Cabela's XPG Expedition 6P

Great tent for foul weather. Both tent and fly are waterproof! Very solid and stable once set up. Very well made.

I bought this tent after camping with my son and a group of Pathfinders (like the Boy Scouts). It was a winter campout and I had not been winter camping in many years. It started out raining but overnight the temperature dropped precipitously and I woke up to ice on my pillow despite having two flys on the supplied tent. I decided I was too old for such experiences and looked for a good, roomy (I actually have the 6-person model) 4-season tent for the next adventure with the group, since more campouts were planned.

I found this tent on the Cabela's website and ordered it, and am I glad I did.  The next campout took place in early spring (but still winter like conditions).  Setup was after dark and it was snowing/raining/sleeting, etc. You get the picture. I was afraid I would have to dry out the tent after setup because of all the precipitation.

You can imagine my surprise and delight when after setup, including the waterproof fly, that I entered the tent with a towel only to find it was bone dry on the inside; then I remembered not only the fly, but the tent itself was waterproof. Everyone else was busy drying their tents out. My son and I took on another kid who didn't have a tent for some reason, and that is where the size came in handy, the three of us with all our gear fit nicely inside with room to spare, our wet, muddy boots were safe from the elements in the vestibules and the tent stayed clean another added bonus.

About 4 a.m. I awoke to pouring rain and sleet pounding the fly, but absolutely nothing inside, even with the vents open, and no condensation either. I had forgotten to put down a tarp under the tent in my rush to put it up in the bad weather. We were on a slight incline and water was actually running under the tent like a small river and for a moment I became concerned, but while cold, the floor of the tent was absolutely bone dry. The wind was howling outside, and it was very cold with the bone chilling feel of a cold winter rain. After I checked everything and found no problems at all, I crawled back in my 0 degree bag, got warm, rolled over and went back to sleep.

The next morning when others were complaining about getting cold and wet inside their tents overnight, the three of us in the Cabela's XPG 6 person tent were warm and dry and able to enjoy the rest of the camp out. I have camped in snowy conditions, on more than one occasion in this tent without any problems whatsoever. I have loaned it to friends for their camping trips.

Everyone who has ever used it only has good things to say about their experience with this tent. While it is not the lightest tent (probably no backpacking with the 6-person) and does take a while to set up, it has absolutely been the best tent I have ever used in less than optimal weather conditions. Another bonus of the 6-person version is the ability to stand erect inside, something I appreciate at 6'.

I purchased it about 12 years ago for $400 and would do it again if necessary but it is so well made, will most likely not have to do so, unless something very unfortunate happens to it, but I do take very good care of it so hopefully that will not be the case.