Scout 2 Platinum

I used to believe posts like this until I actually got on AT. You won’t believe this if all you look at is social media but hardly anyone is actually using the shelters. Everyone is using their tents. If I was OP and that was all my budget could afford, I’d go for the half dome. If I had more money, I’d go for a BA two person if free standing was preferred or a zpacks two person if trekking pole tents were okay with OP.

My post literally says “if I had more money” but I guess you decided to ignore that and then criticize me for my “more money” option. Stay toxic social media. There’s always someone who chooses to make a jab to make the conversation nasty and toxic and unpleasant rather than what my comment was - a fellow hiker just genuinely trying to help out another hiker on ideas. 🫤🙄🙄 You have reliably made this interaction unnecessarily unpleasant. Congrats!!!

Big Agnes are exceptional. Buy one secondhand, get the two person, and never look back. My buddy and I both use one, they are light, small, and truly worth every cent. 

For quality camping equipment I tend to wait for a holiday then check out REI outlet online. If you are a member you get a 20 percent off coupon that works for outlet prices. I bought a 2 person Big Agnes tent that retailed for over 3 hundred dollars. My cost was about 120 I think. It was years back but it's a great tent. We would budget 2 big ticket items every year until we had everything we wanted.

When’s the last time you actually set up a modern tent? If you’re picturing threading tent poles through sleeves then I’d get the hesitancy. Modern tents are extremely easy to set up now Takes me <5 minutes to set up my 2P big Agnes tent. Going bivy seems overly aggressive when just getting back into camping

My big agnes can pitch fly first. Maybe I'm not understanding you.

Maybe depends on your typical conditions. I've used my 2p for about 9 years, mostly when I go backpacking with my wife. It's bigger and heavier than I what I normally take when I'm alone, but I've never had a problem with it. We did have 2 nights of the worst winds on one trip and I was worried the tent would not survive, but somehow it did. If I was backpacking somewhere where exposure to high winds was a big factor, it would not be my first choice and I'd go for something more streamlined.

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!