Good tent for 3rd season elk CO

[old roper 42]

I see the Kodiak gets a lot of favorable reviews. But, as I recall, it is a single wall (canvas?) tent. I've been partial to nylon tents with a full fly that reaches the ground. To me it would seem they would be a bit warmer when cold out, or a bit better ventilated when hot or wet. I use an 8-man North Face for many many years. It gets a heck of a lot of use and has required a new fly after the first one finally died of sun-rot, but the $125 was well worth it.

Anyway, is there a tent with a fly that is equally favored? the North Face that I have is no longer made.

Tent like Davis you can order it and some options includes windows with screens or second door. My new wall tent has door/3 windows and use it during summer fishing. If I'm cooking inside I like little air.

 

[muleyfreak08]

I own a Kodiak Flex bow 8 person. Love it and hate it. I used it in eastern Montana this year and it was great. Ran a Mr Big Buddy heater on a 20lb tank. It wasn’t overly cold out 20-30 over night and worked great. Late November rut hunt. One person it was huge for me and all my gear. Stayed warm.

Now 1st season elk Colorado I hated it. Two guys and gear it was tighter then I wanted. I do have a bigger cot which is my fault. But it snowed 4 of 7 days. The top would keep collecting snow. Had to pound the roof and sides to get it off. One night I woke up to the tent touching me and falling in on us. We had 3-4” of wet heavy snow. It just kept collecting on top. Everyone else that had a peak style roof did not have this issue. I think a wood stove would have been great for that hunt to help dry out clothes. We camped around 8600 ft.

I am currently looking at Davis tents. The elk package is what I’m looking at. I do a lot of solo hunts I am also looking at the go tent they have. The kodiak is easy to set up solo and does work but I didn’t like it in the snow. I would consider it a fail on that hunt. I am looking to sell it.

 

[Hockaday2017]

Some good info! After backpacking in during 3rd season last year Ill be buying a hot tent.

 

[remmy120777]

I have a 12x9 kodiak canvas cabin tent, it also has the vestibule and awning for the vestibule. it does not have a stove jack but i was thinking of having one cut into the vestibule roof and placing a wood stove out there. does anyone have this tent and do you think that would work?

 

[VAhunter2014]

I’m looking for recommendations on a good tent that won’t break the budget for a late season elk hunt. We plan to set up tent at the truck and hike in each morning to hunt. It’s my first year to hunt elk and I don’t want to get too much money invested before I try it out. So should I get a tipi hot tent with a wood stove or go for something like a all season tent and use a buddy heater? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Kodiak Canvas with a MR buddy heater. As long as you have the room for a propane tank, you'll be glad you had it. Room to stand up. No gathering of wood (sometimes I park in areas that I would have to haul it). And the MR buddy makes it nice at camp. Its not necessarily cheap, but a good value in my opinion.

 

[Cornbread]

I went through a soul search like the original poster and decided on a Marmot 6-person Halo Tent from Campsaver. I saved 10% on my first order by signing up for the endless emails which I later cancelled. I don't want to be busy cutting wood for a wood stove or starting fires. I have a Little Buddy heater. Push the button and instant heat. I bought a minus 30 degree down-filled Western Mountaineering Cypress sleeping bag and a good R-6 sleeping pad. The Halo tent allows me to standup. I also bought a Crua 3-person insulated tent insert from their factory rejects/returns that fits in that Halo easily but keeps ya warm while sleeping. It was a cheap $400. I still have room in the Halo for equipment, etc to keep dry. I already have cargo netting from my boat top to cover the tent in high winds to hold it down. Those wall tents appear to be heavy as hell; sturdy but boy you may pull your balls off carrying it out of the truck and putting it up. I'd rather expend my energy on the hunt, not on the camp setup. I have 12" gutter spikes also for stakes. You can get even 14" gutter spikes, I believe.

I was a Cabelas customer for 30 years, but I believe their quality has changed since BassPro bought them 2-3 years ago. You may be buying Chinese crap. Caveat Emptor. I dropped my Cabelas Credit Card a year after they switched to Capital One. So you guys that have bought what was once great equipment may want to check carefully. I always thought you bought from Cabelas when your life depended on it, right? 6 years ago, I could see quality deteriorating in their stores, so I decided to buy all new top-quality hunting clothes even though I didn't need it. Glad I did it. Dick Cabela probably rolled over in his grave when that S-bag private equity outfit sold them to BassPro. Try CampSaver. They are in Utah.

 

[Cornbread]

I have a 12x9 kodiak canvas cabin tent, it also has the vestibule and awning for the vestibule. it does not have a stove jack but i was thinking of having one cut into the vestibule roof and placing a wood stove out there. does anyone have this tent and do you think that would work?

You can go to Harbour freight and get a welder's blanket to help. I don't think you can get asbestos blankets anymore.

 

[Toneloc]

I have a Kodiak flex bow tent and love it. It's been through all 4 seasons, high wind, monsoon rains and it still holds up. You can't beat it for ease of set up and value at the price point. I heat it easily with a buddy heater.

+100...This.

I've had my Kodiak for 4 years now and put it through it's paces. Only thing that would make it better is if it was made in the USA.

If you add on the optional vestibule, lots of room for keeping extra gear covered up too.

They aren't cheap, but it's a purchase you'll have for years and worth every penny IMO.

 

[Toneloc]

I have a 12x9 kodiak canvas cabin tent, it also has the vestibule and awning for the vestibule. it does not have a stove jack but i was thinking of having one cut into the vestibule roof and placing a wood stove out there. does anyone have this tent and do you think that would work?

Not much heat would make it from the vestibule into the tent I wouldn't think. So then you'd be trying to stand around it outside the tent under the canopy...... I also think it would get in the way coming in and out of the tent.

I always wanted to put a stove jack in and put a stove inside mine, but I think it would be tight quarters with even one other person and hunting gear. Buddy heater with 20lb propane adapter is what I would run instead.

One other tip for the Kodiak is get an extra adjustable pole with soft end on it and put it right in the middle of the canopy. It does run some water back toward the tent, but it will roll off and down the sides....makes more head room if you are a tall person and water doesn't pool up.

 

[VAhunter2014]

Not much heat would make it from the vestibule into the tent I wouldn't think. So then you'd be trying to stand around it outside the tent under the canopy...... I also think it would get in the way coming in and out of the tent.

I always wanted to put a stove jack in and put a stove inside mine, but I think it would be tight quarters with even one other person and hunting gear. Buddy heater with 20lb propane adapter is what I would run instead.

One other tip for the Kodiak is get an extra adjustable pole with soft end on it and put it right in the middle of the canopy. It does run some water back toward the tent, but it will roll off and down the sides....makes more head room if you are a tall person and water doesn't pool up.

View attachment 210694

Good tip for the canopy. A good idea to not lose headroom.

 

[Lnewton]

I started out with a walmart special 8 person dome tent. It did pretty good til below 20 degrees. Decided to try out a Marmot 3p with some better bags and it is great just no space. Just bought a 12x14 canvas wall tent so going to see how that goes on an upcoming trout fishing trip.

 

[hank4elk]

one that fits in a CO motel room...lol

If I was looking for a new truck camp tent it would be a Kodiak 1st. Pretty slick.

 

[steveshuntn1]

Got a deal on a slightly used 10x10 kodiak flex bow basic. I think it was used or set up once…still has a new smell to it. 350$! I’ll add a stove jack and should have a tent for years to come. Thanks for all the replies.

 

[JAG]

Lots of good info on Buddy Heater use in tents; thank you! For those that use buddy heaters, how do you best manage condensation while using them?

I appreciate how wood stoves generate dry heat and largely correct this. Yet, I'm cheap and want to use a buddy heater until my budget permits me to upgrade to a wood stove.

I am also using a used, 8P tipi tent from SO- not the canvas wall tent. Is there a difference in expectations that I should have regarding condensation?

 

[GBrokx]

Rent a wall tent and see if its right for you. I think you will be way more comfortable being able to fully stand up to move around, cook, etc. The wood stoves in a wall tent are much bigger and you won’t be waking up multiple times in the night to add more wood. I have a Davis tent and they are CO local and located in Denver. More reasonably priced than others I looked at when I bought mine. You can ask if they have any used ones they are selling too or keep your eye out online. In my opinion, a wall tent is the way to go.

 

[Western Traveler1]

Rent a wall tent and see if its right for you. I think you will be way more comfortable being able to fully stand up to move around, cook, etc. The wood stoves in a wall tent are much bigger and you won’t be waking up multiple times in the night to add more wood. I have a Davis tent and they are CO local and located in Denver. More reasonably priced than others I looked at when I bought mine. You can ask if they have any used ones they are selling too or keep your eye out online. In my opinion, a wall tent is the way to go.

…and Davis Tent wood stoves come with a coal grate…

 

[RO1459]

I've used a Mr. Buddy heater in my 6 person Cabela's Instinct tent at 8,450ft during the third season in Colorado for years. I also have a Davis canvas tent I used to use. At 74, the canvas tent has become too heavy to set up by myself and not nearly as warm.

 

[Dsnow9]

Crazy eyes… but the Mr buddy a full sized propane tank with long hose, and an insulated ice shack made for an amazingly comfortable 3rd season this year

 

[jbseamus83]

I just went through the process of researching canvas tents. I looked really hard at the Kodiak tents and really like them. The one thing that held me back was that it was hard to find one with a stove jack. I also considered ease of setup (I will be setting up by myself at times). That took a lot of wall tents out. I ended up with a tent from white duck. It's a bell shaped tent and has the stove jack. My son and I used it in WY on a late season deer hunt this year when the temps got down into single digits. Stayed nice and warm with the tent stove. I really like this tent because it is easily set up by just one person if needed.

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