What tent to buy

[forrestleitch]

Very happy with my Argali 4P if you’re looking for a lighter weight tent. Multiple sizes depending on your needs

 

[JAG]

Yeah comfy camps make lazy hunters and if you're already struggling sleeping in might be a problem, probably helps if there's someone cracking the whip in the group to keep everyone motivated and hunting hard.

I mostly agree with this, but I've experienced a ditch on both sides of comfortable camp set-ups.

The stove in my 8-man SO makes waking up on cold mornings easier and helps so I don't have to crack the whip as much anymore. If I feel like I'm 'trying to survive', I'm tempted to stay in the bag longer.

My experience with light weight teepee tents and stoves.

Set it up
spend hours looking for wood small enough to fit in the stove
stay up all night feeding it sticks to keep it warm
wake up tired and cold with condensation everywhere and a fire to start

If the expressed drawbacks are linked to frustration from your departure from mainstream pop-up tents, then I can relate. It was the tremendous floor space gained per pound savings that goaded me to persist.

I'm glad you mentioned these. After the curve, my 8-man is super simple/quick to set up (I delegate tent setup to my kids now), for us dry wood (not sticks) is always easy to find, break down, we don't stay up feeding the fire, and morning fires burn off the condensation (if we have any) quickly.

Recently, I upgraded to llamas since my youngest son joined our hunting group. The llamas are a pleasure and help save money on food costs and UL gear upgrades. My four (4) llamas will cost me only $650 for 7 days in Oct 2025. If you're paying $90 a day per llama, you're getting pillaged. Llamas should only cost $75/day and a discount of $50 after a 7-day or longer rental.

If you haven't given up yet, you might find the following anecdotes and tips helpful:

WOOD​

• Find wood while e-scouting. I have an alpine hunt in the fall as a backup plan. We will be at least 1,000 feet and 1 mile above treeline. We'll gather wood near the treeline and pack it up the rest of the way.
• Bone-dry branches 3-4 inches (some in the 5-6 range) in diameter can easily be broken down without a saw. Two tips: 1) place the thick stick on two (2) rocks and baton the middle with another rock or your foot. 2) Find a 'Y' shaped tree or two trees close together, find a long dead tree, place the end through the gap, lever the dead between the 'Y' to snap the ends to the length of the stove.
• If fuel is sparse, collect wood on your way to camp each night; fallen trees are easier to drag than carrying bundles.

WARMTH​

• Always use a sleeping bag rated for the weather you hunt; do not get a lighter or higher-temp bag because you have a stove.

CONDENSATION

• Camp at least 100' away and above a stream- if you are 100' away from the stream, the upper bend can still be 'up' in elevation. At night, the dew can flow towards your tent and soak it.
• Camp under tree cover.
• Use the stove to burn off moisture in the morning.
• At home, I melt down an old candle and dip cotton balls in melted wax as fire starters. They can be hard to light- make them into oval or rectangular shapes, and you can break them. Light the starter where the broken edge and exposed fibers are.
• Cotton balls in Vaseline tend to work better as you can just light them with a spark, but messier and don't burn as long as the Vaseline.

 

[Super_dave]

My brother in law swears by his luxe tent