In a new series of reviews, Great Walks tests out some of the best two-person tents on the market.
First up is the Exped Lyra II two-person tent.
This Exped offering is a pretty standard hub tent design: a single pole that splits near each end to provide vertical end walls, and a transverse pole to provide structure to the doors and vestibules.
As such, it does a pretty good job. Exped have used 68D nylon for the flysheet, floor and inner, making it feel like a budget version of the many superlight dome tents currently on the market.
At $599.95 and 2.1kg, it is on the more affordable but heavier end of the category. However the thicker fabric makes it more robust in the face of Australia’s unpredictable, climate-change led, weather patterns.
Colour-coded corner webbing helps users get the fly the right way around first time, helpful in a rush, and a ceiling diffuser pocket spreads out the harsh beam of a head torch.
Ventilation is provided by a Velcro stiffener that holds open the upper part of the flysheet zip, but I found it twisted the gap at an angle that opened it to the sky.
There was rain while I was out, and I could feel some dampness inside on my return. The flysheet can be rolled up halfway should romantic types wish to gaze out at the blackness of night and contemplate chucking in their office job to be a full time hiker.
Tested: Colo River, showers
Price: $599.95
Weight: 2.1kg
Website: https://expeditionequipment.com.au/brands/exped/
Review_Dan Slater