As with any free-standing tent, with this one you stake out the four corners, and then you feed the two main tent poles through the Wawona’s fabric sleeves, which go halfway down the tent’s body. The North Face’s color-coded ozark trail canopy poles make this process easy to navigate. Orienting the fly took us a minute on our first try. (We were stubborn and didn’t look at the instructions.) Once you identify the front and back, the process is straightforward.
We’ve tested (and recommended) Eureka tents in past versions of this guide. In October 2023, Eureka’s parent company, Johnson Outdoors, announced that it was discontinuing the Eureka brand. The product line, including its tents, should remain available through the end of 2024. The Base Camp tents include a low side vent and multiple stuff pockets on the walls and ceiling, which are made of 75D polyester treated with 1500mm of polyurethane waterproofing. Note that these tents are strictly meant for car camping; the Base Camp 4 and the Base Camp 6 weigh 16 and 21 pounds, respectively, so you won’t want to carry either one very far.
Also, the screened wall had a flaw in it allowing larger insects into the tent. It does become rather hot when the rain fly is on—I leave the rain fly off and house it under a 12’x12′ canopy—but that has an air vent so rain comes in. I tried putting the tent rain fly over the air vent in the canopy but now am buying a 20ft by 20ft tarp to put over the canopy. This canopy gives 64 sq ft of coverage with an SPF of 50+ and features an easy-up design with telescoping legs, so it can be set up in just a matter of minutes. Plus it includes stakes, guide ropes, and a wheeled bag for easy transportation and storage. Find the best hiking/camping product for your next outdoor adventure using our independent reviews and ratings.
These push locks get very difficult to use over time, especially if the tent is used on the beach and exposed to sand and saltwater, causing rust build up. Many newer tent brands like EZ-Up use revolutionary thumb lock sliders or larger easy to release buttons, which are a much better user experience when setting the canopy up or taking it down. With the push buttons you need to worry about pinching fingers or not being able to release the button when it gets rusted, which is never a pleasant ozark trail table experience. The legs extend to give the top peak a height of about 8’10” which will be plenty of headroom for anyone underneath. Its walls are 75-denier polyester fabric (tougher than the Wireless 6’s 68-denier polyester and the same as the REI Co-op Base Camp’s) that extends about two-thirds up the tent’s sides, and then is topped with mesh. The partial fly does a great job of keeping rain out of the upper, mesh areas, and cleverly placed vents maintain airflow so it never feels too stuffy.
This design is a big plus for people who regularly camp in crowded campgrounds and don’t like to get naked in front of strangers. And you can unzip the front door, remove it, and neatly stash it into one of the tent’s internal pockets—a useful feature if you’re feeling sociable. In terms of how the two tents feel, the Marmot Tungsten 4 is more geared toward hunkering down and providing stalwart defense against wind, rain, and sun. In contrast to the Mineral King 3’s triangular vestibules, the Tungsten 4’s vestibules are trapezoidal, opening via a central door with protected areas on either side. This design does a better job shielding the tent from incoming—and sideways—wind and rain.