Desert camping has been challenging for me. While I love to set out on multi-night adventures in red-rock country, I’ve always had issues with my tent. The desert is sandy and windy. Most tent have lots of mesh. Sand and mesh do not mix. Nearly every trip into southern Utah, I would end up with a tent full of fine sand, covering my sleeping bag, and jamming up my zippers, especially if it gets windy. But I think I found my salvation in the Big Agnes Slater UL2+ tent.
The Big Agnes Slater UL2+ features:
- Single door and vestibule.
- Zip up mesh door for ventilation and zip up polyester layer for full protection.
- Storm flaps on vestibule zipper.
- Reflective guylines and webbing on tent corners
- Fly and floor are silicone treated nylon rip-stop with 1200mm waterproof polyurethane coating
- Nylon rip-stop tent body with polyester mesh vent and taped seams
- DAC Featherlite NSL pole system
- DAC Twist Clips
- Superlight aluminum J stakes
- Three interior mesh pockets
What I really dig about the Slater UL2+ for desert camping is the lack of mesh. In short, mesh is extremely minimal here. That’s not to say there is zero mesh: the door has a mesh option for tons of ventilation when wanted, and there is a tiny mesh vent in the back of the tent for airflow. Seeing how much protection this tent can provide from the elements, I took it on a rafting trip to Cataract Canyon.
Setup is pretty straightforward. I found myself referencing the instructions a lot on the first try, but after about 15 minutes I got the tent up. All the poles are pre-connected and attach to the tent with easy-to-use clips. The second night I was faster with setup, but overall I think the Slater UL2+ is a bit more complex to set up than other tents I have owned. There are more steps, especially since in order for the tent to work, you have to use the rainfly because the fly’s guy lines are used to make the interior tent walls go taut.
The inside is nice and roomy if you’re sleeping solo, but is pretty cramped with two grown men. I spent one night sharing with a friend, and one sleeping alone. Sharing the tent meant pressing up against the tent’s side walls, which can be a bad thing when condensation is an issue. However, storage is good with three mesh pockets, and a nice vestibule to keep gear dry outside the living quarters.
The tent is super light at 2lbs, 15oz and packs down small, which makes it ideal for backpacking, which I did in the Uinta Mountains.
So how did the Big Agnes Slater UL2+ perform in the elements? That backpacking trip to the Uintas dumped snow overnight. While the rain fly buckled a bit under the weight, I stayed warm and dry inside and there was very little condensation to speak of. It seems the fabric used is highly breathable. The lack of mesh also helped keep the cold out to a point that I would say the Slater could be used for winter camping, even though it’s technically a 3-season tent.
In the desert, I had a clear, windless night on our first evening on the Colorado River, so I kept the door open with just the mesh flap for ventilation and a view of the crimson cliffs. The second night was breezy and a good test to see if sand would be kept at bay. And it was! I didn’t get a single grain of dust or sand inside the tent due to natural causes. From tracking it in from my shoes? Well, that’s a different issue.
The Good: Backpacking-worthy weight, breathable, good weatherproofing, keeps out blowing dust and sand.
The Bad: A bit complex of a setup, cramped for 2 people, rain fly required for proper setup.
Final Word: If you spend a lot of time camping in the desert and are sick of sand getting into your tent, the Big Agnes Slater UL2+ is pretty much your best bet for backpacking adventures.
For more, visit BigAgnes.com