Naturehike VIK 2 Person Ultralight Backpacking Tent

I am 27yrs old 6’3″ 190lbs, i bought this tent for backpacking.

PROS: everything youre looking for. very lightweight and it has a lot of space inside. Packs down small. There is just enough for me to lay down all the way and be able to sit up comfortably. The color of the tent is nice in the sunlight. The walls are tight and setup was quick and easy. The quality seems good for the price. Packing it away was also very easy.
CONS: no rainfly. It came with a footprint which could be used as a rain cover but it’s not the same. This tent would probably be fine in the rain either way, but I have not tested it. The zipper is a little hard to find sometimes for the door but it’s really not a big deal. My sleeping pad kept sliding around on the floor whwn i slept due to the fabric materials. Again this could be fixed easily so its not anything serious. Thats it. Overall I would definately recommend this product. I am satisfied for quality and price and look forward to using it more in the future.

Usada a 2600 metros de altura, con ráfagas de viento de 50 km hora, y aguantó como una campeona. Condensación 0, ni una sola gota. La única pega que le pondría es que necesita bastante espacio para montarla, cupo muy justa en un vivac que encontré en la montaña. Me gustaría que no se tuvieran que abrir los dos vestíbulos de los laterales para que quedase bien tensa, pero ya sabía lo que compraba. El mero hecho de que sea una tienda que está fuera de stock muchas veces al año, da una señal de lo solicitada que está. La aplitud interior no tiene nada que ver con muchas de la misma marca, al tener la varilla superior, las paredes quedan muy separadas y no vas a rozar con ellas. Le hubiese puedo algún lazo adicional en el interior para colgar cosas, pero por el precio que tiene, es una compra totalmente recomendada

First off…the brand is awesome. I have a lightweight cot and sleeping bag from this product and I love them all. Small sample size of this tent…but it was solid on its maiden voyage. Segment 24 on the Colorado Trail…conditions were arguably perfect…it matches the experience . Set up is easy and quick. I hunt for inexpensive tents that have awning options with their vestibules…solid effort with the VIC1… I like shade.

The issue of lack of ventilation was not an issue for me. I had the vents open and the main door fly half open to watch the stars ant night and the tent was dry in the morning(condensation ).

Durability of the product over time could be a question but time will tell. 5 star!

5 June 2021 – Earliest impressions

My first impressions of the VIK 1 are mostly favorable. Here’s what I’ve learned so far:

Pros:
– Affordable: compared to many of the other light and ultralight solo tents on the market, at $140 USD, this is very affordable

– Lightweight: on my digital scale, the tent, aluminum frame, tent stakes, guy lines, footprint, and stuff sacks come to a combined weight of 1288 g / 45+ oz / 2.84 lb. That’s pretty impressive at this price point.

– Ease of set up: Very easy. It took me less than 4 minutes to set this up the very first time – it is so intuitive that there was no need to look at the instructions. It really is impressively easy. Just remember to twist the top crossbar so that it is resting on top of the main frame, rather than hanging underneath it.

– Build quality: Too early to tell. Quality generally declares itself over time with durability and resistance to failure. Only time will tell. My initial impression, though, is that that workmanship and materials are of good quality.

So, why not 5 stars?

Cons:
– Condensation: This is probably the biggest fault that most reviewers point out and, in fact, it is a real issue. I set this up in my backyard last night and spent the night in it. Temps dropped from upper 70’s down to the mid 50’s. I tend to sleep warm, so I had all vents and both the front and rear vestibules wide open. In the morning, the interior walls were very wet and the foot box of my sleeping bag was soaking wet where it had touched the tent wall. Even with the tent maximally vented, there was significant condensation present.

– Font Vestibule: The attached tarp that provides the front vestibule only covers about half of the tent front door opening, which means that in rain – depending on how the wind was blowing – a good deal of the screened in front door would be open to the rain. Here in the Northeastern U.S., rain and cold are absolute givens – I would greatly prefer a tent with an awning that spans the entire length of the front of the tent.

– Rear Vestibule: This is not a bad feature but, personally, I would have liked it to be just a bit more generous in terms of space. It would have been nice to have a larger rear screened in window to allow better cross ventilation.

– Front Zipper: As other reviewers have pointed out, the front zipper is at the top in the closed position. What this means is that to access anything in the front vestibule, the screened door must be opened fully or nearly fully. It would have been a much better design to have put the zipper at the bottom when in the closed position.

Initial Thoughts:
Am I happy with this tent? Yeah, I really am. I think it is a good investment and the few cons are easily outweighed by the pros, particularly at a cost of $140 and with a < 3 lb. weight for the entire setup. That's not bad. I've noticed that many manufacturers of light or ultralight gear tend to crow about how little their products weigh, but fail to tell you that the weight of their super-duper-ultralight tent, which weighs less than a sneeze, doesn't include poles, stakes, footprint, lines, sacks, etc.

So, If you’re looking for a good, sub 3 lb. shelter system in the < $150 range, you would be hard pressed to find a better overall deal than this.

I’ll try to post an update in a few months or so after I’ve had a bit more experience with this.

Happy Trails, Buckeroos!