User Review: Eureka! Alpenlite XT

The only gear Eureka! does a half-assed job on is its tents. The Alpenlite 2XT saved my life on the Emmons glacier on Mt Rainier in 2002. A surprise storm caught us (party of 4) in a whiteout. No time to dig in. 85 mph (conservative guesstimate) gusts, and my little 200 dollar Alpenlite shuddered and flexed, but 4 hours later when 45 mph winds calmed to something breezy, our two other companions were exhausted and hypothermic in Pete's $800 Bibler, which was collapsed Todd-Tex and bent aluminum poles.

I sold that tent in 2005. I demo'd rentals from many companies since then, and now, 8 years after my old Alpenlite was made, I'm in the market for a new mountaineering tent. I still cannot, after all that time find anything comparable to it. At 7lbs.+, with one person lugging the body and stakes, and another with the fly and poles, were talking about 3.5 lbs. each. It is by far the best value in 4 season protection I have found for the price and weight.

There are more bombproof tents, but you'll shell out 6 or 7 c-notes minimum, and lug 10 to 12 pounds up the hill.

Bottom line...I'm ordering another one from Campmor for $229 on sale. You'd think engineering would've advanced to the point of something far superior in 8 yrs., but I guess "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" holds true.