UOG Review - Nordisk Telemark 2 LW
Posted by Mark Richardson on Sep 11, 2017
I have to admit I had some worries about the Nordisk Telemark tents before taking one for a spin last week, mainly because the four corners appear a bit over fussy with some heavy strengthening to keep the struts in place. As it was I came away very impressed and confident that the tent compares very well with others in the super lightweight category in terms of features, robustness and space.
Pitching - The Telemark comes with the inner and outer tents clipped together and pitches very fast indeed, with just four pegs. You thread the pole through the flysheet sleeve and secure it in the webbing tensioner which forms the semicircular support. Next peg out two of the corners at one end, then pull the tent tight from the other end and pegs out those two corners as well - now the tent's up. I added two guylines to the loops made for this purpose as this relieves the stress on the pole in windy conditions. That's 6 pegs. Finally I setup the door as a protected porch area using a trekking pole and third guy - 7 pegs in total. I found that pitching the door in this way gives great protection from the environment allowing me to cook and eat in the protected space just outside the tent.
I pitched it in windy weather and it was still simple and quick to do. Strong winds blowing on the front of the tent does reduce the inner tent volume but this wasn't by that much given the tent design and light weight.
In use - The Telemark I was using is the two person version, it would be tight for two people though, OK if its being used as a marathon tent but on a long backpacking trip it would certainly be cramped for two. As a solo person using it its pretty spacious and I wouldn't worry about space on a long trip. There's just enough headroom to sit up, I'm 6ft and was using a 7cm thick mattress and there was just enough clearance.
The porch area is again quite spacious for one and easily took all my gear - with two people space would be at a premium. The inner sags a bit at the long end of the tent but there's good separation between inner and outer so it doesn't matter if you hit it a bit here and there. I experienced no condensation on the nights I used the tent and remained completely dry and protected through a couple of heavy rain showers. I really like the fact that the flysheet pitches right to the ground giving maximum protection against the weather, no doubt an indicator of the Telemark's Scandinavian heritage. Getting in and out was tricky as the doorway is quite small - I found myself backing out on my knees! Tightening the tent at the four corners is quite easy using pull through cordlocks.
Flysheet first pitching - You could detach the inner from the outer and take it down separately if its raining outside - this means you could keep it dry while you take the flysheet down wet and store it separately. Pitching again at the end of the day can be done flysheet first because of the webbing tension strap that keeps the pole in place.
Overall: The Telemark's are an excellent tent that looks tough enough to withstand the worst of 3 season weather. We'd urge everyone to use the additional guy points, especially if using one of the ULW models which have a lighter pole - as this feature is key to protecting the pole from stresses.
Mark R
