Alps Mountaineering Chaos 2 Person Tent

Camping is one of many activities we participate in that gets us in touch with our primal side.  Trying to be one with nature is part of our instinctive attributes.  Building a shelter is the most basic of these traits.  However, lazy man has created, "The Tent" to make the process much easier... More specifically, the dome tent.  The dome tent is a two or three crossing poles free standing tent.  Most of these tents can be erected by one person.  We recently had the opportunity to check out one of these dome tents made by Alps Mountaineering.  The Chaos 2 was the tent of choice.

A Rating

 This tent features: mesh walls for optimal ventilation on muggy summer nights, a full-coverage fly that provides maximum protection during storms, pole clips that quickly snap into place allow for easy assembly in the dark, factory sealed fly and floor seams to keep out moisture, Large-size #8 zippers on doors and vestibules which can stand up to years of abuse, extra guy-outs on fly to help stabilize tent in wind or squalls, two vestibules for plenty of gear storage and extra weather protection, mesh storage pockets and gear loft to help keep you organized.

The tent comes with one gigantic big X looking pole system that can be a bit bulky and awkard to work with.   The sections just snap together like any other tent system...connected by the elastic cordage.  The poles fit into the eyelets on all four corners.  The rest of the tent attaches to the poles via simple hooks/snaps which are quick and easy.  The rain fly droops over the tent using another, much simpler, pole.  The fly has velcro loops that secures it to the tent poles and plastic buckles to attach on all four corners of the tent.  Total setup takes 10 minutes for one person.  Check out the time lapse video for this set up.

The vestibules offer plenty of shelter for packs and boots on rainy days.  They can roll up for a fantastic view of your campsite.  The two door system makes entering and leaving a cinch for two people.  Gear lofts on either side and one top center of the tent makes storing loose gadgets secure and easy to find.  The doors did seam to sag slightly but didn't affect the function of the tent.  All the stakes and guy lines were strong and sturdy.  We didn't use the vents as our nights were chilly.  They were easy to use with the veclco props.  Not a fan of the rope handled zippers but we didn't have any problem with them bunching or sticking.  having rained on our test, the tent kept all our gear perfectly dry.

This tent, The Alps Mountaineering Chaos 2, was very strong and sturdy.  It is a great tent for camping.  We felt it was a little bulky and heavy for a long backpacking trip, so keep this in mind.  This tent is well deserving of an A rating for its design, quick setup, and functionality.  Just shy of an an A plus with the doors sagging slightly.  This is definitely in our camping arsenal for years to come.  To read more specs on this product, visit Alps Mountaineering Chaos 2.  This tent comes with free shipping on bubnugget.com.  Feel free to leave comments on our blog. 

 

Chaos 2 without Rainfly 

Chaos 2 Dimensions and Layout