User Review: Stephenson's Warmlite 2R

Reviewed November 8, 2002 by Jan

Rating:
Design: four season tunnel design
Sleeps: 2
Ease of Setup: in true scandinavian spirit the inner and outer tent is sewn together which makes it very simple to set up in any weather.
Weight: sub 3 lbs
Price Paid: $500.00+

i got my 2r in 1996 and have over 200 nights on it so far.

i was in a good position to make an intelligent tent purchase back then, with over 15 yrs of of alpine climbing and himalayan trekking behind me plus i worked full time in the outdoor industry, with access to field testing and demos. although i could easily get my hands on a free ve 24 or whatever i decided to buy a stephenson for more than $500 simply because i was moved by the catalog. it seemed honest and genuine, written by a guy who had thought about his craft. none of the usual shallow information and bogus promoting we were spoonfed with from the mainstream vendors from tnf to mhw.

my 2r arrived in the mail after 3 weeks and i opened it literally with trembling hands, never having spent that amount of money on faith alone. i was immidiately worried. this looked like a danm spinnaker and felt so different than any tent i'd ever touched. decidedly handmade, odd, flimsy and slippery.

on my next day the dog and i went out in the olympics. it was mid october and typical nw weather was brewing. sleet and rain was blowing horizontally before we got to our exposed ridge camp. i dumped the pack, fished out the nimble little bundle that was the 2r and, surprise, had it up in 3 minutes. we dove inside. gale force winds howled in from the pacific and wet snow piled up. the feather weight 1.1 oz ripstop was drum tight, and the whole affair was so reassuringly solid that i started to realize that this might be quite the tent.

here years later i'm still amazed by this shelter. i'm a backcountry guide all summer and use it alot. it's holding up really well, with no repairs needed so far. in the winter we take it out on ski trips. we use it as bugshelter on the utah rivers.

the 2r is roomy, strong and really, really light weight, the three main assets in my opinion.

it sleeps 2 and a dog comfortably, with all gear inside.

sitting height is adequate up by the door.

condensation occurs at the single wall ends, sometimes heavily (on still cold nights in the mtns).

stephenson warns against excessive uv exposure, so don't purchase it if you need a basecamp tent. it goes up in the evening and comes down in the morning.

it is one of the warmest tents i've owned, to the point where, when feeling bold, i go out in the winter just bringing my 40 degree bag.

never seamsealed any of my tents and this one neither, without too much leakage.

it is a poor choice as a dedicated mountaineering tent or bibler/integral designs substitute due to its relatively large footprint. for backpacking of any sort nothing beats it imho.

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