The North Face - Stormbreak 3 Tent

If just for car camping, then the suggested Coleman options, or Naturehike are all quite solid and cheap. If you want to backpack more, then grab North Face Stormbreak 3. Basically any dome tent with 2 crossing poles is easy to setup alone in like 5-10 minutes, with most of the energy spent on staking it out and tightening the guylines to make the fly taught.

We use the North Face Stormbreak 3. Perfect for me, my wife, and our two dogs.

I have the SB3 and I love it. The only knock is the size/weight, but if you’re keeping the rest of your kit light, storing your poles separate and using a compression stuff sack I think you’ve got a versatile, durable, easy to pitch tent.

We use the stormbreak 3. Does pretty good.

Big tents are harder to set up and strike, have more to break and require more care to make last. If you think you might ever be in the wind they also become giant sails. Set up some wind/rain break tarps specific for the site and you will feel like the whole area is more yours. Thats just my two cents and experience with a 6 person party tent that saw lots of fun times. My 3 person Storm break sleeps two plus a dog and keeps a week worth of gear dry in full blown storms., so easy to set up and strike. It does all the backcountry and car camping now.

Seconded - though I always seem to have trouble with the rain fly. I just need to practice setting it up more

North face storm break 3

That’s the only issue with that tent. If it wasn’t awesome in every other way I’d have moved on. Now that I think about it, Santa dropped it off under the tree three years ago today. It’s seen a ton of use and it’s still a great tent.

For car camping, When it comes to cooking and sleeping stuff, there isn’t any good reason to buy “camping” stuff a lot of the time. The pots and pans are always too thin and easily burn your food, and they are too small, and often expensive. Just order a large saucepan and lid on amazon or wherever, and get something you would use at home. Why not bring your pillow from home? It will be infinitely better than any “camp pillow”. While you are at it, why not bring your comforter and blanket? Why use a 4”x5” cutting board and a Swiss Army knife in a frustrating (and dangerous) attempt to chop vegetables? Just bring a normal cutting board and kitchen knife. To sleep on: The expeds, as others have mentioned, are definitely nice. I have several but to be honest I just use my bedroll 90% of the time. It’s just a 3 or 4” foam pad with a canvas cover. When I camped for months at a time in the backcountry I, as well as nearly everyone else living and working out there, used a bedrolllike that. The only time I use my exped is when I’m backpacking or limited on space for packing a car. I have a truck so that’s rarely an issue but sometimes I’ll get a ride with someone and bring the exped. If you are trying to pack light, the exped is a great choice, but the simplicity and impossibility of failure of the bedroll wins for me. The bedroll is also a bit more comfortable and bigger than my expeds. the north face storm break is a great, durable and affordable tent with a pleasing color inside. My set up is a storm break 3, my bedroll, pillow from home, down comforter/wool blanket (I rarely use a sleeping bag car camping) and a good quality duffel bag with my clothes. For campstoves I really like the camp chef Everest. Don’t mess around with thin, tiny little “camping” pots and pans and cutting boards, that’s only frustrating and pointless. bring what you would normally use at home, but have a dedicated set for camping that you can just grab and go. There is zero need for a titanium mug car camping and I’ve gotten blisters on my lips from burning them with ti. The to-go mug you probably already have at home will be better than any “camping mug” you buy. I do like two pots that I don’t care about putting on a fire: one tea kettle and a metal bucket for warming dishwater. I also carry a packable bushcraft grill that I love that I got on Etsy. Choose your own overpriced rotomolded cooler, they are all pretty much the same and all better than the old school colemans. I always use ones that you can put a bolt with a wingnut through the holes on the sides to stop marauding bears, raccoons or the occasional wild burro from getting in. The idea of a refrigerator has never appealed to me, but I know some people like theirs. Your choice of battery is going to be based mainly on if you get a fridge, and how long you need to run it, since that will be what uses the vast majority of your power. So your expense will be fridge + battery. For me, that expense it way too much for how little food they hold. Might be better off with propane since you will need propane for your stove anyways.

If you a living/working out of it I recommend north face storm break. That’s what I use when living/working in the Sierra. If you carry it a lot get the 2, if you are more stationary get the 3. Side vestibules will be way more functional for you to put your boots and gear in. That tent is tough and great in foul weather, highly recommend. I wouldn’t consider a front vestibule at all but especially if you will be living out of it. I have a really nice mtn hardware duffel with a waterproof bottom paired with my storm break 3. That holds all my clothes and stays in one of the vestibules while I use the other to get in and out. There’s plenty of room for it inside the tent, too.

We have the Stormbreak 3 for car camping. So far it’s a nice tent for the low price. The 1p may be a tad heavy for thru hiking but it’s definitely made of more durable materials than the UL tents.

Keep in mind that a tent will keep you dry. Your sleep system will keep you warm. Look at REI, North face, marmot or MSR brand 3-4 person tents. A 3-4 person tent will sleep both of you comfortably with your gear inside. To manage winds, look for full fly tent and make sure you have enough points to tie guylines. Here are 2 recommendations https://www.thenorthface.com/en-us/p/bags-and-gear/camp-shop-829877/stormbreak-3-tent-NF0A8BDN?color=Y10 https://www.marmot.com/equipment/tents/4-person/limestone-4-person-tent/AFS_195115133436.html Both these tents go on sale multiple times a year for 30-40% off.

I have the NF stormbreak 1p and 3p. Both are very good quality but they are heavy as others suggested. However, the 1p one is good for overnight hiking trips, if you don't mind the weight (or not planning a long hike). I did numerous trips with the 1p one, before I got the Durston x mid 1. The NF 1p one is quite small, but still worked for me. Though I prefer the x mid 1 because it is much lighter (uses trekking poles) and larger (space for the backpack, shoes, cooking setup etc.). My recommendation would be to consider getting a lighter and larger tent, even though the 1p NF is perfectly capable.

We got a Stormbreak 3 that has 40 sq ft of space, we have two wide pads and they fit with a bit of room to spare. We can fit us comfortably with our packs inside if need be. There is no space for a 3rd person, though we could fit a dog with us. Yes it's heavy but my wife would refuse to go backpacking if we had less space. XD The first time you get caught in a rainstorm and spend a whole day inside your tent the weight will be worth it. ETA: I'm 6'4" and I fit inside the tent fine, my bag rubs a little agaisnt the wall but as a dual wall tent that is fine.