Nemo Dagger Osmo Light-weight Backpacking Tent Assessment

I’ve been tenting since I used to be a child crowded in between my mother and father and my older brother, all of us snuggled up in comforters and pillows from house. The primary tent that I may take into account “mine” (I shared it with my brother) was made from canvas and painted in a wide range of pastel colours. I can’t depend the variety of occasions over time I’ve woken up with rain edging in round me, a pile of snow in some way inside the tent, or a tenting buddy elbowing me within the face making an attempt to get out to go for a midnight toilet break. Evidently, once I’m tenting now as an over-thirty grownup, I’m fairly choosy about my tenting setup, and my alltime favourite tent is the Nemo Dagger Osmo.

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Key Options

100% Waterproof

I’ve been utilizing the two-person design of this light-weight tent for 2 years now and I first fell in love with it tenting off Riverhead, Lengthy Island. Little did I do know once I set out for this journey with my husband, this can be a very marshy space with creeks and rivers surrounding our campsite, which was beautiful at sundown, much less enjoyable at 1 a.m. when it began downpouring. Because the rain began to pound down on the tent and we may hear the water ranges of the creek edge into camp, I bought out my cellphone to guide a resort for when the tent inevitably flooded — it by no means did. 

Once I inform you this tent is waterproof, I imply it 100%. We awoke the morning after the storm because it continued to drizzle, packed up camp, and the grass the place the tent had sat all evening was nonetheless considerably dry whereas the world across the footprint was a muddy puddle. The Osmo material that makes up the Nemo Dagger is a polyester/ripstop nylon mix designed to reduce stretching when moist to forestall sagging (that may trigger your tent to collapse) and any moisture seeping by way of the fabric. 

Compact to Pack

Along with this being essentially the most sturdy and weatherproof tent I’ve ever used, it’s one of many lightest, and the finest two-person tent we’ve examined. All the parts weigh simply over 4 kilos, however they’ll simply be separated because of organizational stuff sacks, so you may break up the gadgets between your daypack and your companion’s. 

It’s additionally gentle sufficient that I’ve had no downside packing this in bigger suitcases for flying. The packed tent takes up about the identical quantity of house as my climbing boots, and I’ve now flown with it to get to tenting websites in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Florida. 

Spacious When Open

Contemplating the tent’s compact measurement when packed, it’s extremely spacious when assembled. My husband is 6 foot 4 inches and says that is the primary tent he’s ever slept in as an grownup during which he didn’t have to put horizontally to suit comfortably (which is actually extra of a profit to me.) Our two sleeping pads and sleeping luggage match facet by facet with out overlapping and we had loads of house within the evening if we shifted round. It additionally includes a door on both facet of the tent, so that you not must take care of somebody climbing over you within the evening when nature calls.

Whereas the Dagger additionally comes with a “Touchdown Zone” the place you may retailer your packs and kit on clear nights, we liked that there was sufficient house to retailer our packs contained in the tent when wanted. And in the event you’re somebody who desires much more room to suit your pup, a toddler, or one other pal, the three-person model of the tent boasts almost 43 sq. toes of house (a major improve to the 31-square-foot two-person tent.)

Simple to Set Up

In relation to establishing the tent, this couldn’t have been simpler. It doesn’t include any directions, however by the point I discovered directions on-line, my husband had already absolutely set it up. All the items are coloration coded, so determining which clip goes to which loop is straightforward and intuitive. The poles are all linked to one another on one heart spoke, supplying you with an immediate body that guides the form of the general construction. We did not want any further instruments both, I stepped on the stakes with my boot and so they went proper into the bottom. It can be tough to find out the proper approach to apply the rainfly, however after utilizing it a few occasions, it turns into second nature.

The Verdict

The Nemo Dagger Osmo could also be my favourite tent in terms of sturdiness and measurement, nevertheless it additionally has further consolation options that proceed to shock me. There are slim pockets on both finish of the tent, so irrespective of which method you’re mendacity, you carry up your arm and have quick access to your cellphone, headlamp, or, in my case, my glasses. Overhead, there’s additionally a small adjustable hook the place you may grasp your tenting lantern, and the tent’s construction is surprisingly sturdy sufficient to even maintain up our almost two-pound lantern with out sagging. The doorways can be rolled again and secured open with further color-coded clips to offer you a little bit of a breeze.

Contemplating the standard and luxury of the Nemo Dagger Osmo, you actually gained’t need one other tent to your future tenting journeys. And, contemplating Nemo presents a lifetime guarantee, you gained’t have something to fret about it doesn’t matter what Mom Nature throws at you in years to return.

Why Belief Journey + Leisure

Taylor Fox is the outside gear editor for Journey + Leisure. She began tenting as a toddler and has continued to like tenting as an grownup — even when she’s being rained on. Her tenting expeditions have taken her all around the world from the mountains of Wyoming to the islands of Indonesia the place she lived for 2 years. She has had the Nemo Dagger Osmo tent for over two years and it’s her go-to for any campout. 

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