Dragonfly OSMO 2P

Regarding tents, you said you might go with someone and would share a tent, is this a partner you'd be cozying up with or just a friend and would like some space? You said you might get into backpacking, I'd decide now if you'd like to buy for that as opposed to drive-up camping as that will significantly change the recommended options. Backpacking tents tend to be lighter, smaller, and more expensive, where drive-up camping tents tend to be heavier, taller, and get away with being cheaper. Ex: anything over 4 lbs is considered heavy for one person backpacking, whereas that is low weight for a drive-up camping tent.

**Tent** A lot of people say you need a 3-person tent to camp comfortably with 2 people, I have not had that experience. My wife and I have always shared 2-person tents comfortably. Given that you'd like a tent to share with a partner and take backpacking potentially solo I'd recommend getting a 2-person backpacking tent. Backpacking tents come in two general types, trekking pole and freestanding. Many backpackers prefer trekking pole tents (ex: the Durston X-mid is probably the most popular tent for thru hikers right now) as they are very light, but they almost always lack the headroom for two people to comfortably hang out next to each other. Because you plan to use this for regular camping as well I'd recommend getting a free standing tent. This is what I'd recommend if you'd like to prioritize backpacking (keeps the weight low, sacrifices some space): https://www.enwild.com/nemo-dragonfly-osmo-2p.html This is what I'd recommend if you'd like to prioritize regular camping: https://www.kaviso.com/collections/tents-shelters/products/sierra-designs-full-moon-2p-3p-tent 2-person cross pole design tents like this are a dime a dozen, this just happens to be the best combo of cost-weight-features I could find right now. When you go to buy one the things I'd look for is: - a weight preferably below 4 lbs but it's ok if it's a hair over that - two doors so people can come and go without crawling over each other - Mesh extending to the top of the tent (this one is less important but I like the breathability and ability to watch the sky on clear nights) Another thing to note is that you don't really *need* a tent to go backpacking. You can just bring a tarp and some guy lines to make a cover for yourself in case it rains and put your sleeping pad directly on the ground, that being said I much prefer an enclosed tent because of bugs. **Sleeping Pad** Don't get the "standard" 20 inch wide pad unless you get something without a lot of height (ex: inflatable pads are often 3-inches tall, self-inflating pad are usually closer to 1-inch). Your arms will fall down the sides of a standard size pad and when the height is only ~1-inch thats fine but when it's 3-inches it's very annoying. If you go fully inflatable (most common choice and also lowest weight) get yourself a long/wide version. Exped has a lot of their old version inflatable sleeping pads on sale right now for basically dirt cheap prices. If you don't think you'll go camping in cold weather get the Ultra 1R (~$50), if you think you'll go camping in cold weather get the Ultra 7R (~$110). 7R is huge overkill, that's commonly rated for -20F, but it's the cheapest cold weather pad on their site right now. **Sleeping bag** Go with down, you'll be happy about the weight and compressibility, and I swear they're warmer than similarly rated synthetic bags but I can't find any data to support that. The most common temperature rating people go with is 20F. Consider a quilt instead of a sleeping bag but I tend to find you can find better deals on sleeping bags than quilts. Look on discount websites like Campsaver, Sierra, Kaviso, etc. Bags I would get right now in order from warmest weather to coldest weather: Down camping blanket, would probably be fine down to temps of 55-60F https://a.co/d/03j92Uns This is my warm weather sleeping bag, I talk about it more here: https://old.reddit.com/r/CampingGear/comments/1r3rpkl/decent_down_sleeping_bag_for_80/?ref=share&ref_source=link https://www.sierra.com/sierra-designs-35-f-get-down-sleeping-bag-550-fill-power-mummy~p~8ruhj/?filterString=sleeping-bags~d~15232%2F You can also combine them, so get both and when it's warm use the blanket, when it's a bit colder use the bag, and when it's cold use both

I'm not a big guy but I'm not small either, the common joke is that I'm the "starter sim". I'm on the shorter side (5'-7") but I'd say I'm more broad than most non-overweight people. [pic of me](https://old.reddit.com/r/mensfashion/comments/1ihpcpw/i_love_the_color_of_this_sweater_i_got_at_a/?ref=share&ref_source=link) if you'd like to judge for yourself. My wife and I use the [Big Agnes Rapide Tent Floor](https://www.enwild.com/big-agnes-rapide-sl-insulated-tent-floor-pad-2024.html) when we camp together and it has just enough room for both of us. It fits our backpacking tent perfectly (Nemo Hornet 2p) and easily fits into our two car camping tents (Nemo Aurora 2p and North Face Stormbreak 2p)

I've never had a Big Agnes tent so I can't speak to them personally but their UL tents are made of nylon which, while waterproof, does absorb water, stretch, and take a long time to dry. Some people seem to think it's a non-issue, others really dislike it. I do have a Nemo tent with the Osmo fabric and can confirm that it does not have those issues.

I got a Nemo dragonfly osmo 2 for $75 at REI resupply, fixed the huge rip in the fly (why it was $75) and it’s been absolutely awesome for a couple years now

I have a Kelty discovery Trail 2 that has been excellent over the last few years. I JUST picked up a Nemo Dragonfly Osmo 2 from REI on sale and its AWESOME.

Slingfin Portal 2. I’ve been using it for the past two years and it’s lightweight, roomy, freestanding and bombproof in bad weather. I made a ridiculous spreadsheet comparing almost 20 tents and it was the winner. I rented a Nemo Dragonfly 2P last week. It was fine but a little smaller on the inside. Good luck with your search, there’s so many options

If it’s legit dude that’s insane. Nemo will be awesome for lighter packing, I’m not sure where you are but where I am (British Columbia, Canada) it’s like the gold standard, that or durston.