Yesterday, Kevin at Seekoutside posted info on the new Ed T's Backcountry Shelter, which is a collaboration between myself and Kevin.
http://seekoutside.com/backcountry-shelter-2/Here is a little background on it.
I have been always searching for the ideal solo/2 man shelter. My quest started with a Kifaru Para Tipi and while I used it a lot and liked it, it always felt cramped. Same story with the Super Tarp and annex, although I liked the stove jack placement better than on the Para Tipi.
I then went through the GoLite ShangriLa series, 2, 3, 4 and while they worked well they were missing some features.
The Kifaru Sawtooth came next and I thought I really had it now. Stand-up room. Plenty of space etc. The only drawback was it still was a bit heavy, especially for a solo shelter.
Late spring/early summer, I picked up a discontinued Integral Designs George Tarp from the classifieds. The pitch took some experimenting of get just right, but had good height, slightly more than the Sawtooth and plenty of room. I sewed a stove jack in and was quite happy with it. It still wasn't there however.
Fast forward to the collabration with Kevin. The shelter was given a remake, with such changes as catanery cuts to the fabric to tighten things up, lengthing the rear, adding a sod skirt, guy line ties re-located, stove jack added and an optional zip-in door panel that lowers the height but increases the space to a 4 man sizeed shelter.
The end result is a 7' high, 2+ man wood heated shelter that is minimalist in weight yet full featured in backcountry comfort. My final prototype cane in at 2lb 10oz with Carbon fiber pole and stakes. Couple this shelter with my 12" titanium stove and you have 2 man, stand-up shelter with wood stove for about 4lb 12oz.
