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As a well-seasoned bike-packer, I have mastered the art of strapping cargo onto my bike and into various packs, panniers and pouches for multi-day travels. So, when I got the opportunity to test the Nemo Dragonfly Bikepack 2P, a 2-person, bike-packing specific tent, I jumped at the chance to see for myself if this could be a game-changer or just a gimmick to jump on the bandwagon following a recent growth in bike-packing popularity.

I have taken this tent on several trips this autumn, both on and off-road - sometimes travelling solo, sometimes with a guest – and each time I appreciated the different features this tent has to offer.

The packed tent comes in a robust petrol-blue ripstop bag with bright yellow straps and tasteful Nemo branding. It has a water-tight, roll top closure on one end and a Velcro strap at the other. The outer bag is cleverly designed to attach directly onto handlebars using the two fixed straps and tensioning clips. Stitched webbing on the bag allows for additional straps to secure it to a variety of bike setups. I found I needed to add additional straps to anchor it to the fork brace to prevent it from swinging around.

Once pitched the muted earthy colour of the Dragonfly Bikepack 2P helps it blend into the natural landscape, which is perfect for a discrete wild camp.

For a spacious, 2-person tent that weighs sub 1.6kg, I expected a compromise somewhere down the line, but this tent proved very stable, well made and has lots of versatile features that made for comfortable shared accommodation after a day in the saddle.

Being a bike-packing specific tent, the poles of the Dragonfly Bikepack 2P are shorter than standard to make the pack size short. At 35cm long, the packed tent is even small enough to fit between drop/flare handlebars.

The inner tent pitches first. One main shock-corded ridge pole, splits at both ends to attach at the four corners using colour coded tabs, taking the guess work out of pitching. This forms the structure of the tent. The inner tent swiftly clips onto this frame and a second, short pole crosses the ridge pole to provide width to the inner space. The outer tent attaches with the same, coloured tabs which means this tent is up and watertight within minutes.

There is plenty of space between the inner and outer tent, so even in damp conditions the 2 layers never come into contact. The head end of this tent has been cleverly designed for improved airflow with a deeper groundsheet and raised flysheet. I think this will work particularly well in warmer weather but careful pitching in breezy weather is needed to help eliminate any potential draught.

The Bikepack Dragonfly 2p has two entrances, each accessing good sized porches, one of which has the ingenious ‘landing zone’ – a waterproof fabric tub that clips to the inner and outer tent to make approximately 1/3 ^rd of the porch area a waterproof gear store. This proved to be a big hit – a space to put dirty outer clothing, that needed to be off the floor, but too dirty to have inside the tent. I’d like to see two ‘landing zones’ as their benefits undoubtedly outweigh the 60g added weight. Both porches also have loops ‘daisy chains’ which were great for drying gloves, jackets, helmets etc. Internal storage is also well thought out with a large roof store, 2 side pockets and 2 overhead light pockets, just about big enough for a mobile phone! These light pockets are orange, which diffuse the light nicely. The internal space is brilliant, with plenty of space for 2 adults to sit, either side by side or end to end with plenty of head room, even with items in the roof pocket.

The inner and outer tents both have easy to use, tie-back toggles, that slide onto hooks to keep the doors open. The outer tent has multiple options for door opening, which was invaluable for achieving a sheltered cooking space.

This is well thought out tent whether you are bike-packing or not. As a specific bike-packing tent, I think Nemo has produced a versatile, bike-friendly, tent transportation system that I will certainly be using as my tent of choice for my upcoming travels.

Lois Fife
Lois is a keen cyclist and is always plotting a route… either for her next trip or looking for a different way to commute to work! She is regularly seen heading for the hills on a packed-up bike, be it for a quick overnight wild camp, or a longer multi-day adventure. She is currently plotting her route to walk the TGO across Scotland. She is a British Cycling level 2 leader and has been involved with MTB Guisborough encouraging the next generation of mountain bikers. Lois joined Ultralight Outdoor Gear in 2021 and is part of the Customer Service Team. She is always keen to get her hands on new kit to try in the field and share her findings on the website. Read more from Lois Fife