Exped Mira I HL £580

This tent is very similar to the MSR Freelite 1. It uses a nearidentical hubbed pole design (wishbone at one end, central spreader bar at peak) to give plenty of headroom, generous length and top-notch liveability.

The 10-denier, 1500mm-rated flysheet has PU and silicone coatings, while the inner features a 15-denier mesh canopy (good for ventilation) and a bathtubstyle, 20-denier, 1500mm-rated groundsheet. There’s a flysheet vent above the door and you get two vestibules – a larger one at the entrance and a very thin one at the rear, accessible from inside the tent via a zipper.

The Mira I HL (Hyper Light) has some advantages over the MSR Freelite 1: it has a flysheet with better coverage (no big cut-outs), the method of securing down the flysheet via proper clips (rather than fiddly toggles or tabs) is superior, and the headroom is 5cm higher. But it’s £110 dearer, 170g heavier and 14cm narrower.

IF WE’RE BEING FUSSY

The mesh inner can feel cold and draughty. The high walls can catch the wind (not an issue if pitched in the correct orientation, but can become problematic if the wind is swirling or constantly changing direction). The internal floorspace is quite narrow. Inner first pitching is inconvenient and the groundsheet is quite thin.

INTERNAL SIZE

■

(LxWxH) 215x70x105cm

■ PACKED SIZE 37x13cm

■ WEIGHT 1056g (including pegs and carry-bag)

Verdict

A well-designed tent with excellent headroom and good features – but the internal floorspace is slightly narrower than others.

“Plenty of headroom, generous length & top-notch liveability”