Nortent Vern 2 4S

How much it adds to your pack. This is the whole tent: two people sharing can split it. 1: A real weak point.

Nortent's minimum weight is 4.3 kg (fly, inner and poles), in the 2.7 kg+ band. With pegs and bags it is up to 4.75 kg, and the footprint adds more. Two people sharing carry about 2.2 kg each. Ultralight Outdoor Gear weighed one at 4,294 g without pegs and bags, so the maker's figure holds.

How well it keeps out heavy, long rain. 8: Clearly better than most.

Nortent gives the fly as 30D silnylon at 3,000 mm HH, in the 3,000 mm+ band, and the floor as 70D nylon at 10,000 mm, so no point comes off. The seams are not sealed at the factory: Nortent includes sealer and leaves it to you. Join Me Outdoors found only a few drops near the seams after a night of rain, but Andrew Park saw water wick in at the door tie-backs in a 24-hour rain test. The printed figure alone gives 8 at most: a 9 or 10 needs 3 reviews that say it stays dry in real storms.

How steady it stays in strong wind on open ground. 7: Better than most.

Average 3.7 out of 5 across six sources, so 7 out of 10: fine in moderate wind, doubtful above it. Join Me Outdoors (sent free) found it stable and very quiet through a night of 16 to 40 km/h, and Backcountry Exposure found it stable in 24 to 32 km/h gusts. Bran Lewis (bought) had it cope on a hilltop in 32 to 48 km/h, though loose guy lines were noisy until he pegged them. Andrew Park (sent free) saw it hardly move in a side-on gale, but showed on his Vern 1, which he calls quite similar, that the end poles can flatten in 65 km/h-plus wind without a trekking-pole prop under the end guy lines. Fellmandave (sent free) had his collapse in a storm with the thinner first-batch poles (8.6 mm); with the current 9.5 mm poles, the end tucked in and the end guy line extended, he would trust it to about 80 km/h, but we found no report of that in a real storm. Our own summer test, with at least one night in gusts of about 48 km/h or more, found it the sturdiest tent we have used (a 5); with that the middle value is still 3, and we are 2 points above three reviewers, so the page says they disagree. Reviews of the 3-season Vern 2 3S and the Vern 1 don't count towards the score.

Reviewers disagree on this.

Room to lie, sit up and keep kit inside. 7: Better than most.

Nortent's Norwegian page gives the inner tent as 123 cm wide and 220 cm long: 123 x 220 = 27,060 cm², or 2.706 m². Divided by 2 people that is 1.353 m² each, only just inside the 1.35-1.59 band. Nortent's own size diagram shows 140 x 223 cm, or 1.56 m² each, so it is the 4 band either way. It takes two big 190 x 60 cm mats, and the two porches add room for kit. Nortent's English page claims room for three, which neither width gives with 60 cm mats, so we used the smaller Norwegian figures.

How much room it takes in your rucksack. 2: A weak point.

Nortent's packed size is 50 x 21 cm (length x diameter): 3.1416 x 10.5 x 10.5 x 50 = 17,318 cm³, so 17.3 L, in the 15 L+ band. Two people sharing can split it across two rucksacks.