Big Agnes  Copper Spur UL3 Tent

After one full year of using the Big Agnes Copper Spur 3 I felt compelled to write a review to recommend this tent. In the past year I have used this tent on a 60+ mile orienteering trek in the Wrangell St. Elias, a 40+ miler in the Maroon Bells wilderness in Colorado and about a dozen other small trips in wilderness areas in Colorado and Eastern Utah. The Big Agness has held up in the worst of weather (Alaska) and is so easy to set up under any condition. Being a tent junky for the past 30 years I have owned and or used many brands and types of tents for backpacking. This is the last tent I will ever purchase. It is as good as it gets.

I got this tent after needing something that would be big enough for me and another person and my 70# dog. This tent feels enormous -- actually feels bigger than my old 4 person Eureka! tent that I've still got lying around. I love the two door entry and the way the doors open so you're not fighting hanging mosquito netting, etc. I recently set this up in the pouring rain and it rained all night with just a minimal amount of condensation on the inside. Fortunately, at 6"1', my down bag doesn't even touch the sides and I stayed warm and dry and cooked in the vestibule without any problems. Really love it, worth every penny!

Great...except for the door design. I find the horizontal orientation of the doors' "hinge end" to be inconvenient and to little advantage; it requires that you unzip the door entirely before passing thru- otherwise you are squeezing thru the doorway, or putting stress on the zippers. I can see how it could be convenient if you often store in the vestibule and need to access that stuff from inside- but, that access could also be achieved if the doors had vertical joinery with the rest of the tent body. Otherwise, my experience with the tent has been quite positive- great weight, easy setup, great ventilation (I rely on a warm bag in cold weather), subdued color.

I have backpacked and climbed on and off for 35 years. The Big Agnus was my first venture into very light gear. This tent is amazingly light, maybe too light. I set this tent up (easy to set up and roomy) in my backyard for a couple days and the fly ripped at each place where it rubbed against the pole system in fairly mild winds. The rips we small, but would have leaked in rain and no doubt would have expanded with more use. I had to return the tent without even spending a night in it. I considered simply replacing the fly but worried that the tent's overall light weight may lead to other similar problems. It's too bad; I really otherwise liked the tent as it seemed very well thought out.

I took the Copper Spur UL3 on an 8 day backpacking trip across Isle Royale National Park. This tent has exceeded expectations in every way. It withstood three days of solid rain and kept us high and dry. There was even enough room in the tent to string up a makeshift clothesline. I'm dubious that it would be a great fit for three big campers, but my partner and I luxuriated in the spacious UL3. On warmer nights, the UL3 is exceptionally well-ventilated. Like anything, there are a few tradeoffs. The simple zip design of the doors saves weight, but when unzipped the doors lay on the ground. The weight is incredible but it is a little bulky in the pack. I highly recommend the UL3 as a deluxe, spacious 2 person backpacking tent.

Finally a tent I feel comfortable in... not cramped up. I'm 6'1" and need room to toss around in when I sleep.This tent is actually long enough for me! The vestibules will hold 1 pack on each side and enough room to cook with my Jet-boil when it's raining outside. I like to keep my pack next to me so this is a very nice 1 man, 1 dog, 1 pack tent. If you have prior tent assembly experience this tent practically sets itself up.I had NO problem getting in or out of this tent. The tent even comes with a repair sleeve in case a pole breaks! I paid ALOT for this tent and have done the North Face scene (not so happy). This tent is worth the money and I'm VERY pleased with it. Big Agnes has some good tent designers and deserves the high rating they got from Backpacker magazine. Kenny

I upgraded to the Copper Spur after reading the reviews about it. Right out of the box the tent was subjected to being set up in the dark for the first time, a weeks worth of rain, wind, and sand. There wasn't one leak and it was completely stable during the windy nights. The foot print and gear loft are a must have. The tent had plenty of room for three and it feels like a hotel with only two people. It is costly however, you get what you pay for.

I would have loved to give this tent 5 stars. It is lightweight, very easy to setup and roomy. On our first trip we encountered pretty strong winds and after a couple of nights we noticed holes in the rain fly. I thought that maybe very strong winds blew pine cones on our tent but reading one of the reviewers comments I realized that holes in our tent were also close to the poles. With the rains threatening the next day, we had to pack and go home.

This is not much a review as a response to Long-Term Coop Member complaint that the fly ripped where the pole at the top of the tent meets the fly. There is a grommet on each end of the tent, right above the door where you are supposed to insert the poles. That way, it makes the tent a whole lot more taut and prevents any kind of rubbing against the fly. I've had this tent for close to 2 years now and many nights in it. I'm still amazed other manufacturers haven't caught up with the Copper Spur. Even the UL3 is lighter than MOST 2 person tents in the market today. It will probably stay so but for the time being, it's easily the best and sturdiest tent for its weight out there. I've even replaced a Henry Shires Rainshadow tent with this guy since I was tired of dust coming thru the netting on the bottom of the tent and this guy is more storm worthy as well

I own a Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2 and had a trip planned for myself and a couple of friends rather than carry two tents I decided to spend my dividend on a three man. I was going to purchase an SL3 until I saw this tent. Boy am I glad I did. I love this tent. It ended up being two of us on the trip and the tent was enormous! Even with three it would have been quite nice and roomy. We weathered two nights of 30-60 mph wind gusts, a branch falling on the tent and some pretty incredible storms rolling over us. We both slept like babies. The branch was small and the tent was strong enough that it just bounced off. The winds barely moved the fly even with the big gusts. I would highly recommend this tent to anyone wanting a lightweight 3 man tent. The only thing I can say even slightly negative is that I have to stoop over a little farther to get in than the Seedhouse. The matching footprint is nice too.