Brooks Range put its new four-season tent on a diet and decided to go sans poles to create a 1-pound, six-ounce winter tent. The Brooks Range Rocket is said to be a two-person, one-door, one-vestibule tent that can withstand winter conditions.
It packs to 6 × 10 × 2 inches and unfolds to provide roughly 25 square feet of floor space, with a peak height of 38 inches, and a 7-square-foot vestibule. While the Rocket is sold with poles, instead of using them in winter, the tent pitches using trekking poles and an avalanche probe — items all backcountry travelers should have with them anyway.
Then, to pitch it in summer, insert the company’s included poles and you have a freestanding tent with a weight of roughly 2 pounds, 4 ounces. The walls are made of CT3 waterproof fabric with a reflective surface, and it has sidewall tie-through holes for stability. While the tent may be too minimal for some users, mountaineers looking to go light with a small pack (and don’t mind shelling out the cash) will love the Rocket. The tent will be available for $600 in October. www.brooks-range.com
—Ryan Dionne
