The North Face Wawona 6 Assessment

Backside Line

For those who’re searching for a real basecamp tent with an nearly impossibly giant vestibule, top-quality cloth and poles, cavernous inside house akin to a New York Metropolis house, tons of pockets in handy places, and a design that can maintain as much as the weather regardless of its spectacular ceiling peak, look no additional than The North Face Wawona 6. This tent performs properly throughout testing metrics, and regardless of its higher-than-average worth level, we nonetheless assume it provides nice worth.

It’s not excellent. It doesn’t include an included footprint, it’s fairly heavy, and it definitely isn’t the simplest to pitch, however we consider the general positives far outweigh the negatives.

We hit the street with this beast for six weeks throughout eight states on a household street journey to place each single element of the Wawona 6 to the check and it carried out admirably.

Consolation

The North Face Wawona 6 has an excellent beneficiant 86.11 sq. toes of inside house. Whenever you issue within the huge 44.7-square-foot entrance vestibule, the tent begins to really feel extra like a full-on basecamp. This mannequin is supremely snug for a household of 4. You possibly can sleep six inside, particularly if some are young children, however that received’t depart a lot room for additional gear. Happily, the big entrance vestibule serves as the right gear closet. Throughout numerous journeys with the Wawona 6, we used the vestibule to retailer toys, bikes, and coolers. In unhealthy climate, it even grew to become a hangout house because of its versatile design. We as soon as used it as a spot for a fast bathe after a very muddy hike with the children.

Taller customers will admire the spectacular peak peak of 6’4″. The tent’s form permits for extra headroom, not simply within the middle, offering house to stroll round. Whereas the peak does taper in direction of the sidewalls, we discovered little to complain about with regards to the Wawona 6’s spaciousness and luxury. 

Sturdiness

In comparison with the opposite tents we examined, the Wawona 6 is true within the combine for sturdiness and high quality. All technical particulars apart, the tent’s supplies really feel high-quality and sturdy in use. The newest model of the Wawona 6 received a little bit of an improve, together with improved materials high quality. Essentially the most notable change is the usage of DAC MX poles, designed to be robust with out including weight, which we discovered to be correct.

The poles are certainly robust with out feeling too heavy, even for a virtually 22-pound tent. All of the zippers operate easily with out catching, and the material supplies, together with the tent ground—now comprised of sturdy 150D polyester with a PU coating—are thick and of top of the range. Nonetheless, it’s nonetheless sensible to make use of a footprint or floor tarp to guard the tent ground.

Climate Resistance

Whereas we wouldn’t take the Wawona 6 on a real climbing expedition, we did exit of our approach to camp in poor climate, and the Wawona 6 held up very properly. Tents of this dimension and peak will all the time wrestle a bit in windy circumstances, however even when pitched in uncovered places, our tent dealt with 40+ mph winds properly, because of the numerous guylines and stake-down factors. 

In driving rain, we didn’t expertise any leakage, although the fly doesn’t cowl the complete tent physique. The fly doesn’t prolong a lot previous the mesh higher of the tent, so in extreme sideways rain, that may very well be a problem, however we didn’t encounter any issues. For those who’re a four-season camper, you’ll possible need full double-wall development, making the Wawona 6 finest suited to three-season tenting.

Ease of Setup

Our largest gripe about this tent is how lengthy it takes to pitch. Solo, it took us about eleven minutes to totally arrange. That’s with out wind. If there’s a breeze organising the Wawona 6 can get hectic fairly quick. It’s faster with a associate, however if you happen to’re tenting with young children, you won’t all the time have assist. It’s not that the method is difficult—the pole colours match the sleeves they match into—it’s simply that it’s a variety of tent. And that a lot tent takes time to pitch. 

Ideally, we’d like to chop the pitch time down to 5 to seven minutes. Whereas we did get faster with follow, it nonetheless takes extra time than most as a consequence of its dimension and the big rainfly/vestibule. Total the sheer quantity of fabric concerned in organising this tent makes it one of many tougher tents to pitch. The Wawona 6 does include pre-attached guylines which is a pleasant contact.

Options

We applaud the Wawona 6 for its considerate design, which incorporates ample pockets for sensible group. We had been delighted to search out sufficient pockets to carry all our youngsters’ gear, in addition to our nighttime necessities like telephones, watches, and stuff sacks. Nonetheless, we discovered the pockets on the rear door a bit awkward, as our gadgets tended to fall out once we unzipped the door. We’d additionally wish to see some decrease pockets which might be simpler to achieve from our sleeping luggage.

Massive tents have a considerable floor space that may catch wind, which is why lots of the tents we examined carried out poorly in excessive winds. Happily, The North Face addressed this challenge of their new design by incorporating quite a few guyline attachments, permitting you to totally stake out the tent in intense climate—bonus factors for the pre-attached guylines.

Lots of the tents we examined this 12 months lack efficient air flow when the rainfly is deployed, however the Wawona 6 solves this with two kickstand vents, permitting use in inclement climate. The fly additionally rolls up on both aspect to show the mesh sidewalls, offering additional air flow in truthful climate. This design ensures glorious airflow, lowering condensation and holding the inside snug.

Final, however definitely not least, the defining function of the Wawona 6 is the large 44.7-square-foot entrance vestibule, which makes this huge tent really feel cavernous.

Ought to You Purchase the North Face Wawona 6?

The North Face Wawona 6 is good for households or giant teams who want a big inside with a powerful peak peak. It’s additionally excellent for bikers and climbers as a result of ample gear storage the vestibule provides. This tent is well-suited for campers who want additional house and plan on tenting in numerous climate circumstances, because of its high-quality supplies and sturdy design.

Nonetheless, the Wawona 6 is finest for automobile tenting as a consequence of its dimension. For those who plan on mountaineering greater than a brief distance out of your automobile together with your tent, it’s possible you’ll need to discover different choices.

What Different Tenting Tents Ought to You Take into account?

Kelty Wi-fi 6 Assessment: If finances is a priority, try the Wi-fi 6. It’s simply over half the worth of the Wawona 6 however nonetheless provides spectacular livable house and a twin vestibule design. 

MSR Habitude 6 Assessment: If finances isn’t a problem and also you’re searching for a extra premium tent comprised of high-quality supplies, the Habitude 6 is value a glance. It’s a real upper-echelon tent made from even higher-quality supplies than the Wawona 6. For those who want a tent that can stand as much as excessive circumstances, the Habitude may be what you’re searching for.