Yama Mountain Gear Cuben Fiber Cirriform DW

A New Tent and Shaving Ounces Off My Base Weight.

So, after watching more and more of my hiker friends who are attempting to thru hike the AT get off the trail and give up the dream of a thru hike this year, it seems that many of them are coming off due to knee and feet issues.  Ok, the weather this year has been bad.  The snow and cold weather that has been lacking for the last 10 years or so in the southern Appalachians was back with a vengeance.  If you started you hike in February, you probably were not prepared for the cold snowy weather this year.  Other than the weather, it seems that the knees and feet are problematic for many people hiking this year.  In fact most of the people I know that have come off the trail made it through the snow and ice only to be sidelined by knee pain and stress fractures.  One thing common to these people that have come off the trail seems to be they are carrying heavier packs, which have to contribute to their knee and foot problems.

So, I have been looking at my pack weights. I am a light weight hiker.  I do not over pack and I am conscious about the weight I carry.  At the moment, my pack weight with 5 days food and water for a hike on the AT is less than 28 pounds and that is when I am packed with my winter gear.  Saying that, I do have room to lessen that weight.  There are items that I am carrying that are the lightest I can carry, however I can reduce weight of things like my tent, stakes,ground cloths among other things.  So I began the search to find a new shelter.

At the moment, I have a silnylon tarp weighing in at 14 ounces and a Lightheart Gear tent which weighs in at a respectable 27 ounces.  Both of these shelters are considered light, however with cuben fiber available, I could shave 8 to 10 ounces off my pack weight by moving away from silnylon and into cuben fiber shelters.

I narrowed my choice down to the HMG Echo 1 cuben fiber shelter or the Yama Mountain Gear cuben fiber Cirriform Double Wall Shelter.  Both are great shelters from great boutique gear companies.  Both are well made and have a great reputation.  I selected the Yama Mountain Gear shelter due to its lighter weight and to be honest, Gen (the owner) and his superb customer service.  Gen answered my questions via email quickly and was even willing to make this shelter and deliver it to me at Trail Days even though it was less than a week away from when I ordered it.  Oh, I also wanted him to modify the tent and add tie outs and he was accommodating to my requests as well.

Cuben Fiber Yama Mountain Gear's Cirriform Tarp.

 

 



So, check out some info on the new Cirriform Tent. 

This shelter comes in either a single wall or double wall version.  I elected the double wall version as I will be able to remove the "inner tent" before and after bug season when it is not really needed and I will have about a 10 ounce shelter.  With the bug "tent" added in the summer, the total weight is less than 18 ounces.  Talk about dropping weight quickly! I reduced my tent weight by 10 ounces!

So, Gen is bringing my new Cirriform DW to Trail Days and I will be able to actually set it up and use it that same weekend!  I promise pictures and a detailed review shortly after Trail Days.  Suffice to say I am excited at the possibilities with this shelter.

Until next time....hike your own hike.