The North Face Tadpole 23

Firstly, matching the poles was a pain. Then, bending the fiberglass arch pole was a pain and seemed way too tight...I was waiting for it to snap. Thirdly, I got claustrophobia in it. The fly was pain to put up. Way too cramped inside. Used it once in a hurry before setting it up at home. After one night I got a cabin. Poor design. It even looks like a coffin.

Easy to put up, light and able to withstand most wet weather. Great for a hike. Bad ventilation and flat spots might lead to leakage if not pitched perfectly. I was sold this by a guy who said it was an American style design in that you put up the inner first. Does it rain in America??? Outer first seems logical to me.

I can say that I really like the tent. However, I just spent a weekend motorcycle camping and I was very unhappy to find that the rain cover is breaking down.

This tent is a couple years old, and lightly used. No problems with tears, or zippers, but the inner surface of the rain cover is very sticky, it appears that the waterproofing is breaking down.

I've used this tent in a rain lashed Yorkshire and the Lakes a couple of times, in hail and driving rain. It feels secure and for the money vs. weight, it's bombproof and great value, easy to live with with nice design touches.

I'm 6ft and its OK for two, not masses of spare room but very livable.

Unlike the other reviewers, I have been impressed by my Tadpole tent. Knocking down the rating for a 2 person tent because it isn't big enough for you and your buddy to blow up queen air mattresses in is bad form. This is why you research gear before you buy it.

I will dispute every bad review I've read about this tent: I bought my first Tadpole tent in the late 1980s. It was one of the first freestanding tents made, originally rated as a 1. 5 person tent. The design has changed minimally over the years with added foot space and pole attachment changes.

I bought this tent several years ago and it's had its ups and downs. It is nice that it's freestanding and I haven't had any of the leakage problems that many others have reported despite dozens of trips through all kinds of weather (including light snow).

Since I got my Tadpole 23 fly !world is save. I am not kidding, this tent since 3 years with me and no problem so far. I went all national parks in California, always it made me and my girlfriends happy :)

Tadpole 23 show how to fly...

Peace, Niko

I bought this tent a year ago for a trip that didn't push through. I got to try it this year though on a backpacking trip in Yosemite National Park and it did okay.

Ease of pitching was one of its good points but roominess is definitely not of them.

Have backpacked through Italy with this tent where it survived mosquitoes, blazing sun and a thunderstorm which left me floating in six inches of water. It didn't leak a drop. And it's stood up to rain and gales on the Outer Hebrides of Scotland without a problem.

Pure and simple, this is a bad design. It is way too fickle, and the thing leaks badly. The flat top does not naturally shed water and it doesn't take much more than a good morning dew to get the thing leaking. The fly touches the tent itself in the flat top area and you better go for your raingear and I'm not kidding. Just as I said, a bad design.

I bought my Tadpole in 1994. It's the only piece of my travelling kit remaining from then. I've cycle toured in S. E. Asia extensively, France, the U. K. and Tasmania. I'm also an avid bushwalker so it's been everywhere from the gails on the west coast of Tasmania to 4,400m up in the Himalayas (without snow of course).

This tent has never let me down. I have been through moderate to heavy rain with no problems. I have also seen some light snow and hail in this bad boy with no complaints.

This tent is said to be a two man tent, but I have actually slept three in a pinch with NO ROOM to spare.

I have owned this tent for about one year now. It has been used for over twenty nights in the back country. It has been used in the UP (Porkies), New Mexico's Gila Wilderness, Isle Royale and in southern Illinois in the Shawnee National Forest. It has seen a lot of rain and wind.

I bought my Tadpole 23 in 2005. I've been camping for more than ten years and owned and used many tents, including the 1999 Tadpole model. For me this tent is emblematic of the decline of The North Face's quality. I used it only one time and one time alone last year.

I'd rate The North Face Tadpole 23 as four stars. Why not five, when it's light (just over 4 pounds), sturdy, easy to set up (three-poles/free-standing), and compact? The answer: It's just so-so as a two-person tent because of the limited square footage (37 square feet), steep side walls, and headroom limited to one end of the tent.

I've just returned from a two-day hike across Dartmoor. The weather was absolutely terrible as it rained continually for the whole time. Normally I would take a Vango Hurricane as I know it is bomb proof from use in all conditions but I wanted to go lighter so I purchased the Tadpole 23 for the trip.

I think I have the 2004 model of this tent, as I can't remember exactly when I got it. Overall I love this little backpacking tent. As a summer camp trip leader my tent is where I live for the summer. I also have lived out of this tent on drives cross country.

that hillbilly bruce houston is totally wrong. i was with him on those trips. the tadpole held up to some pretty rough weather. the only minor problem is it has little ventalation so u do get quite a bit of condensation inside the tent in the morning. it is also more of a 1 man tent but can fit 2 if neccesary.

My mate bought this tent a year ago and since then we have used it on numerous trips. Our first trip was to the lakes, within hours of walking we got stuck in extremely wet weather. The water appeared to come through the groundsheet and the flysheet and come morning both me and my friend were damp and miserable.

Mine is a 2005 model.

Very good design, the details are lovely. But the quality is BAD!!

I treat my gear good, clean and keep them in a dry and cool place after I use every time.

The first time I used this tent, it was great. The second time, the inner fly became sticky, but still okay.

This is roomy for a light tent. Properly set up, it provides a terrific weather shelter. I spent two days alone in a blustery October gray-out storm in the Appalachians' Shenandoah National Park, with night temperatures around 30 and in the day around 50.

Thankfully I got this on sale. What is The North Face thinking of? It's the same weight as other tents in its class, but smaller- I'm 5'6'' and can't sit up in it, which is a real pain--I thought it wouldn't bug me, but it does. You can't pitch it in the rain as the fly sheet is so separate -- and if you pitch on damp ground the damp comes through the base, unless you get an extra footprint.

I just got back from spending five days in the North Cascades here in Washington State. I had just bought the Tadpole from REI for this occasion. On the first night we had heavy rains and 2" of snow. The tent leaked badly.

When I got back, I called REI and they said to return the tent, I will.

I purchased this tent two years ago as "last season's" model, saving some money over the usual price. It is super light, and packs super small. The first time I set it up, it seemed small, especially compared to other "backpacking" tents I'd used.

I bought a Tadpole about 15 years ago and it's still going strong. Easy and fast to set up. You can pre-attatch the poles tothe tet before you set out for faster set up. If you're camping on a dry weekend, save the weight by pitching the fly only.

I've owned this tent for more than two years. I would say I've seen 25 nights in it. I have only recently started appreciating it for the sub 5lbs weight, fully packed with groundsheet. It is nothing if not light.

Many of my impressions of this tent have already been mentioned, but I'll list the major ones that come to mind: TIGHT for two.

This tent kept us dry despite a prolonged period of heavy rain (12 hours+)-- but the following night (which was dry and cool) the inside of the tent was drenched with condensation. This tent is probably better suited to the warmer areas of the Americas than the cold damp ones of Ireland and the UK.

I've used this tent in Rumney, N. H. , over July 4th 2006, and in The Gunks in New Paltz, N. Y. , three times and in Yosemite over Thanksgiving 2005 and have not had any real problems. Overall, I like the tent but have a few gripes about it. Read on:

Pros:
1) Easy to set up
2) strong construction
3) lightweight
4) glow-in-the-dark zipper pulls
5) Great vestibule space
6) fly/footprint only option
7) Tent did very well in HEAVY rain and did not leak.

I am surprised at all the positive reviews for this tent. I found it to perform very poorly in the rain. The problem is the gap between the fly and the tent towards the back -- there essentially is no gap and the slightest bit of moisture sees the fly sticking and acting like a wick for water.

I love this tent. I have owned it over a year now. I had a very small solo tent before this one and was always cramped. The Tadpole is really roomy for one and tight for two (advertised as a 2-man), but set-up is a breeze and it really keeps the rain out.

I just came back from a three-day hike and the TNF Tadpole 23 proved to be an excellent tent. It would probably be cramped for two but I was solo so I was able to keep my pack and gear inside. The vestibule has adaquate room to cook under since I spent almost a complete day inside of the tent in a thunderstorm.

I am completely satisfied with the Tadpole. This was my first backpacking tent purchase and if I were to do it all over again I would purchase this tent. The tent is lightweight and durable with no seam sealing required.

The first trip I took my Tadpole on in the Central Cascades of Washington it rained hard for 16 solid hours, both my buddies were wet in their tents but I remained completely dry.

The Tadpole 23 is the ideal lightweight backpacking tent for those who live in climates where both screening and a rainfly are a necessity in any weekend or week-long pursuit. It has a mono-entrance large front door, with extremely roomy vestibule -- sufficient to hold two packs, boots, etc.