OutdoorCampingBlog.com

3 Season Camping Tents for the Regular Joe and Jane

Written by happycamper on September 22nd, 2009

If you’re like me, you would love to get out and camp more then the last time you did, a few years ago. Many things stop us from making the time in our busy lives to enjoy the truly great outdoors. We will always have an excuse as to why we don’t, so lets address them, one article at a time.

Lets look at the terms first, 3 season simply means it’s made for hot to mild temperatures and mild to medium weather (wind and rain). Spring summer and fall fit into those categories nicely, hence 3 season. 4 season means it’s made for warm to cold, even freezing, temperatures and heavy to severe weather (snow and high winds). Add winter to the list and you have a very rugged tent. Chances are if you’re not battling high winds every other weekend in the mountains you won’t need a 4 season tent.

Here is the basic set up of a 3 season camping tent. There are 2 “walls”; the fly is considered the first or outermost layer or wall. The material itself or a chemical coating usually waterproofs it. The fly is your first line of protection from the elements so remember to take care of it. The second layer is the tent body, which uses meshing as the walls and roof material in most cases. The floor of the body is also a waterproof material, usually equal or higher grade then the fly because it gets more abuse and may sit in water.

Wondering why the tent body is made mostly of meshing? Ventilation is king in 3 season tents. The fly doesn’t go all the way to the ground to allow airflow along all the edges, it’s also removable so you can be fully open if need be. On clear warm nights you can take the fly off and look up at the stars, and be protected from all insects that love to interrupt those moments. There are also vents in the fly near the top because heat does rise and won’t leave the tent under the fly until your sweating.

This meshing also makes the tent much more lighter then a solid wall tent, which is great for carrying from the car or backpacking on an overnight hike. You will find many 3 season camping tents in the superlight and ultra light categories mostly because of the meshing. Pole construction and fly materials also make a huge contribution to weight which is why the lighter the tent the more expensive it can get, not always though.

The last point to make here is easy set up. There aren’t as many poles, and tie downs used when setting up a mid-sized 3 season camping tent compared to a 4 season. That being said there is a different ease of setup between manufacturers and even their own models.