Gossamer Gear - The Two

With experience with a Duplex, Plex Solo and The Two, I'd probably pick The One if bulk was a big factor. It's not as sturdy in high winds as a non-stretchy DCF tent, but I've slept through some heavy gusts in my GG tent. A good pitch goes a long way. The sag is there, and some hikers I met find it bothersome while it's only a minor nuicanse for me. I'd say get the GG, try it out in a wet environment and see if you manage. If not, resell. You won't lose too much money. One inconvenience the Pivot Solo shares with the other Zpacks 1p tents is the low beak attachment. Getting in and out can be pretty inconvenient. But I guess that's where lower weight impacts comfort. The arched zippers in the Zpacks tents is a nuisance under high bug pressure. GG and Durston designs are much better there as theirs have the mesh fall into place even when the zipper is open, so you don't invite an army of mosquitos into your tent each time you get in or out. Think Yosemite right after snow melt. I'm going to take my The Two on the JMT this summer, and I've hiked in the Sierras before so I know what to expect.

Just another vote for the "don't worry" category. Went through the Sierra with a Duplex and never had an issue, so I'm going to jump on the JMT this year with a trekking pole tent again (GG The Two).

If you live somewhere damp, you can’t go wrong with the X-Mid.  If you live somewhere dry, consider the single-wall The Two from Gossamer. It’s a tad harder to set up but quite a lot lighter. 

I have had both an xmid1 and a GG The Two. Both are super easy to put up. Really just personal preference I think. They are very different (single vs double wall), vestibule size, etc.

Eh…they are certainly different, but I found that both tents would eventually sag in heavy rain, but nothing a quick snugging up of guylines didn’t solve. I used the xmid in some snow and in the sand on back to back night (sup Great Sand Dunes!) and it performed really well in some windy and snowy conditions. We had to get really creative to pitch it in the sand, but properly anchored and it held well in some really stout winds. I think if I was going out in decent weather, and all else was equal, I would probably take The Two. It’s a bit more simple IMO. But both are well worth the costs.

That is the drawback of the Two, it’s one body, so you can’t put the fly in your outside pocket. I have been mostly fortunate enough to have days after rain where I could dry it out some, but I have put it back up damp a few times. Not fun for sure. I am sure there are Gear Heads who have looked into saturation rates of these exact two materials, but I don’t know that the differences will really be THAT noticeable to the average user.

Try the Durston X-Mid 1, which is currently $234.00 USD. It's a hiking pole tent, so you'll need a pair of those, but I highly recommend backpacking with hiking poles anyway. Alternatively, you can buy their Z-Flick Tent Pole for $35. I also recommend using a groundsheet with this tent. They sell one for $43, but a piece of polycryo or Tyvek cut to fit works great for just $10-$20. The X-Mid is very well thought out. It requires just 4 stakes, but 5 stakes lets you open a door one-handed, and 8-10+ stakes are good if high winds and/or poor soil conditions are present. The tent can be set up and taken down under the rain fly, which is amazing, especially if there's heavy rain. The tent weighs just 28 oz (795 g), it has two vestibules, the doors have magnets to hold them open, the inner tent can't touch the rain fly (so condensation-induced wet sleeping bags foot boxes are much less likely), the inside pockets are well-placed, and Dan Durston provides top-tier customer support. I thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail with a Gossamer Gear The Two, but I wouldn't recommend it for most use cases. The Two is only 667 g and is SUPER roomy, but it sags with condensation/rain, it's a single-wall tent (so if it rains you have to dry it all out), it has a massive footprint, and it has about half the hydrostatic head of the X-Mid. The X-Mid is a good tent. I'm taking it to hike at least 800 miles of Te Araroa in New Zealand starting in December, and I think it'll work well. Happy trails!

I'd take a GG The Two before the tent you listed. of course something made of DCF will be your lightest option if you have 500-700 to spend

The xmid is easy to set up. I just got a tiger wall UL1 and it takes me longer to put up than the xmid. If you want a two person shelter that’s lighter you can check out the Gossamer Gear The Two. You lose floor space and double walls though. That’s kinda the tradeoff you’ll find most often.

So I’m gonna a go ahead and say that list is ridiculous 😂 only two tents under 2lb. And any I clicked to check price were pushing $400. So you’re looking at the wrong list. Very surprised no one has mentioned Gossamer Gear yet? Their two man “The Two” weighs 26oz and costs $320 new (or watch gearswaps and get one for ~$225 regularly). “The One” is 18oz and $250 new (<$200 used) if you want to go smaller and lighter. Both use trekking poles and are very easy to setup. Stake your corners, insert poles, stake your peaks. And watch r/GearTrade r/ULgeartrade and backpackinglight.com's gearswap, or post a Want To Buy (WTB) in any of those

Haven’t used the hornet so I couldn’t speak on that, but I definitely recommend the price point lol… the Only other tent I’ve used for backpacking is the gossamer gear the two. But man, without the footprint, it packs down pretty damn small, just as small as my gossamer (obviously without the poles in the bag). I just put the poles in my water bottle pocket. It may not be as light as you’re wanting, but personally I think it’s the best deal on the market rn for budget tents.

I got a used Gossamer 2 for about 1/2 price it’s a trekking pole tent and very lightweight in the backpack

Is this for car camping or backpacking? It would work for car camping. I prefer a tent at two pounds or lower for backpacking. Gossamer gear the one or two is a great entry level backpacking tent. It uses trekking poles but it's affordable. If you'll be in higher humidity a double walled shelter like the xmid 1 or 2 is great, but you pay a weight penalty for both. There is also the the lunar solo that's great. If you're car camping, there are a lot of great tents that are cheaper.