Overheard a guy at Cabella's say 'these new tents don't breathe' and it made me miss my old canvas

I was grabbing some stove fuel last Saturday and this older fella was griping to a clerk about how his new polyester tent fogs up bad. That got me thinking about my first tent, a heavy canvas job from the 90s I used for about 8 years up in the Adirondacks. It was a pain to dry out but you'd never wake up with condensation dripping on your face. Has anyone else switched back to canvas or found a modern tent that handles moisture as well?

3 comments

3 Comments

brians2716d ago

Man I used to think canvas was just nostalgia bait but after getting caught in a damp night with a modern tent I'm starting to see the point. That old heavy stuff has its flaws but at least you wake up dry.

richard_mason16d ago

Canvas tents just let your skin breathe in a way that nylon never will, that whole condensation problem is gone because the fabric actually moves air instead of trapping everything against you. The weight tradeoff is real though, I helped a buddy set up a Kodiak once and my back was sore for two days from hauling that thing out of his truck. You trade one kind of hassle for another but there's something about that heavy canvas smell and not waking up in your own personal swamp that keeps pulling people back.

theagarcia16d ago

Wait, have you ever had a tent just straight up fill with water from your own breath? I took a cheap coleman out one night in the Poconos and woke up soaked like I left the rainfly off. Canvas is heavy but it's like sleeping in an old coat, keeps the wet off your face but you gotta dry it out for a week after. I ended up getting a used Springbar from some guy on Craigslist last summer, it's still a beast to haul but I haven't had that wet sock feeling once. The pole setup is a pain though, feels like putting together a jungle gym with sticks.