User Review: Marmot Aeolos 2P

Marmot Aeolos 2P
Above: The current Aeolos 2P, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed August 6, 2006 by Jeremy Sanders

Rating:
Design: 3-season
Sleeps: 2
Weight: 5lbs?oz
Price Paid: $229 ON SALE

I have been wanting this tent ever since I saw it. It helps that it was an Editors Choice award for 2006 from Backpacker magazine. I didn't want to pay over $300 hundred but saw it on sale miraculously for $229. So me and my girfriend took it out for a spin this weekend.

The basic setup for the tent was very intuitive, but it helps to read the instructions on the inside flap of the tent bag your first time. There are a couple of unique things about the rain fly. There are actually metal grommets on the fly that fit into the end of the two small crossbars. There are a couple of parts in the stake bag that are mentioned with the vestibules in the directions that I couldn't figure out but I got it up without them. (2 small bungie loops with a grommet on the end) That was a little confusing.

Anyway as soon as I got the tent up and was admiring it along comes the rain. It wasn't a heavy thunderstorm but a good Colorado afternoon shower. I used the extra tent stakes and rope and guyed the fly out from the loops provided and that took the fly out a little extra which was nice. It rained from about 2 p.m. till 1 a.m. Sometimes just drizzling and sometimes harder. I kept peeping into the tent through the vestibule all night to see if there was any leaking (especially after reading the above review) but it was dry all night. I was worried because the vestibule does seem to rest a bit on the tent along the top of the door were the fly grommets connect to the small crossbars. But not a single drop inside the tent.

The dual vestibules was nice so we could both enter the tent at the same time. They are not huge vestibules but there was plenty of room for to take off our shoes and get into the tent without getting anything wet. The ground under the vestibules was still dry soil too so that was nice. I do think that I was missing something when setting up the vestibules so I will go to Marmot's site to figure that out. But we were dry all night and not a drop in the tent.

Once inside there was plenty of room for us to get settled and zip our bags together and move the mats around. There is plenty room for two in this tent. The walls are nice and straight thanks to the bent pole design. No slanted walls.

So I am a happy camper. I am actually glad that I got to test out the rain on my first night. I know this tent can handle the rain now. Great tent and more roomy than most tents in its class.