User Review: Mountain Hardwear Spire 2

Mountain Hardwear Spire 2
Above: The current Spire 2, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed May 23, 2007 by sjclark76

Rating:
Design: 4-Season Expedition
Sleeps: 2
Ease of Setup: Very Easy
Weight: 2.32 kg

This tent was purchased as a high strength mountaineering tent with the intention of taking it on an expedition to the Andes later this year. In order to try the tent out we took it up into our local hills (we live in NZ) and pitched the tent at about 1200 meters.

In reasonably windy conditions it was impossible to sleep because of the excessive movement of the tent. In fact we found it necessary to sit against the side of the tent to stop it from bending flat. In the morning the poles were bent. I feel if we hadn't provided the extra support the tent would have been even more badly damaged.

I have owned and used a number of "expedition" tents over the years and camped in a lot higher and more arduous conditions than those I describe above. In comparison this tent performed very poorly to other types of tents I have used and in my opinion should not be marketed as an expedition quality tent.

The Spire 2 is not necessarily a bad tent. It is is well made and it is very light (2.32kg). The problem is that it is just not up to the job that its being sold to do and that is my main complaint.

I would not take this tent on any expedition/trip where you will expect to encounter strong winds. I certainly won't be taking it to the Andes this Christmas.