The SlingFin Portal 1 is a freestanding double-wall tent that’s a one-person model of their bomber Portal 2-person tent, which we first used a number of years in the past and advocate extremely. The freestanding Portal 1 tent is beautifully made, and appropriate for 3+ season tenting with the power to counter elevated snow masses by combining tent poles and trekking poles for structural assist. Along with its technical options that are fairly spectacular, the Portal 1 is a spacious and really snug tent that’s made with superior supplies for an extended lifetime of use.
Specs at a Look
- Kind: Double-wall
- Structural: Freestanding
- Capability: 1 Particular person
- Doorways: 1
- Path Weight: 2lbs 8oz (1.13kg)
- Flooring Dimensions: 88″ x 35″ (head) x 28″ (foot) (224cm x 89cm/71cm)
- Inside top: 41″
- Max Pole Phase Size: 13.5″
- Poles: 2
- Inside Pockets: 7
- Minimal quantity
- Supplies: Fly – 10D Nylon 66 Ripstop Sil/Sil 1200mm; Flooring – 20D Nylon Ripstop PE 1800mm; Mesh – 15D Nylon no-see-um mesh.
- For full specs go to the SlingFin Portal 1 product web page
Interior Tent
The Portal 1’s internal tent is all mesh which is nice for three-season use as a result of it helps optimize airflow and condensation mitigation in hotter climate. The pole structure may be very easy, with lengthy crossing poles related to a central hub and an impartial cross pole that helps create near-vertical facet partitions for higher livability. The lengthy poles slot into grommets within the corners, which advantages sturdiness as a result of there’s no proprietary Jake’s foot connector to interrupt or exchange. The cross pole can be coloured orange, as a substitute of the gray utilized by the lengthy poles, to make it stand out in opposition to the bottom so that you don’t neglect to pack it whenever you break camp.
There may be one D-shaped door that comes with two bi-directional zippers, so if you happen to break one, you’ve gotten a second pre-installed to be used. Zippers are a kind of issues that do fail on tents, so it is a good function to make sure an extended lifetime of use with out having to switch it your self.
The internal tent has a deep bathtub ground for moisture safety with 7 inner pockets so you’ll be able to preserve fragile objects from getting crushed, like sun shades or your smartphone. The pockets are massive sufficient to carry clothes, like a humid shirt or mountaineering pants to maintain them away out of your dry clothes and bedding at night time. There are additionally quite a few plastic rings within the ceiling and corners that you may hold gear from, though they serve double responsibility as an inner guyline system to present the tent extra stability in excessive winds when utilizing exterior guylines with the fly (click on for video demonstration). That is past my skill to check within the White Mountains (NH) the place above-treeline tenting is prohibited.
The cross pole has a secondary operate which is to permit the usage of trekking poles to enhance the tent’s aluminum poles when there may be further snow loading on the tent. The ends of the cross pole have plastic rings to carry pole suggestions or velcro straps to wrap round trekking pole shafts, relying in your desire. It’s a neat system that provides little or no weight to the tent however enormously expands its vary of utility in colder climate.
Rain Fly
The Portal’s rainfly attaches to the identical nook stakes because the internal tent decreasing the variety of tent stakes it’s essential to set it up in good climate. Whereas the internal tent is technically freestanding, it’s essential to carry a minimum of 2 stakes if you wish to stake out the entrance vestibule and the rear of the rainfly for higher air flow (sorry there’s no again door.) I’d nonetheless advocate staking out the corners, however you don’t must in a pinch.Â
It’s additionally price noting that the Portal has a 2-sided silicone-impregnated flysheet as a substitute of a PU coating for higher sturdiness. That course of, which can be utilized by Hilleberg, ends in a stronger and extra sturdy rainfly. The identical is true of the ground which is a 20D Nylon Ripstop coated with polyethylene (PE). Each are way more sturdy than PU-coated shelters and received’t rot away in your storage after a couple of years of use or storage. It’s simply one other indicator that SlingFin designed this tent for long-term use, which reveals within the supplies, redundancies, and options that they supply for it.
Suggestion
The SlingFin Portal 1 is a light-weight double-wall 1-person tent with a minimal path weight of two lbs 8 oz (40 oz). Whereas it isn’t the lightest weight, 1-person tent you should buy, the Portal 1 is definitely one of many strongest and most sturdy, making it a wonderful choice if you happen to prefer to push the envelope when it comes to terrain or seasons. The Portal’s inner guyline structure makes it way more resilient within the face of excessive winds, whereas its trekking pole outrigger functionality considerably expands its vary of use within the colder months. In case you’re the kind of one who’s prepared to hold slightly additional weight in trade for gear you’ll be able to rely on by means of thick and skinny, then the SlingFin Portal Tent goes to drift your boat higher than the opposite one-person huge model tents accessible right now.
Disclosure:Â SlingFin donated a tent for evaluation.
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