Hilleberg Akto or Soulo

Camping mostly in tthe Canadian Rockies - March to October, I avoid the truly cold months.

I am looking at either the Akto or the Soulo but wanted some opinions from users as to why I would choose one over the other.

Stats: 6ft 1", 215 lbs. Consider myself a lightweight backpacker (not SUL). Thoughts?

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I just went through this same selection process and chose the Soulu, I have had a lot of highend tents and used them all over B.C. and in the AB Rockies, in 44 years of backpack camping.

The Soulu I chose is my second Hilleberg, I bought a Saivo last year to replace my old North Face dome and I consider the Soulo the better choice here as it's easier to erect and, IMO, superior under snow load. HTH.

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I'm 6'03", 200lbs, and just ordered an Akto today. I don't anticipate it feeling "palacial" but it should provide me with a bomber tent at 3.5lbs, and it might have a little better ventilation than the Soulo. I don't own either, so that's just a guess at this point.

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It's gonna be tight, but, if you can handle the lack of headroom, it is about the best choice out there. I use an ID Mega Sola in OD for the same purposes, largely alpine hunting, that one would use an Akto for, even LESS headroom, but, more floorspace, even quicker to erect and build quality equal to Hilleberg.

Let us know how you find it.

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I know the Akto's sleeping area floor space will be pretty "efficient," to say the least but it's got a pretty decent vestibule considering this catagory of shelter. And that really appealed to me for toughing out storms. I'd considered the ID MS, but see it more as a bomber emergency (read life saving) shelter, than something I'd want to use as my primary lean and mean home away from home for extended periods.

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Yup, I agree and I might well buy an Akto for this very reason. The Mega Sola IS very much my alpine shelter when trying to hunt sheep here in B.C., but, it AIN'T my idea of a tent to stay in for more than a night or two.

An Akto is about the same weight and is higher, which makes it much more liveable, longterm.

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Thanks for the replies. I actually went for the Akto. I am 6' 1" and although the headroom is a little tight, it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. The length is excellent. Vertical ends mean that my long bag still has about 8 inches to go before wall contact. There is also a lot of room inside the tent. Really bomber for the weight.

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I AM pretty interested in the Akto and might yet buy one. I bought a red Soulo and one of my friends went nuts over it while I found that I prefered the green as in my Saivo. So, he took it home and I ordered another in green from bearriveroutfitters, should be here in about another week.

I am very concerned with snowload in much of the time where I actually use my tents and this influenced my decision here quite strongly. Another option is the Integral Designs MKI-Lite at about the weight of an Akto, but, while it has superior headroom, overall, it is too short for 6 ft. people.

I just ordered an Integral Designs Sildome and have an ID eVent South Col to team it with, this is a part of my search to find the lightest shelter that will withstand BC autumn weather and above timberline. Here, I am at 2 lbs. 15 oz. for a 8x5 shelter that "should" work much like an Akto under snow, wind, rain and this is for high country hunting in Sept-Oct.

Gone are the days when I used my old Fjallraven 6.5 lb. tent, 4.5 lb. down bag by BC maker "Pioneer" and Black's of Greenock full length waffle foamy, all carried on a Camp Trails Freigher plus Horizon bag or in my Fjallraven Expedition pack.....much better gear now, but, those dang mountains have grown higher! :)

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I am a huge fan of ID (live in Alberta) and have a couple of their bivies. The Sildome was also on my shortlist - it might even do better than the Akto in really wet, heavy snow because of its more sloped sides; the sides of the akto are held up with carbon fiber struts which then mean unsupported fabric between the center pole and the struts. Nevertheless, it will be a 'warmer' tent than the Sildome, unless of course teamed with a bivy. I may still get one as a two person 'awning' with use with two bivies (i.e. just have the legs extended out). We have similar gear tastes!

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I hope the Akto works out for you. I actually switched my Akto order mid-stream, and now have a green Soulo heading my direction instead. As soon as it arrives, I'm heading for the mountains and praying for a storm!

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I actually ordered both, with the intention of returning one. The Soulo went back. On my scale it weighed 4 lbs, 12 oz compared to the Akto at 3 lbs, 5 oz. There was a bit more headroom, but less length, despite the specs. The ends of the Akto are completely vertical and I had about 8 inches more room than the Soulo. There wasn't much more room on the Soulo (that I could validate) but the vestibule was definitely smaller.

I think if you need the best in snow loading and if you need freestanding, the Soulo would be a better choice. But for my needs - a light and fast mountain tent I just felt the Akto was a better shelter.

On a different note - enjoy the Soulo!

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My Soulo arrived yesterday and it was love at first sight. I love how easily it set up, the head and floor space, and the full half door netting. I can see where a little more vestibule space would be nice, but I'm willing to accept what's there in order to have the additional inner tent space.

For where I plan to hike, I'm glad that I'll have the additional snow load and wind strength, the additional ventilation and netting, and the fully freestanding design. I'll gladly make up the additional pound from somewhere else in my gear list. I wouldn't mind picking up an Akto at some point, but for now, I've got a tent that I can conquer North America with!

Now I just need some days off so I can get out and test it. Hopefull a good storm rolls too! :)

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Akto:
"Stability in high winds and rain protection are excellent, but performance during heavy snow loads is poor. While you can bang the snow off the tent while you are inside (as you should with any tent), on numerous occasions (in blizzards that brought over 12 inches of snow) snow buildup on the large unsupported sides caused the tent to collapse. Keeping the Akto structurally sound in these conditions is possible but requires more effort than other designs. Snow load strength notwithstanding, the Hilleberg Akto provides an excellent balance of livability, storm protection, and light weight in a four-season tent. In fact, it is the best spring/fall and low-snow winter solo tent we've ever used." Ryan Jordan 2006 review Backpacking light

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After discussing it with a number of guys, including a dealer I buy my ID and Hille. tents from, that was my impression and pix on the website also gave me this impression. I would say that the Soulo is the BEST solo winter tent I have ever seen or had and I have done a LOT of winter camping in regions where a 12" snowfall overnight is a mere skiff.

Very few tents impress me very much and especially in severe snow conditions. There are some famous brands that I have used that I hated so much after a number of deep winter solo camps that I won't use them anymore.

Oddly, my best snow tent, before I bought my ID MKI-XL and Hilleberg Saivo and Soulo was my old Early Winters Light Dimension Gore-Tex tent and it withstood some huge dumps of snow in various parts of BC, wlthough it was only rated as a "three season tent".

A similar but even tougher tent is my ID Mega Sola and, if I "had"to be trapped in a real blizzard and I have been, this would be my first choice, it is one SOLID little workhorse.

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I'm anxious to see Mr. Jordan's review for the Soulo. I'm guessing it'll be the new "best".

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Ryan Jordan made some comments on the Soulo already. Way too heavy for a solo tent and wobbly. Opinions may vary ; )

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Jordan's reviews need to be taken with a grain of salt. For him weight is a larger priority than for most folks.

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