Ultralight tents make it extremely easy to carry a functional shelter on your pack. Problem is, they usually come with limited room, so you’re stuck curling up in your sleeping bag inside a cramped space. The Outdoor Vitals Cirq Trekking Pole Tent seeks to give you a bit more space.
Like other ultralight tents, this one is designed for backpackers who want to cut as much weight and heft as possible on their trek. Unlike them, it’s designed to offer comfortable dwelling even for occupants up to 6’6″, making it a lot more comfortable than your typical ultralight shelter.
The Outdoor Vitals Cirq Trekking Pole Tent is an ultralight tent that, the outfit claims, is “engineered for backpackers who want maximum usable space.” As such, it offers a peak height of 53 inches and floor dimensions measuring 91.3 x 28 inches, giving you plenty of room inside to move around. It even has a 33.5-inch deep vestibule in the rear for storing your hiking pack, collapsible water bottle, and other gear, making it quite the generous setup for an erstwhile ultralight shelter. And yes, it is genuinely ultralight, tipping the scales at just 1.8 pounds when packed up, so it won’t add all that much heft to your pack. It’s also designed to pitch without much complication, with catenary cuts on all fabric panels to reduce flapping, integrated tensioners at all stake out points, and long stake point lines for pitching on uneven terrain. They also throw in four extra reinforcement points that, the outfit claims, you can secure to help it hold up to storms, which would be impressive if it can really do that.
Know how condensation seems to always be a major problem in ultralight tents? Well, the outfit claims this tent minimizes it by integrating an all-new 2.Flo Ventilation System, which uses two full-width vents on either side of the ridge and ventilation around the bottom of the fly. They go on to say it’s one of the most well-ventilated trekking pole tent designs out there.
The Outdoor Vitals Cirq Trekking Pole Tent is made from NP Shield fabric, a custom-built nylon-poly blend that’s optimized for lower moisture-induced stretch, improved tear resistance, and longer-lasting waterproofing compared to traditional PU coating. The outfit claims this allows the fabric to maintain better stability in wet conditions compared to other ultralight tents, while sagging a whole lot less during all-night downpours. It features a large zippered door, mesh door and window, and around eight inches of bathtub floor walls at the bottom section for better performance in wet weather.
It requires two trekking poles to set up, by the way, one that’s extended to 44 inches and one extended to 53 inches. Other features include a PFAS-free construction, a single interior pocket for storage, internal hanging loops at both peak areas (the ones held up by trekking poles), a waterproof rating of 2,000mm hydrostatic head, and integrated peak guylines. According to the outfit, you need to dry and remove any debris before packing to make sure it doesn’t get damaged during transit.
The Outdoor Vitals Cirq Trekking Pole Tent is available now in just one color.
