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Hi all,
My boyfriend and I are planning on going on a cross country road trip in September from California, up the west coast to Glacier National Park and then across the Northern US to Massachusetts and then swing low across the lower states (possibly as low as Louisiana). Neither of us have extensive camping experience but we're looking forward to learning as we go and making an adventure of the process. We are looking at tents right now and although he's a big fan of roughing it, I would like to have some "luxury" in my camping situation (AKA not a tiny backpacking tent that barely fits us and none of our gear which we have crawl in and out of). Because we'll be spending up to 6 days a week in the tent I would like a tent that has decent headroom and space. So far what I really like is the REI Kingdom 4 tent ($389) and the North Face Kaiju 6 ($399) (I would go for the Kaiju 4 but the vestibule situation doesnt seem as nice as the 6).
http://www.rei.com/product/829184/rei-kingdom-4-tent-
http://www.rei.com/product/810167/re...ct-tech-garage
http://www.thenorthface.com/catalog/...s/kaiju-6.html
I really like the idea of having a "front porch" kind of area separate from the inside "living area." The Kingdom has a additional connect tech garage ($99) that would basically give us huge outside vestibule space where we can have privacy and be able to maybe bathe ourselves every once in a while with some warmed up camp water as well as give us a space to escape from the elements/insects (and if I dont get it now I can always get it later). I'm liking the kingdom more than the kaiju because it affords many more options and flexibility with one tent but I'm concerned that it wont be able to survive the weather. I'm anticipating rain in addition to posible high winds and the tent shapes are pretty distinctly different. I've read some reviews that say the kingdom has trouble with higher winds over 25 mph and the last thing I want to do is buy a tent that is not going to stand up to what I need it to. I also wanted to take an air mattress with us (thus the need for the space and the problem with backpacking tents) but I'm seeing on the threads in this forum that air mattresses are not reliable and that you need more if you are traveling in cold weather (has anyone just tried to put a space blanket down in between you and the ground? under the mattress or on top of the mattress but under a sheet of some sort?).
If anyone has any thoughts on either of the tents or if you have experience doing this kind of road trip, any advice would be appreciated!
My boyfriend and I are planning on going on a cross country road trip in September from California, up the west coast to Glacier National Park and then across the Northern US to Massachusetts and then swing low across the lower states (possibly as low as Louisiana). Neither of us have extensive camping experience but we're looking forward to learning as we go and making an adventure of the process. We are looking at tents right now and although he's a big fan of roughing it, I would like to have some "luxury" in my camping situation (AKA not a tiny backpacking tent that barely fits us and none of our gear which we have crawl in and out of). Because we'll be spending up to 6 days a week in the tent I would like a tent that has decent headroom and space. So far what I really like is the REI Kingdom 4 tent ($389) and the North Face Kaiju 6 ($399) (I would go for the Kaiju 4 but the vestibule situation doesnt seem as nice as the 6).
http://www.rei.com/product/829184/rei-kingdom-4-tent-
http://www.rei.com/product/810167/re...ct-tech-garage
http://www.thenorthface.com/catalog/...s/kaiju-6.html
I really like the idea of having a "front porch" kind of area separate from the inside "living area." The Kingdom has a additional connect tech garage ($99) that would basically give us huge outside vestibule space where we can have privacy and be able to maybe bathe ourselves every once in a while with some warmed up camp water as well as give us a space to escape from the elements/insects (and if I dont get it now I can always get it later). I'm liking the kingdom more than the kaiju because it affords many more options and flexibility with one tent but I'm concerned that it wont be able to survive the weather. I'm anticipating rain in addition to posible high winds and the tent shapes are pretty distinctly different. I've read some reviews that say the kingdom has trouble with higher winds over 25 mph and the last thing I want to do is buy a tent that is not going to stand up to what I need it to. I also wanted to take an air mattress with us (thus the need for the space and the problem with backpacking tents) but I'm seeing on the threads in this forum that air mattresses are not reliable and that you need more if you are traveling in cold weather (has anyone just tried to put a space blanket down in between you and the ground? under the mattress or on top of the mattress but under a sheet of some sort?).
If anyone has any thoughts on either of the tents or if you have experience doing this kind of road trip, any advice would be appreciated!
.
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