REI Half Dome 4 HC Tent

REI Half Dome 4 HC Tent – Light and affordable four person tent.

Picking out the perfect multi person backpacking tent can be tricky. One major factor that always haunts the cheapskate in me is the price of four person tents. If I am the only one paying for a tent that numerous other people will be using, I don’t really want to spend too much on the tent. That said, I also don’t want a crappy four person tent either. It is these two reasons that make the REI Half Dome 4 HC Tent such an attractive four person tent. It has a ton of great features and price tag of around $250.

If you ask me, one of the best parts about the REI Half Dome 4 HC Tent is just how easy and fast it is to setup. It may be a four person tent, but it will definitely only take one person to set it up. The setup of the REI Half Dome 4 HC Tent is super simple. All you have to do is connect the center of the tent to the pole hub, attach the poles to the corners of the tent, and clip the tent to the poles. This whole process literally takes about three minutes, its great. Adding on the rain fly takes a little longer, but is still very easy to do.

When it comes to a four person tent such as the REI Half Dome 4 HC Tent, space is always important. With so many people sharing a living space, things get crowded with gear and clothes fast. To help keep gear our of the tent, the rain fly creates two vestibules on each side of the tent. There are also two doors on the REI Half Dome 4 HC Tent so that you don’t have to crawl over three other people to get out. To make sure your tent floor stays clean there is an attic and pockets on the tent wall.

The quick & dirty:

Where you can get one:
REI.com: $249

Why they rock:

• Hub/combi (HC) pole design combines variable-diameter poles and a center hub/pole attachment
• Variable pole diameters cause poles to flex in such a way that creates greater interior space around shoulders and head
• Hub and poles never need to be separated and hub/pole design adds stability at their connection point
• Quick and easy setup; simply hook center of tent to hub, attach poles at tent corners and clip tent to poles
• DAC Featherlite poles offer a high strength-to-weight ratio and use extruded construction instead of glued inserts to reduce chance of breakage
• 9-section shockcorded poles break down to fit easily in your backpack
• 2 doors and vestibules for super-convenient entry/exit and separate storage areas
• Insider floor seams are engineered to create a nice, clean taut pitch and maximize floor space; factory seam-taping ensure a waterproof seal
• Large D-shaped doors with no-see-um mesh panels and no-see-um mesh front and rear windows allow cross-ventilation, preventing condensation
• Tent stays organized with the attic (included) and interior pockets
• Full-coverage, factory-sealed, UV-resistant, taut polyester rainfly protects the tent; two roof vents allow excellent airflow to prevent condensation
• Nicely placed clear film window in rainfly is the perfect size to view the weather conditions from inside tent
• Leak-proof rainfly construction ensures that water won’t sneak through susceptible areas such as guy-out points and zippers in wet conditions
• Attention to detail shows in the reflective guy points and adjustable cleat-lock tie-downs on the rainfly

Seat-of-the-pants rating: 9 out of 10

In my opinion the REI Half Dome 4 HC Tent is a great tent for the backpacker who doesn’t really have a set of friends that they go out with on a regular basis. If you just go backpacking from time to time with various friends and buddies, then there is no sense in spending several hundred dollars on a four person tent. For about $250 the REI Half Dome 4 HC Tent gets it done just fine.

Looking to Buy? Check out these sites:
REI.com: $249