Pukeko Hiker Tent

From the easy, multi-pitch design, to its impressive aqua ratings, Kiwi Camping’s Pukeko is a spacious and comfortable tent. Pitched as a fly only, it’s an excellent, down-to-the-ground shelter; as a fly/inner combo it goes up quickly, the slowest part being the slightly awkward inner-tent attachment. But when it’s left clipped in place, the whole lot goes up together; a real bonus in bad weather. Once pitched, the tent is taut and aerodynamic. With fly and floor aqua ratings of 4000mm and 8000mm, you should stay dry in even the worst conditions, while the UPF50 sun protection adds extra performance for warmer seasons. For one person, the inner is spacious, with stash pockets at each end and ample room to bring all your equipment inside, important when there is only 200mm of vestibule outside. The door is generous, opening up the inner’s entire side, and has an excellent view-to-the-outside ventilation panel. The steep pitch, narrow head room and small vestibule hint at one-person, but it has the large 2.6m² floor area of a two-person tent (it also has a 1.2m² vestibule). There’s room enough inside for two, with space between, but with limited headroom and all equipment outside. All that space and fabric have to go somewhere, and unfortunately it’s straight to the Pukeko’s waistline. With a claimed weight of 2100g, it’s portly for a one-person tent. Retaining the existing fly configuration and reducing the floor area would increase the vestibule capacity and drop the overall fabric weight, perfect for those wishing to enjoy lightweight tramping. For now, it’s heavier than some (granted, more expensive) two-person tents boasting better headroom and storage. The Pukeko is promoted as an entry-level one-person tent – and I like it. It’s well made and does many things very well indeed. For overall comfort and value-for-performance, it’s tough to beat at this level.

Overall a fantastic and user friendly tent. I purchased this tent for a 4-week cycle tour across Europe. It packs down small, and is very light. Perfect for carrying with me on a bike. It is easy to set up and pack down with one person. I was new to this style of tent where the fly is set up first, so it helped to set up and pack down the tent a few times at home first. It super simple and quick once you get the hang of it. At first I was unsure about a tent where all the support and structure was provided by the outer fly. However, this worked great. The fly can be erected very quickly (useful if raining). And then the tent it self only takes another minute to clip in. Heaps of space for one person, I was able to bring all my bags in with me. There is room for two people at a squeeze without bags. Was as waterproof as one could hope. Spent some very wet nights inside without issue. There was one corner for me where a little dampness got in but it caused no problems. The pack down is simple, the fact that you tent come down inside the fly makes packing away in the rain slightly more comfortable, as at lest the tent can get folded, dried and packed away under cover. The wet fly then just stuffed into a plastic bag. The best part of the tent is the price. It is fantastic value. I was traveling with people who had 1-person tents for $500 and up, which had less space. Although they were lighter, I would happily save $300 and carry and extra 500gms. Also, at $150, you don't need to be too precious about it. Although with basic care and maintenance, mine has come back from the trip as good as new and will hopefully serve me well into the future. Keep in mind, although I experienced heavy rain, I did not use the tent in heavy wind. So I cannot speak for how it would function. However, there seem to be more than enough guy ropes in all the right places. Also, we used campgrounds, so my tent was always set up on flat ground. I happily purchase a second, and would highly recommend to anyone looking for a light, easy to use, spacious, single man tent.

I am a scout. I have used this tent in all sorts of weather. It's design means it can easily handle reasonable amounts of rain and wind. It goes up very easily in the rain, again it's design means the inside doesn't get wet in the process. It is light enough for hiking even if it doesn't pack down very small. Very comfortable for one person and gear or two if not raining.