4 person” (3 really) Big Agnes backpacking tent but it’s more expensive than that

I second this one. Love mine

Do you want it to actually fit 2 people? I love my big agnes fly creek UL but when two people are in it, you better be down to cuddle. Me and my bag have sooo much room though

Big Agnes Fly Creek UL is a great light little tent, sub 2lbs, free standing, a little snug for 2P but a spacious 1P

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.

I’m so glad this was mentioned. I went colder weather camping with my sons a bit ago. Initially, I bought a big giant tent with an added screen room. This sub pointed us in the right direction. I returned the behemoth and went with my Big Agnes 2p and bought the boys their own 4p to use with their friend. OP, I did buy a propane heater. I would warm up my tent when I was getting ready to go to sleep and then again in the morning g before getting out of my sleeping bag. In the tiny tent, it was hot in there within minutes!

I have a copper spur 2 person that I’ve taken both my kids in on separate occasions. I didn’t want anything too fragile so stayed away from the platinum models. I’ve since picked up a xmid 1p and obviously use that for solo outings. We are now at the point where we need two 2p shelters and I’m looking to add a xmid 2p+ at some point. We have a 4 person big Agnes tent but it’s a bit heavy and 4 people in a 4 person tent is a little rough when they get older. The best part of the copper spur is pairing it with a two person pad and two person quilt. The entire floor becomes a bed and is very comfortable. The two person quilt keeps the jimmy legs in without having to carry two sleeping bags, so for the person carrying it saves a good bit of weight. If I had to start over I’d probably make the same decisions. A freestanding tent is a bit easier if you aren’t used to trekking pole tents. My first outing with my xmid was on hard packed ground in the desert where it was really difficult to get stakes in the ground. The tent blew over during a thunderstorm that evening. If I were going on the same trip again I’d probably just take the copper spur. So for me it was about having some flexibility and diversity of functions when building out my gear closet.