Hyperlite Ultramid storm worthiness

Anyone used the hyperlite ultra mid and what were your experiences with it in 4 season conditions. Thinking of selling my bivy tent and picking one up.

Check out Max Neales blog post, it’s pretty in depth about 4 season use and limitations:

https://maxneale.blogspot.com/2023/06/hyperlite-mountain-gear-ultamid--ultalight-shelter-high-wind-performance-review.html

Less stormworthy than nylon/polyester pyramids, specifically wrt hail/windblown ice chunks. There’s lots of anecdotes, but for a direct comparison there’s this: group backpacking trip hit by 1” hail, all 5 DCF tents all damaged, all 4 silnylon/silpoly tents fine (Reddit)

Pyramids in general are great if you’ve got the space to pitch them, although they can be a little miserable in the transition seasons when there’s enough snow spindrift is a concern, but not enough to dig a pit/build a windbreak.

That’s a good read, it feels like in the first situation the only thing to do would be a snow cave. Sil nylon tents are also half to a third the price. Really I feel like my tent is over engineered for what I end up doing. It’s the rab summit and a pound is more appealing than 4 lbs but fully guyed out I’d trust it in anything.

I’ve got maybe 10-20 winter/snow/alpine nights in the Hyperlite 2 man Dyneema pyramid under my belt and I really like it, but very much second people’s thoughts here. Wind breakage is key, as its natural ventilation is very poor. You need to have the snow available to you to dial in the airflow such that you won’t freeze/suffer, but also so that you don’t wake up in an ice cave in the morning. Also worth remembering that you may need your ski poles during the day if you’re not moving camp every day, and if those are what’s holding up your tent, you feel like a major idiot trying to break a stick to the right length or some shit because you didn’t even think far enough ahead to anticipate that being a problem (can you tell I’m still mad?). If I know that’s gonna be the case, I will sometimes bring a second probe and use it as the pole with something under the tip to keep it from sinking. Also obvs no floor as shipped so like just remember that when you’re planning. I use a Mylar bivvy as a little ground cloth and then my boots and pack around me to keep my bag off the snow, and that goes great, but might not be for everyone.

As for actual usage, in my experience it’s been really good. Held up better than some of my friends’ BA and Nemo tents in ~50mph gusts and under large amounts of pretty heavy snow. If your snow conditions are Cascade-y like mine are, deadmanning the stakes gives you a really strong tent. I’ve been more worried about my poles snapping or whatnot than the tent going away. Can’t speak to hail and flying ice tho, I am still always a little sketched out about poking a hole in it; little bit like relying on a portaledge in that way.

I had a similar designed hyperlite competitor's tent ($600 27oz including hiking pole) within 10 feet of a cheap nylon/silnylon ($150 48oz) tent in a wind and snow storm.  In the morning the  the fancy expensive and light tent was a bivy sack and ripped, the cheap tent was just fine.  I strongly recommend against these tents if really bad weather is possible.  I now use a slingfin or helleburg tent and skip the relatively fragile ultralight crap.

Just get a black diamond mega light. Absolutely bombproof tent- I’ve been in one in conditions from -40 to sandstorms to Pacific Northwest rain to hurricane strength winds that knocked trees down and haven’t had an issue. If you get the winter one you have options to put the flaps down. 

Climbing Weasel wrote:

Just get a black diamond mega light. Absolutely bombproof tent- I’ve been in one in conditions from -40 to sandstorms to Pacific Northwest rain to hurricane strength winds that knocked trees down and haven’t had an issue. If you get the winter one you have options to put the flaps down. 

I know everyone likes the mega light but I had a bad experience with mine using it as a cook tent on a long trip. High winds (50+ mph?) snapped the center pole. It was the first trip I had taken it on. Prior to that on other trips, someone else in the party always had one so I did have plenty of experience setting it up.

BD refunded me for it. 

drew A wrote:

I know everyone likes the mega light but I had a bad experience with mine using it as a cook tent on a long trip. High winds (50+ mph?) snapped the center pole. It was the first trip I had taken it on. Prior to that on other trips, someone else in the party always had one so I did have plenty of experience setting it up.

BD refunded me for it. 

Wow that’s wild. Maybe you got a lemon, or an old pole? 

Climbing Weasel wrote:

Wow that’s wild. Maybe you got a lemon, or an old pole? 

Maybe it had a manufacturing defect? No way to know now. I sent it back to BD after the trip for a refund. They were super nice about it.

I know the winds were crazy that night because 2 guy lines on the firstlight we were hunkered down in ripped off at the tent body seam (the line itself remained intact). Again BD was great about that and fixed them for free. Way out of warranty on an old and heavily used tent. 

The other one I was looking at was the mountain Laurel designs duomid in silpoly because it’d be nice to use it for all four seasons and not just as a winter tent. The other thing I heard was dfc can wear down faster because it’s a high tension tent while silnylon or silpoly stretch more.

https://youtu.be/GZfULm6DvRY?si=182tGE8y9y1YKl1P

Also Hyperlite sells a carbon fiber pole for it so you wouldn’t have to worry about leaving your ski poles.

drew A wrote:

I know everyone likes the mega light but I had a bad experience with mine using it as a cook tent on a long trip. High winds (50+ mph?) snapped the center pole. It was the first trip I had taken it on. Prior to that on other trips, someone else in the party always had one so I did have plenty of experience setting it up.

BD refunded me for it. 

Curious if you had the aluminum or carbon pole? 

I've had the OG Megamid, the newer Megalight, and an off-brand copy. Def still a favorite, you might give it another try and switch poles to see if the other type gives you piece of mind? 

Linnaeus wrote:

Curious if you had the aluminum or carbon pole? 

I've had the OG Megamid, the newer Megalight, and an off-brand copy. Def still a favorite, you might give it another try and switch poles to see if the other type gives you piece of mind? 

Yea it was the carbon pole. I agree that an aluminum pole would have a better chance of surviving. 

Climbing Weasel wrote:

Just get a black diamond mega light. Absolutely bombproof tent- 

Mine is shredded. But the weather station clocked 109 and it’s protected compared to where we were. Coastal mountains in AK are fun! Luckily we had a 6-person snow cave to live in for days. I wish our weather blip had been as kind as Max’s above, instead of nuking for days on end.

Prior I had mine out in 50+ mph wind without worry, and I will again in the future. I just need a new one before winter rolls around.