Tents

Good day. I was wondering if the Nature's hike P-series two sleeper tent will suffice on the escarpment of the Drakensberg by Tugela Falls?
www.naturehike.co.za/collections/tents/products/p-series-2-person-tent-1
 

Dome tents are not as good as Geodesic tents in heavy wind. The answer depends on the wind conditions the tent will be exposed to. 9/10 days you will be ok and on the 10th you just have to hang on and hope for the best! At worst you will have to sit inside and prop the tent up while waiting for the wind to die down - can get long and interesting.

Its like Bergattie said - most of the times you will be ok but its that one day that every thing is against you. 

I have actually seen some expensive MSR tents get destroyed by the wind in the escarpment and mainly due to not correctly pitched and no guy lines used. I find that tents that are more streamed lined or low to the ground is far more stable in strong winds and thens with large flat sides are more susceptible to damage.

The important point is that if you use a cheap tent your chances of getting it damaged is just a lot more. 

In general I would stay away from MSR tents. I have a HUbba-Hubba. Although light and nimble it performs very poorly in even moderate winds. In the Hubba-hubba's case I can right it off to a compromise of sorts for weight and space saving (but even that is not true with modern tents anymore. 

A year ago I was in a group where a brand spanking new MSR (forgot the model but rated as a proper tent) was destroyed in heavy winds. 

Strange that such a respected brand stocks such poor tents.

MSR tents are best suited to indoor camping IMHO. Steer well clear.

Thanks all for input! Yes, extra access def a plus but comes with a weight penalty – as always a trade-off. Personally I’ve never had much need for 2 vestibules for 2 person tents. I had a good old Isotec for many years and seldom used both entrances but extra storage space was useful at times. More recently bought a Black Diamond Stormtrack (10 years ago, but mostly used for car-camping but slept 3 with it on top of the Berg); had some nice features but ultimately disappointed on various fronts (see below). We're considering a MSR Access which has great features and is very light but comes with a price to match and I’m also a bit concerned about durability especially wrt. the new type of poles - comments re. MSR tents noted.  In any event I can only get one from a friend early next year and I’m thinking of my first Berg trip in a while later this year.

The bivvy/tarp route for winter in the Berg is def worth considering but I gotta do some research on that too. I did a Klein Swartberg Traverse 2 years back and we almost didn’t make Skull Cave in miserable weather as it got dark. I didn’t have a bivvy bag and would have been in the cactus if we hadn’t found the cave. Ironically, we were slowed down by people who did have bivvy bags 

On a slightly different track but still on tents. Has anyone had experience with remaking a flysheet? My BD Stormtrack FS is toast and I was thinking of taking it apart and remaking. Would need advice on material procurement and sewing panels – either by myself or by a (semi)professional.

Cheers for now, Brian 

Hi Again. Does anyone have any practical experience with the Lanshan tents in SA conditions? I'm pretty keen for the #2 but i'm a bit worried about the lack of soft ground in SA for pegging them out (at times) since this is essential for their structural integrity. Top of the Berg and WC mountains comes to mind.... Thanks

My cousin has used one in WC, though not in severe conditions. Happy so far and had to seam seal it himself. Was super cheap though, R2600 incl imports.

There's a guy online called Haze Outdoors who used it in Scotland on the Cape Wrath Trail and gave a review, I think...thinking back to chats with said cousin about his choice...perhaps some insight there?

p.s. I just checked my correspondence with cousin, he says "Stripy hat guy" (???) took it into serious mountain conditions.

My 2c regarding tents for the Drakensberg... I have seen decent tents fail in the Berg, First Ascent and Kway hiking tents. A lot depends on the wind direction and how you put up the tent. A lot of the time the weather is fair and most tents will be ok, but when those heavy winds and storms hit out of nowhere, I can guarantee you'll be lying in the tent wishing you got something stronger. I wouldn't go for the lightest tent available at all. Tents are one area I don't count grams on. I invested in a Hilleberg Soulo BL one person tent. its 2.6KG, but trust me when I say it brings peace of mind. Get the strongest tent you can afford, because I firmly believe super lightweight tents are not meant for the top of the Drakensberg, unless you know the weather is mild.

On my last hike to the Amphitheatre with a group of photographers, we had a First Ascent Helio completely collapse (snapped poles) as well as a Kway Nerolite 3.

My advice - get something relatively strong, and know how to put the tent up according to wind direction. Don't sacrifice weight for safety. Its not fun trying to recover from a collapsed tent in freezing conditions, rain pouring. Wind in the Berg can get WILD!

And I don't say this to scare anyone away from enjoying the Drakensberg, but rather to say it can be beautiful, but wild in a space of minutes.

@markDumbleton

I couldn't agree more, you summed it up perfectly. The standing question for me is always to assess how much you enjoy escarpment hiking and then to spend accordingly. Going through such an experience as explained is prone to demotivate you permanently from future hikes. And having to buy 2 or 3 tents over the course of a few years with incremental improvements in each version is also crazy expensive (given that your love of the mountains stays strong). 

I apply the same thinking when it comes to sleeping bags. If one could interview someone in the process of freezing or trying to hold up a broken tent, they would in most cases happily swipe their credit cards on the spot with a smile on their faces   

​​​​My wife and I invested in the Hilleberg Nano 3 tent and the assurance it has provided over the last 5 years is indescribable.

I hope this helps a bit. Just sharing from my own experience 

Ditto on taking a proper tent to the Berg. Been in some interesting weather up there a number of times, and my Nallo 3 has never let me down (2.6kg for a 3 person tent). That said, the strongest winds I've ever encountered (on more than one occasion) was on the lower berg. It was probably worse on top! On those occasions I couldn't even sit up straight outside, the wind kept pushing me down into the grass. Talk about a core workout!!! My Hilleberg was definitely a very welcome reprieve from the conditions outside.

That being said, you can definitely mitigate some of the risks if you don't want to spend a lot of money on a tent. You can take a lightweight bivvy along, or a survival bag in case your tent is destroyed. You could also familiarise yourself with the area and if you know where the caves are in the area you are visiting, you could find shelter there if your tent is destroyed. As stated above - a broken tent in a rain/wind storm isn't fun, so if you don't mind taking the risk of this happening to a lightweight structure, do keep the above alternatives in mind.