[color=cyan:43d20c16d5]Does anyone have any experience with one-man tents such as the 'Bibler Bipod Bivi' and any other similar tents by Bibler/Black Diamond/MSR etc... Any comments/warnings whatever appreciated. Thanks.[/color:43d20c16d5]

www.mountainmailorder.co.za/GZItem.asp?ID=1800

a great one man tent is the msr zoid but if you want a bit more room if you have got paddle kit with you it has got 2 be the northface tadpol

I've used bivi bags a lot and they are good if it's not too hot. When it's too hot they are hard to get a flow of air through.

I like the idea of using lightweight tarps that you can put up with a paddle saving weight. You can also get a bugnet to fit in them.

Bibler tents are suppost to be the best out there for mountaineering. Black diamond, TNF, marmot and Golite also make nice lightweight tents and shelters.

Are you planning on using it for anything special?

[color=cyan:6ecb891917]Well I would use it as a shelter against rain mainly, and insects. Not really for cold conditions because our paddling is mostly done in the summer when one can sleep outside under a thin sleeping bag no problem.

So Neil, you'd recommend the one-man tents over a full on bivi bag given the warmish conditions? For a better airflow inside and probably less condensation? Thanks for the input guys.

I like the lifetime warranty that Bibler has on their tents... [/color:6ecb891917]

Hi.

I have the Bibler Bipod bivy. It's a great shelter - a little comfier than an ultra light bivvy (the hoop in front of your face is quite nice for avoiding the suffocating feeling), but nowhere near as heavy as a tent. The mosquito netting is great too.

A couple of things with it though - to get the best out of it in terms of the tent pole thing, you need to peg it out - if not the tent pole doesn't sit up properly. Secondly, it's pretty hard to get the tent pole sitting in the right place - you need to use a fair bit of force, and I'm always a little worried about ripping the fabric. Hasn't happened yet, so I guess it's fine.

Overall bivvy vs tent. A bivvy is really great for cool to cold weather. It sucks when it rains or in really humid weather - it gets quite clammy. Cause they are made of a breathable membrane (in Bibler's case Toddex), they rely on the temperature gradient betwen in the biv and outside to move the water vapour. If it's hot outside, you might as well roll yourself up in a plastic bag! Also, if it's raining you can't get your pack into the biv with you (well, I can cause I'm really short, but you probably won't if you are normal sized).

Also, and please don't take insult to this, but have you actually slept in a biv bag before? The can get a little claustrophobic. I had a friend who bought a bivvy bag, then realised that he couldn't deal with the closed in feeling!

Overall, my biv is great when I don't have the space, weight, or couldn't be bothered either carrying, or setting up a tent. Overall however, if the above aren't an issue, I take a tent.

Hope this helped.

steff

[color=cyan:4eb9cd170e]Hey Steff,

Thanks for the feedback. That has helped... I have slept in a bivy before. I don't mind the 'closed in' feeling at all. Space/weight/size is an issue for me, so for paddling I think I might get myself one of them. For hiking though it wouldn't work because as you mentioned before, you won't be able to fit the pack in. When hiking on the Lesotho border there is often a safety problem with leaving anything outside but thats another mission.... Thanks again. [/color:4eb9cd170e]

I may be jumping in a little late, but check out Mountain Hardwear tents as well. They make good gear and make an ultralight 1-person tent that packs 15 in long and weighs out at 2 lbs......... If you're looking for a hiking tent, they have a good selection as well.

hi...

i am making 2kind of bivvies,

one is already on the site (www.shivaoutdoors.com)...

it's a do it all, that's why the name's magic carpet...

there's a lot of ventilation stuff, as i know personally that it wont work, also i left the poles away (as in kayaking you might/will poke holes into your equipment...

anyway, its decently small, light, let's you make a hammock and sleep in it sheltered.., so very good against the bugs and crawlies...

obviously waterprooved (fully) and breathable...but breathable might not me such a big issue for you, as you are out in the warm and usually that's when the hydrophyllic stuff doesn't work...

anyway...that one works...

there's a small emergency back which is not on the web yet...but it is very light (45grm)...waterproofed (to a certain extent) and very small...(this fits into your fist (if yougot big hands.....

anyway...

both work well...are affordable...and build by kayakers..

[color=cyan:ba72665013]Just to add onto this forum in case anyone was interested. I believe the Hilleberg Akto is an awesome one man tent. It is bigger and heavier than some but has more space.

www.hilleberg.se/akto-e.asp[/color:ba72665013]

the North Face Megamid Light which packs down the size of a grapefruit, and you could use your paddle as the center pole, The same with the Betamid. Black Diamond and Mountain Hardware make similar models im sure others do aswell.

This one looks pretty cool, plus no poles (they are inflatable)

www.nemoequipment.com/prod_item_feat.php?id=1

So I finally bought the Bibler Hooped Bivi. Haven't had the chance to test it out but it looks like a winner. I bought the 'long' version and even then it is only 730g. Once I've tested it properly I'll come back to this post. Till later then...