The Tarptent ProTrail is a lightweight one-person trekking pole tent. It’s a front-entry single-wall tent constructed from 20D SilPoly and is set up with two trekking poles. The simple no-frills design allows it to be in the same weight class as some Dyneema Composite Fabric (DCF) tents but at a much more affordable price. It is a great option for those looking for a quality minimalist ultralight tent on a budget.
Product Overview
Tarptent ProTrail
Price: $239
✅ Weight
✅ Price
✅ Interior space
✅ Durable material
❌ Limited headspace
❌ Set up/difficult to get a good pitch
❌ Condensation
- Total weight: 24 oz / 680 g (with all bags, stakes, and cording)
- Packed size: 12 in x 4 in / 30 cm x 10 cm (adjustable)
- Floor Width: 30-42 in / 76-107 cm
- Floor Length: 84 in / 213 cm
- Interior Height: 24-45 in / 61-114 cm
- Floor Area: 21 sq ft / 1.95 sq m
- Vestibule Area: 10 sq ft / 0.92 sq m
- Seasons: 3
- Material: 20D nano ripstop (Fly), 30D double ripstop (Floor)
Though I didn’t keep the ProTrail for my entire thru-hike, I believe it is a good tent for certain circumstances. Though the limited headspace was too claustrophobic for a five-month hike, I probably wouldn’t have minded on a short trip. Between the flattened bathtub floor and propensity for condensation, I would not recommend this tent for a wet hike like the Appalachian Trail. However for, say, a short hike in a dry climate, this lightweight tent gives a lot of bang for your buck.
To see reviews on other ultralight tents, check out our Best Ultralight Tents post.
Similar Products: Gossamer Gear The One, Zpacks Duplex, Six Moon Designs Lunar Duo, Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL
Performance Test Results
How I Tested:
I used the ProTrail for about 5 weeks of my thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). It was used in the desert terrain of the southernmost 500 miles of the PCT, generally hot days, cool nights, and dry conditions. I have also tested a different Tarptent model, the Notch, on thru-hikes of the Colorado Trail, Long Trail, and Appalachian Trail.
Capacity
The total floor area is 21 square feet, pretty roomy for a one-person tent. On long-distance hikes, I like to indulge in an extra wide inflatable pad. I love the extra width when sleeping, but it can be a tight fit in some one-person tents. The ProTrail on the other hand, has a width of a comfortable 30 inches at the narrowest part. The wide pad (a Nemo Tensor Regular Wide) fits comfortably with several inches of room on either side.
Material
When tent shopping for the PCT, I decided to look only at non-DCF tents. (DCF is too pricey for me. Tarptent does, however, make a DCF version of the ProTrail as well, the ProTrail Li, which is 1/3 lighter and more than twice the price). It’s difficult to compete with the weight of DCF though, so some manufacturers sacrifice durability when attempting a non-DCF ultralight tent.
Another tent I was considering, for example, was made of a 10D SilNylon. The D stands for denier and indicates the weight of the fabric. The 10D felt noticeably flimsier than the more robust 20D SilPoly on the ProTrail. The thicker material of the ProTrail may also negate the need for a groundsheet - even more weight savings.
The Tarptent website states that groundsheets “generally are not needed unless ground conditions are exceptionally sharp or abrasive.” Based on my own previous experience, I have found this to be accurate.
Headspace
My biggest issue with the ProTrail was the lack of headspace. At the tallest point, by the door, the tent is 45” tall, but the ceiling slopes down to 24” at the foot end. For me at 5’11”, I had to cram myself right by the door if I wanted to sit up. This made changing clothes very difficult, especially when there was condensation.
As a single-wall tent, condensation is inevitable; I don’t hold that against the ProTrail. However, condensation paired with limited headspace was a problem. I couldn’t move around or change without brushing my head and shoulders against the walls and getting wet.
Though the tent had 21 square feet of floor space, I found most of it to be unusable, because it was too hard to get to with the short ceiling. Opening and closing the storm flap at the foot end was challenging as well. I would have to belly crawl to get to it.
Pitch
Most trekking pole tents take some practice to get a good pitch. I expected that, but even after five weeks of daily use, I struggled to get a good pitch on the ProTrail. The bathtub floor would flatten out. What was supposed to be the wall of the bathtub would lay flat on the ground—so basically no bathtub wall at all. In heavy rain, this could be a serious problem.
Fortunately, in the desert of the PCT, I hardly had any rain, though it did allow dust to get into the tent. I also added extra guylines and stakes to the sides of the tent. Using only the included 4 stakes, I found the walls sagged quite a bit, making the interior even more cramped.
I added lines to the loops midway down the side walls in order to be able to stake out the middle of the walls. This allowed the walls to be pulled out from the center of the tent and made it a little more spacious inside.
Final Thoughts
I really wanted to like this tent. Based on my previous thru-hiking experience with the Tarptent Notch, I knew the company made high-quality durable tents that could withstand all sorts of conditions. I was attracted to the ProTrail’s low weight and large floor area and I intended to use it for my entire PCT thru-hike.
Overall, the ProTrail performed okay. It could have lasted the entire thru-hike if I really needed it to, but there were enough little issues that after 500 miles, I decided to switch to a different tent.
650-Calorie Fuel
