REI Arete 3 ASL Tent

Comments about REI Arete 3 ASL Tent:

Picked this up because I need something between a 3 season and 4 season. Its not too heavy, comfortable but not huge, sturdy but not breezy, very easy to setup and versatile with fly / footprint or base tent alone, large vestibule and great internal layout.

There are some great tents out there that are very lightweight. They have loads of mesh and ultralight poles. They are fantastic if you are trying to pack ultralight and in good weather with moderate temp changes. My wife and I however are preparing for a few, several week long adventures, into high altitude regions. I needed a tent that could be versatile. Performing well in moderately high temps and shake off the odd snowstorm or two. I dint want to buy a good ultralight and a monster 8lb+ 4 season tent or the price $600+ that comes with them. Buying those 2 tents could easily set you back a grand.

Another thing that was important - vestibule space. We are somewhere between minimalist and comfort packers. When it Rains or snows I hate to be locked up inside my tent with all my gear. I want space to relax and hang out. The ASL 3 gives you almost 11sq feet of usable vestibule space. There are other tents that have 2 6sq foot or 7sq foot vestibules but we all know that only a portion of that space is usable due to the steep angle of the walls. On the ASL Both my wifes pack and my pack fit on the sides (Aura65 and z65) There is also plenty of room for other gear and loads of open cooking space right outside the main tent door. At mealtime we had our packs, 2 gallons of water, boots, cooking gear and food packs all laid out with room to spare.

Bought the tent at REI around 6pm and it was dark by the time we hiked into our test camping spot. I managed to set this thing up under the cover of moonlight and a headlamp around 10 minutes the FIRST time. The key points of the tent are reflective so your headlamp will guide you well. The tent poles only go in one way and its very obvious with a reflective "Insert this pole first" sewn onto the tent. The lightweight poles are thick and one end has a plastic knob that fits into an end pocket. As you slide the pole through it goes on smooth and fast.

Once you get the 2 poles in, the tent is basically "up". There is one more support pole and the fly / crossflow system to go. The Fly has Velcro loops on it that grab the main tent in the right places making it easy to secure it quickly as well. This is a huge benefit. Now I can deploy it in about 5-7 minutes at a relaxed pace. If under pressure I'm sure it can be setup faster with 2 or 3 people.

That night we had 40mph winds and a wet morning. The tent was rock solid. The sides dont flap and it is pretty quiet. I haven not done a full guy out and been in any storms yet but I imagine that this thing can take a bit of abuse. One gripe is all black guys. They should be reflective if this is really a bridge over tent. At some point you're going to have to pitch it full bore and the last thing you want to do is fall over the tent because you cant see the lines.

Ventilation is only Good. The cross flow system allows for some decent airflow but if you are used to an all mesh tent this is going to be very different. I wish there was some sort of zipper ventilation on the sides / rear of the tent. On our first night there was a little condensation on our bags and the tent walls but it was not much. SO I guess the system is working because it was certainly not as bad as other full wall tents I have been in.

Size wise its a little small but has great headroom. Not nearly as bad as some other tents. I can not see how you would fit 3 people in this tent comfortably for very long. You can definitely stuff 3 people in but it feels best suited for 2 on an extended trip or 2 and a child or dog.

Internal storage was a surprise. There are mesh pockets all over and right where you need them. Near your head while sleeping, at the foot, on the sides. It is rigged inside for a loft or hanging gear.

I also like that the main tent is white. During good weather you wont feel like you're living in a day glow life in a neon orange / yellow world.

Overall for the price I think this is an excellent buy. I feel like I saved a load of cash by having a tent that can pull triple duty in a pinch. It may not be the best summer stargazing tent or keep you alive on everest but I think it fits the bill for what I need. Something in the middle.

Comments about REI Arete 3 ASL Tent:

About me: I'm somewhere between a minimalist and a comfort-camper. The very reason I got the Arete 3 was so I could (eventually) winter-camp, but I got the 3 instead of the 2-person variant so I'd have the extra room, knowing I'd have some extra weight. And I'm an engineer, so I definitely appreciate simplicity and thoughtfulness.

I just used this tent on my first overnight of 2010 in Northern California, and it performed admirably. I got to my campsite around 19:00, and I had the tent up by 19:10, alone and at a leisurely pace. Very easy pitch that can be done in low- or no light, and I used the speed pitch (tent & fly pre-attached) which saved more time.

The tent is super stable and I plan to test this out in snow. Ventilation for such a solid tent is better than I would have guessed, even with only the 2 top vents. The downside is that there was just a bit of condensation between the tent and fly the next morning. I just packed up, then aired the tent out at home without issue. In all other ways, this tent is well-designed and executed. It is made to be a lightweight tent that is worthy of proper storms.

The only other complaint I have is that the fly has rip-stick attachment points to the tent that don't all quite line up. I'm not going to ding for this, because it's not pivotal to the functioning of the tent, and I haven't been back to the store to try and do something about it. A hidden plus is that, although REI makes no claim that the fly and footprint can be pitched alone, I'm sure it can be done easily, owing to the grommets on the footprint and the rip-stick tabs on the fly.

The other thing to keep in mind is that the vestibule is rather small - big enough for boots and such, but not for full-size packs. This, again, goes back to its intended design and desired behaviour in storms and wind; I won't ding for that. Then, too, the tent itself is smallish in that it's better suited to 2 people and a child/dog than 3 adult humans.

Overall, what you get is a real 4-season tent that weighs the same as many 3-season models. It is well-designed and generally well-made, and very easy to work with. I'd definitely buy it again!

Comments about REI Arete 3 ASL Tent:

This is a great tent for 3-4 season backpacking and mountaineering. For a tent that's under 6 pounds, it has plenty of room for 2 people plus gear (perhaps 3 people if you all had very stunted development and don't mind really invading each other's bubble). I've used it for Spring mountaineering in the Cascades (where it had no problem with 8 inches of wet snow overnight) and above treeline in the Rockies with high winds and driving rain (albeit with a small rock wall). However, the tent is meant for colder weather - even above treeline the tent gets very warm when the sun comes out with any strength. The ceiling vents do a very good job of venting the tent when it's cooler, but you'd roast for most hot/summer weather applications. The vestibule is surprisingly roomy, and with care, one can cook in the vestibule with a cartridge stove. The colors look mildly goofy from the outside, but are very pleasing from the inside!

For what it's meant for, a great tent!

Comments about REI Arete 3 ASL Tent:

Just returned from an eight day backpacking trip in Wrangell St. Elias N.P. in Alaska. Needless to say, weather conditions in Wrangell can change pretty quickly and in our case it did. We experienced snow, snow/sleet, rain and sunny days. In all cases the tent worked as expected with a few caveats. There were condensation issues. Nothing dramatic but I do feel the ventilation could be improved. There are two small vents in the roof of the tent and on protected (covered) sections of the fly that probably should be larger. Maybe another vent opposite the door. Another issue which I'm sort of surprised has not come up in other reviews is the lack if a way to tie back the vestibule door as well as the tent door. When unzipped, both just hang or flap around. Ought to be a real simple fix.

The tent is easy to set up and take down for one person. Indoor storage is adequate but don't plan on storing two full size backpacks in the vestibule. Though the tent is rated as a three person tent, it's really not. It's comfortable for two but would be hard pressed to ever get three normal size adults into it.

I'll give the tent four stars now, but if the issues are addressed, it would rate five stars.

Comments about REI Arete 3 ASL Tent:

I bought this tent with my boyfriend during a sale at REI in May, 2010. My boyfriend's old tent was a 6 ft x 6 ft square tent. It had a small star-gazing mesh panel on top, and mesh panel doors, both of these covered by a normal tent panel as rainfly (no vestibule). Since the tent was old, its (perhaps) once waterproof tent body was only water resistant. Since my boyfriend recently got a down sleeping bag, the possibility of a wet down bag meant it was time for a new tent.

There are several reasons we chose this tent:
1. I'm a cold sleeper, and we usually camp in spring and early or late summer, to avoid high heat during the California summer. Therefore, an all-season tent would be ideal. We liked REI's all-season-light (ASL) design, which saves us a few pounds.
2. All season or REI's ASL also provide privacy without the rainfly, which means during mild-weather camping trips, we can forgo the rainfly all together, saving us a few more pounds (we estimate the packed weight of the Arete ASL 3 to be around 4 lbs).
3. We chose the 3-person version fully anticipating that it would be comfortable for 2, or 2 with a small child or dog, but probably cramped for 3. Please note that backpacking tents are meant to be just big enough to fit the number of people marked. This does not account for bigger, taller people, more equipment, or comfortable elbow room. REI's backpacking tent "how to choose" article tells you that if you value elbow room, go one person up. And as always, when in doubt, go to a local REI or other sporting goods store to try out similar models of the same brand, to get a feel for them.

So far, we've set up a tent once indoor after purchase, and used it 4 times in mild-to-cold trips, one of which had persistent rain throughout the night.

What we like about this tent:
1. We were very satisfied with the amount of room we had, and now my boyfriend could finally stretch out his legs without touching the tent walls! The sides are just about as wide as my boyfriend's old tent, which gives us plenty of elbow room. The ceiling is also plenty high,and we can sit up fully without touching the top.
2. I like the tent's ability to keep warm at night. However, my boyfriend who's a warm sleeper, felt the tent was stuffy at night. We fixed this by opening the window panel on the tent door, leaving only the mesh panel in place (and the vents on top open as well).
3. The door does not have a tie-back, but this is intentional. If you look to either side of the tent door from within the tent, you'll notice that there's one more mesh pocket on the right than the left, adjacent to the tent door. I was joking about the injustice of the uneven amount of pockets on the sides of the tent when I realized that "this IS meant for the door"! When fully unzipped, the door can be tucked inside this pocket, and voila, problem solved.

What we didn't like about the tent:
1. While it's nice that the tent door can be tucked away easily, the same feature does not work so well on the rainfly. When you're trying to tuck the rainfly door into the mesh pocket on the rainfly, which is extended about 4 feet out from the tent door, you either need to put your shoes back on and step out on the footprint-less ground (while crouching), or stretch as far as you can to reach while avoiding falling face down into the mud. The remote pocket also means that in order to tuck the fly door away, it unzips to a corner close to the ground, while the rest of the door just flops - into the mud. I feel this design can be improved to have the door tucked somewhere closer to the tent itself, while preventing the door and the water collected on it to fall into the muddy ground.
2. While it seems that the tent is pretty solid, we have yet to put it into a high velocity wind test. However, during that persistently rainy night, we used a rope, threaded through the cloth loops inside the tent, and fashioned some clothes lines. While we knew the chances of them drying in a cold, wet night was slim, it at least prevented them from soaking up water in the corners of the tent. The next morning, while packing up, we noticed that one of the second segment of the tent pole from the ground, was curved. We're not sure if it's from the weight of the damp clothes (they were still very light), or from setting up the tent too forcefully. The damage is barely noticeable when the tent is set up, so we'll just keep an eye on the poles for now.

Overall, this is a roomy (for 2), light, warm, and easy to set up tent that should suit mild to cold weather trips. We enjoy it very much and hope to take it with us to plenty more adventures!

Comments about REI Arete 3 ASL Tent:

We needed a three person 3/4 season tent for an extended trek through the high alpine wilderness in GTP/Jed Smith. We camped our first night on Death Canyon Shelf where we encountered torrential rain and 40 MPH winds. No leaks, wall compression, or significant noise from the fly. While it was very close with 3 adults (5'11" 170lb, 5'3" 105lb, 5'8", 125lb) it was not uncomfortable or cramped. Condensation with the fly on is noticeable with full occupancy. I say this knowing that it is expected given the 3/4 season bridge and minimal amounts of screen built into the tent. The fly vents on the roof that are accessible from inside the tent are nifty and worked well. Without the fly on the ventilation was more than adequate. The tent set up in about 5 minutes with full staking and guying taking slightly longer. The velcro stays for the fly are a nice touch. Given the versatility, weight, and price this is a winner.

Comments about REI Arete 3 ASL Tent:

This tent is awsome. I used it for camping, hicking, fishing, search & rescue trips and the only 2 things I would change is make the door opening a little bigger and a little biger vents on top of tent. Good in rain, snow but warm ing summer. It is a big one person tent or a cramped 2 person tent.
Even with the small problems I found with this tent I still give it a 5 star rateing. Enjoy.

Comments about REI Arete 3 ASL Tent:

I've camped at least one night every month for the past year with the Arete 3SL. It's accurately rated as a 3 1/2 season tent. Strong against winds and heavy snow loads. But in high winds the fly, which is simply held on by grommets mounted over the pole end nipples, has a tendency to wiggle off if there is any slack. If you use a footprint it's even worse because the pole nipples aren't long enough for three grommets stacked (tent, fly and footprint).

Great ventilation and lots of mesh pockets to keep your loose stuff corralled out of the way.

Love the reflective guy ropes and tabs.

Decent room for two, would be mighty tight for three but that seems to be the norm.

A little slow to put up. Pushing the poles thru the sleeves takes time as does orientating the fly despite the color coding. Try putting a tent up in the pouring rain while trying to keep the inner tent dry and you'll appreciate my comments.

I probably sound overly negative but my Arete has survived 50MPH gusts that bent the poles of my friends' tent and kept me dry so i rate it as a decent 3 1/2 season tent..

Comments about REI Arete 3 ASL Tent:

I am sure this is a great tent if you are a cold sleeper and like cramped quarters. For me this tent is only the size for two people as it's way too small for three.

The windows are too small and airflow is nil so it gets stifling and stuffy in there even when it's cool. It just needs larger windows or more of them.

Set up was ok, not great but passable. Personally I don't like the color combo but no choice there.

It's a sturdy good tent if you like it warm inside when you sleep.

Comments about REI Arete 3 ASL Tent:

I shopped for 6 month trying to find the tent that would suit my needs. I needed a light 3-4 season tent that I could use for car camping, backpacking and elk hunting through November in the Rocky Mountains. I look forward to using it this late fall and early winter, put it through some serious tests. As of now it has been a great tent!

I was impressed by the ease of set-up, especially the Velcro used to keep the rain fly in place during adverse weather. The same Velcro straps also also allow me "speed-pitch" the tent, I thoroughly enjoy that option!

I bought the 3 person tent because it offered myself and a friend space for our gear and moving around. There are many pockets to hold gear as well. An additional person might be a tight fit but doable. After all this is a tent, not a hotel room!

I've used the tent a few times for car camping and about 4 times backpacking. As you can imagine the summer evenings in the mountains of Colorado can still get pretty cool. However, true to the name ASL (All Season Light)the tent stays pretty warm with out the condensation I assumed would have collected. I do believe this is because of the well placed draft vents on the ceiling. You are able to zip completely open, use the mesh or close them completely. There's another mesh window built into the door for additional venting or it can be closed.