The North Face Trail Lite 2 Tent Review
by Graham Johnson
I've been running around in the hills for 25+ years, but this is very first three-season tent I have owned. In the past I've always either had a full on mountaineering tent or a lightweight tarp and while I still have both, I've come to recognize my need for something in between. Better late than never!
The Trail Lite 2 is The North Face's offering in the two person, free standing tramping tent category. A category that is awash with options. The Trail Lite 2 falls solidly in the middle of this category in many areas. It's not the lightest (TNF says 2.01kg of trail weight—tent, fly, poles but no stakes), but also by no means the heaviest. The classic three pole design creates lots of headroom and two spacious vestibules on either side. Lots of mesh in the body of the tent creates good airflow and the inner tent has some very handy pockets. A classic yellow bathtub floor completes the picture. The fly is an odd tan colour (I suppose to be less visible) and clips on easily—a single red coloured tab on the tent, fly and ground sheet keep them all oriented correctly. A groundsheet is available (but I only actually used it when car-camping). There is nothing revolutionary here—just a good execution of a classic design. Most of my testing was done in nice weather—beyond an overnight drizzle and a bit of wind there wasn't much to test the storm-worthiness of the tent. Call me soft but if it's going to storm, I'm going to stay home!
The cons:
The stakes provided are possibly made of lead—they are that heavy. I quickly swapped them out for lighter options. Maybe they can be of use in your garden but I'm certainly not going to carry them anywhere.
The stuff sack provided is massive, creating a problem when packing. When I actually had to carry this tent (as opposed to just car camping with it) I either didn't use the stuff sack at all or I put it in a sil-nylon compression stuff sack. When compressed the tent is actually a rather small package, making me wonder if TNF doesn't intend the end user to use the stuff sack for storage.
Other reviews have noted how easy it is to set up, but I actually have found it to be slightly annoying. The crossed poles are permanently connected to each other via a plastic swivel which means you feel a bit like you're setting up some sort of antennae when pitching the tent. When setting up the tent alone it is very easy for the poles to slip out of their grommets until you have all four in their respective slots. Once planted, there are nice easy plastic clips to attach the tent to the poles.
The pros:
It's a little hard for me to write this not because this is a bad tent, far from it, but there's nothing mind blowing here. Just attention to details on a tried and true design that make the tent feel very livable. Maybe that is the biggest pro—it all just sort of works really well. Construction seems solid—no runs in the mesh, loose stitching or peeling seam tape after many, many trips. There's tonnes of space—it easily fit two people plus gear with plenty of headroom to sit up without feeling claustrophobic. The centre pole is offset, which gives a little asymmetry to an otherwise very basic shape. The crossed poles are bent at the bottom, creating steep walls that maximize internal space. While I never truly tested the inclement weather capabilities, I have no reason to doubt them. The fly is ample and pitches down nice and taut, with nice big openings that can be tucked away (as I usually had them) to make it easy to get in and out as well as peer about outside. The four pockets make it easy to keep things both tidy and handy. All the mesh and easily-ventable doors keep air circulating. TNF has been making tents for a long time and it shows.
The Trail Lite 2 is a nice tent with some well thought out details, mixed in with some shoddy components like the stakes and massive stuff sack. Both of these are easily rectified, however. If weight was the most important aspect I would look elsewhere. If you want a three season tent that is going to be at home just about everywhere, then this is a solid contender.
3.75/5 stars