Next year, outdoor industry stalwart Yakima Racks will sell two rooftop tent models.
A burgeoning trend, rooftop tents offer pitch-anywhere convenience and an elevated place to sleep. (Our managing editor drank the Kool-Aid on a recent road trip to Alaska.)
Until now, most rooftop tents were either made by niche brands or were difficult to purchase in the U.S.
The move into camp shelters may strike as a stretch for a brand probably best known for bike mounts. But rooftop tents require a strong rack to serve as a base when mounted atop a truck or car.
Indeed, our editor used a Yakima Skyline system to carry the 180-pound Tepui Kukenam Ruggedized model more than 8,000 miles this summer.
Overview: Rooftop Tents From Yakima
Yakima touts its forthcoming SkyRise shelters are a “modern take” on the rooftop tent. They are “light, strong, easy to set up, and technically advanced,” a press announcement states.
The company is aiming at family campers, festivals-goers, and road trippers with two- and three-person models.
They install fast and resist condensation, Yakima states. Further, the tents use 210D rip-stop nylon instead of more common poly-cotton and are “up to 40 pounds lighter than similarly-sized competitors.”
They set up in about one minute, according to the company — remove the waterproof cover, unfold, and pull down an attached aluminum ladder.
Inside the tent is a built-in, 2.5-inch-thick foam mattress. Mesh panels give ventilation and allow for views from your elevated sleeping spot.
The SkyRise tents, which will come in two sizes, weigh 75 and 90 pounds. Pricing starts at $999 when the line ships early next year.
