Back country shelter systems

[J. Holden]

Does anyone have experience with the back country tipi's that are on the market today?  I'm looking at the Kifaru Sawtooth and the Seek Outside tipi's with their stove options.  Primarily for back country elk hunting.  Thanks!

-Jeremy

[kevsuperg]

I received a Cimarron tipi, medium stove and a pack when I became a life member if BHA. 5 yrs ago.
 Floorless which so far hasn't been an issue, I use a drop cloth.
 I use it a few times a season sept, Oct, nov.
 Hard to beat a wood heat vs propane.
 I highly recommend seek outside .
 At a bow shoot recently, a couple are camped next to me in one of those over the truck tent deals.
 The next morning, damp after a nights rain, the lady climbed down out of her perch as I came out of my tipi and she was hit with this burst of warm dry air.
 She told me later she was so jealous because their tent had a leak and a stinky, noisey propane buddy heater.  I gave her two Tylenol for her headache.
 Kevin
 

[ozy clint]

I have a Kifaru 12 man tipi, not for backpacking but I wanted to say that a wood heated shelter is one of life's joys.

A Sawtooth would be a palace for one guy and great for two guys.

[kerry]

Sawtooth with a stove here.  Floorless has never been a problem out west. 

The only work around is if elk hunting, is the footprint on the sawtooth is big and requires more flat ground than some elk high country offers.

[kevsuperg]

 My Cimarron is 7x7 footprint.
 This was this yr , opening day , didn't need the stove . ( it's in the black bag)
 Kevin

[Walt Francis]

I cant speak to the Seek Outside, they appear to be quality tents.

I have used the Kifaru 6 man, 8 man, and Sawtooth in Alaska and Montana hunting moose and elk.  They are great tents, I highly recommend them.

My favorite is the Sawtooth, it has plenty of room for two people including their gear.  As previously stated the Sawtooth is a mansion for the solo hunter.  My Sawtooth has went with me on my last two Alaskan solo moose hunts.

Seek Outside makes a lighter Titanium stove than Kifaru if you are backpacking. 

Any tent that you are capable of standing up in is going to have a large footprint.  However, being floor-less, they adjust to uneven terrain quite well.

Tipi tents take longer to set up then most backpack tents, they are better suited for being used in the same place for several days.

[kerry]

Walt reminded me, I have owned Seek Outside and they were also good quality.  The titanium stove is worth it if you're backpacking.  Mine was made by titanium goat (iirc, no longer in business) but if Seek Outside makes one, you could buy with confidence.

[kevsuperg]

"Tipi tents take longer to set up then most backpack tents, they are better suited for being used in the same place for several days."

Sorry have to disagree, my Cimarron can be up in 1 minute tops. Just four stakes and one carbon fiber pole. Once it's up you can use tie outs to open up the sides for more room if desired.
 Comes down and packs away just as quick.( stuff sack)
 The stove takes longer to set up!
 Respectfully. Kevin

[JamesD]

I have an eight man Seek Outside. It is high quality and easy to set up. It takes about half an hour to set up the tipi, stove, and sleeping arrangements and about an hour to pack everything back in a pack. Having the head room to stand up when the weather has you shelter bound along with the stove to keep you warm is worth the extra setup and take down time to me. The tipi and stove with the carbon pole weighs in at 12lb and 3 ounces.
I purchased mine after spending a week in a fellow PBS members in west TX. I would have been miserable waiting out the weather in my two man tent that I slept in at night. It was a no brainer order when I got back from the trip.

[kbetts]

Luxe gear mini peak with half nest.  About 3#.

[YosemiteSam]

SeekOutside makes some fine gear.  I don't think you can go wrong with their stuff.

That being said, my tipis are the cheap Chinese-made knock-off version called Luxe.  I have 2 of their tents and have spent a fair number of nights in.

The Hexpeak gets the most use.  I've ran it floorless, with a 1.5 person inner and a 2-person inner when the wife comes along.  It makes for a very comfortable backcountry camp.  I tend to run some kind of inner though just because we have carpenter ants in most places that will crawl up and bite at all hours of the day or night.  The 2-person inner is okay for 2 people.  Plenty of space & wouldn't be too awkward with a hunting buddy.  But the pole in the middle isn't ideal for times when the wife comes along, if you catch my drift.  But we make it work.

The Octopeak is roomy enough for 2 guys and a stove.  You can even do 3 guys and a stove but won't have as much room for gear.  I run mine floorless for colder weather trips.  I took it to MT for BHA's Rendezvous that had some wind & light snow for part of our stay.  I was cold but the wood stove was nice to have.  Once the stove got rocking, it warmed up nicely so I could drift off.  I think a low cot would have made things a lot less drafty & much warmer too. 

If you're splitting up the weight with a buddy, it's well worth having a floorless tipi with a stove.  But anytime I'm solo in the backcountry, I'll leave the stove behind -- too much weight.  My winter trips rarely get below 45 degrees and although the stove would be nice, it's too heavy to lug down where I go and too much work to prep all that wood on my own during the day and still have time to hunt (early Dec).  Just taking my 0-degree bag costs me 1 lb of extra weight and no extra fuss vs a stove that costs me about 4 lb and a lot of time/effort prepping wood.

[J. Holden]

I really appreciate all the advice and first hand experience you all shared.  Thank you all!

-Jeremy

[Wudstix]

I'm thinking for the amount of use I'd get Luxe would be a prime choice.