The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent

Comments about The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent:

Oh, North Face Tadpole twenty-threeyou gotta legendary name that makes me bow on one knee. I know in harsh times you will always come to my aid, a rock solid design used for over a decade. You're the only one with perfect room for me and a Honey, and im glad that you did not require all of my money All that mesh high above me underneath that fly, I take it off and get a perfect view of stars in the sky. I know you're just a little heavier than other 2 people tents, minimalists like me will sacrifice an ounce for what makes sense Your vestibule is so big it holds my backpack with ease, other campers see it pitched n' think "dang he camps with some STEEZE!" you're the perfect tent for me, and I pack light as a feather. I got other, lighter tents but they cant handle the weather. Not to mention you're a sassy green that blends with the view. Other campers don't get put off by bright yellow and Blue Folks, this tent is perfect for you if you stand six foot-three. It makes a clastrophobic hiker feel open and free. It's roomy near the feet and tapers BIG near your head, lets you sit up at five A.M. and see the sunrise turn red. Big Agnes, mountain hardware, marmot, black diamond and more, all of them have something great but leave your wallet so poor Take it from me, this tent is ill, just throw it in your pack. The only downside is some weight but it's STILL light on your back. Pass it up? I guess I'll have to probly cut you some slack, after I tell everyone at camp you're turnin' [*]! take the mouse and click the button, add this to your cart. It's the North Face movement, and it's only the start :)

Comments about The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent:

As the headline says, I have had this tent since 2000 and it has not failed yet. It's my second Tadpole; the first was loaned to friend who never returned it...it's OK I have plenty of his stuff. It's been everywhere with me in Maine, The White Mountains, The Adirondacks, and seen all kinds of weather. In short, I trust this tent not to let me down - tub is still intact with a couple patches (tip - don't throw a pack in with an ice axe and crampons strapped to the outside - not one of my brighter moments), the zippers are still good (I lube them on occasion), and the poles haven't bent or broken (elastic is still in good shape inside the poles too). Like the reviewer below, it's a little tight for two people but doable...better if it's someone who is snuggable. I use the Tadpole solo and there is plenty of room for myself and my gear. At 6'0" I have enough room to sit upright and crawl around. It might be a little much for some to solo with, but I would rather carry a little extra weight and be comfortable (IMHO - if you really want lighter you might as well bivy). The tent has great ventilation for the summer and has been durable enough to take 6-8 inches of overnight snow. There is a reason why TNF has been making this tent forever - it works. I never saw the need to buy the gearloft, the pockets are plenty big enough inside and after 10 years, there probably isn't any point in me buying the footprint either (but I would grab one if I were to buy a new tent). If I had to replace this tent I would would consider buying it again, however I might also consider jumping up to the Big Fat Frog for the extra room (same design with 4' square more in the tent and 5' square more in the vestibule - the vestibule also looks to carry a lot more headroom). To wrap it up, this tent is also a good buy even at it's regular price - so if you have an REI dividend with a coupon you could really get a lot of tent for not much money. There are some weight weenie tents in this class for $300-400+....you have to ask yourself, is the extra money really worth it? Or, would I rather buy a tent like this and spend the extra $200 on more gear?! Don't get me wrong; I like my expensive gear and gadgets, but I just didn't need to spend it here and I have certainly gotten my money's worth. Just keep it clean and store it right and it should last you last long enough to create many memories. If you ever did have a problem, TNF stands behind their products. Thanks for reading and I hope this helped.

Comments about The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent:

This tent has gone above and beyond expectations for me. For the past 5 yrs. it has kept me dry backpacking/snowshoeing in every weather condition the Oregon Cascades could throw at me. I have a Fly Creek UL1 for summer because @ 5+ lbs. it is a little heavy for light weather but, when the heavy weather blows in you will stay dry. For me, all the idiosyncrasies (+/-) of small backpacking tents are meaningless if you wake up wet.

Comments about The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent:

I was selling TNF gear when the company finally replaced their tried and true A-frame Sierra and brought out the Oval Intention, VE-23 and VE-24 designs. I've always owned a TNF tent since that time.

Why?

The designs are very solid, and the quality is there, backed by an honest warranty that TNF bends over backwards to honor.

So, I was looking for a good solo tend one day. I bought a Sierra Designs Flashlight solo tent, which was a great concept, but in practice, a dangerously bad design. I was never able to get a good night's sleep in the tent, and couldn't figure out why until early one morning when I was awakened out of a deep sleep with only one desire - open the tent door as quickly as possible and get air. It turns out rain had sealed the nylon on the goretex, and the door against the high netting. CO2 had pooled in the bottom of the tent with no means of escaping except through a totally inadequate half-moon foot vent. SD quietyly stopped making the Flashlight, and I decided it was time to find a replacement.

While SD and others now have some great solo tent options, many years ago, I decided on the Tadpole. True, you can bivy bag on a solo trip, even carry an ultralight tent, but the drawback is always size and convenience. As far as convenience is concerned, it definitely sucks trying to pull your camp together in the morning in a driving rain on a multi-day trip. Wet gear is heavy and no fun.

The Tadpole has enough room to allow you to keep your gear inside, and cook out the front door vestibule as you pack up in the morning. The aluminum poles and geodesic design create an extremely strong structure that will hold up to high wind conditions and bad weather (staking recommended, but can be optional). Because the tent is free-standing, it's also possible to use it in deep winter conditions (which I have) when the ground is too frozen to push in tent stakes. The design is also strong enough to survive snow loading. Remember, TNF pioneered geodesic tent designs based on Buckminster Fuller's concept of intersecting triangles. That design concept is now the gold standard in tent design.

True, we're talking almost 5 lbs here. But I figure this. If things really got bad on a trip, there are two things I would not want to worry about - my shelter, and my sleeping bag. I could ride out the apocalypse with a good shelter and bag, and candidly, there have been times....

As a two person shelter, I would agree - best to be on good terms with your partner, because it is cozy for two. And it IS heavy for a solo tent, so it's really all where you place your priorities. However all told, I think this is a really superior tent design, and obviously, TNF believes so too because they have not yet retired the design.

Great, all around, bombproof shelter. Highly recommended.

Comments about The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent:

I bought this because of North Face's reputation for gear and it's price. It's a pretty tight two man, but it gets the job done. I've sat out a thunderstorm with about 3 inches of rain and did't get wet at all and with it staked down wind isn't an issue. It's not super light, but not a burden. Sets-up in 5 minutes and breaks down in 2. A lot of headroom and there are several mesh pockets for gear, including an overhead mesh shelf that is great for holding your head lamp to light the place up. The fly is tough to get on, but once it's on you're high and dry. Also, the fly extends about 3 feet from the tent opening, which give you more than enough room to keep all of your gear dry!In moist conditions condensation builds up on the fly, but this dry in a few seconds when you break it down. Granted, I ended up buying a lighter one-man Big Anges to save on wieght, but for the price and the design/function you can't beat the Tadpole 23. Great gear!

Comments about The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent:

I've slept in both the Big Fat Frog and the Tadpole...I'd have to admit the Frog was roomy and the larger vestibule with the extra lip to lie your backpack on is a huge plus. However, with the larger size comes heaviness. The Tadpole's weight isn't too heavy or astonishingly light - it's a great deal for the price.

If backpacking with 2 people: make sure spooning is allowed.

I absolutely love the mesh in this tent: nothing is better than sleeping under the stars on a warm summer night without being paranoid about what kind of critters are scurrying by.

One downside: The rainfly also acts as a parachute if not staked down properly. When stuck in a rain storm with 40 MPH winds, I found that if I weren't in the tent, the wind gusts would have lifted the entire thing off the ground. I blame this on the soft ground and the stakes pulling out, causing the fly to become loose.

Overall: I love this tent!

Comments about The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent:

Fun and easy to set up. I like the large front D-shape door and vestibule this is a great feature, I was in really bad weather, so i was able to set up my stove outside (but under the vestibule) and prepared some hot drinks and cooking. My son also used this tent and he has no problems setting it up. A little condensation in the morning but not enough to get anything wet/ My friend had a more expensive tent and they had the same amount of condensation. Like I mentioned before, I was in a situation where it was raining a lot, but I was pretty dry. So is a keeper for me

Comments about The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent:

I got this tent as a replacement for my Mountain Hardware Lightwege 2 tent that snapped a a pole. This seemed like the best reviewed tent on the site so I was super excited. I set it up the same day it came in the mail. Setting it up made em even more excited. It was less roomy than the MH tent but still quite comfortable. The vestibule on the tent it large and can hold your gear and still let you get in and out without climbing all over your stuff. It has the same fly style as my beloved MH tent so I was super excited. I spent a night in it, in a rainstorm outside of the cabin where I am stayin for the summer and that's where my excitement came crashing down.

The tent it the lifeline of any backpacker. It's a place to go to stay dry in those pounding storms and to keep out of the clouds of insects that want nothing mroe than to eat you. This tent failed in the regard of keeping me dry. When the storm started it didn't take mroe than 2-3 minutes for me to notice the first drops of water hitting the mesh. It was right over the entrance. I looked and found that North Face did not seam tape the zipper on the vestibule. This means that water can get right through and land on your face and gear. That was problem number 1. Problem number 2 was with the way the fly guy lines work. Becuase of where I set up the stakes for the guy lines weren't right under the vestibule, they where out a bit so when I tightened the cord it left a gap between the fly and the mesh. This shouldn't have been a problem but when it started raining that area, and other areas where I had not don anything to started getting water in them and on the mesh. There was water coming in around seams. It was really quite disappointing all around. North Face makes incredible productsbut this one was a complete flop for me. I will be returining to a store when I get home and look for something better.

Comments about The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent:

I purchased this tent at the beginning of the summer to accompany me on my research field work. Much of it entails backpacking and camping throughout southern Utah.

First off, this is a great little tent if you know what it's limits are. I think this is a great summer tent for warm nights, and to watch the stars from. I loved how the entire tent was made of a white no-see um mesh, which allows great air flow (without fly) and views. The tent however, performs relatively poorly in the wind (with the fly), especially in canyon country. I had this tent staked and rock mounted on the White-rim in Canyonlands and the wind picked it up like a kite. The rain-fly design seems to be perfect for putting this tent into flight. Although it does get windy in Canyonlands, nobody else tent seemed to fly off. Also, I have used other tent designs in canyon country and never had this problem.

The great part about this tent is it flew 1/4 mile from the camp and off the White-rim (about a 40 foot drop). When I climbed down to get it (I was lucky I could) the fly was really torn up, but the tent itself was still in working condition. There were very minor punctures in the floor and none of the poles had broke. For this reason, I give the tent 4 stars. Any tent with poles that can hold up in strong winds and fly off the rim of Canyonlands is a decent tent. One other person in my group had their poles split under the winds the next day, but my poles stood strong (without the fly of course).

One other note about the fly is that it requires some tricky Velcro straps underneath the fly. This means you have to attach Velcro loops to the poles prior to putting he fly over the tent. I didn't really like this design and it was slightly frustrating tampering with it.

That said, I returned the tent for an exchange because it is just not well suited for this type of environment. I should also mention, this is a very small two person tent. My husband is 6'3" and it is a tight squeeze, but doable. I mostly used this tent as a one person tent and is was plenty roomy for me.

Comments about The North Face Tadpole 23 Tent:

I bought this tent before I moved to Denali in the summer of 2011. Anyone that has been in this area knows wind and rain are often. I spent over 40 nights in this tent in a 4 month period and there were NO defects with craftsmanship in this type of environment. If the fly is not pitched correctly a small amount of condensation will accumulate, but this is user error, not on the North Face's behalf. The vestibule is ample for two peoples gear to keep out of the rain. I have to say though, you better like your tentmate because it is cozy with 2 peoples gear and two people sleeping in it.