Wednesday 27 April 2016

Nigor Wickiup 3 reviewed for The Great Outdoors

The Wickiup 3 in the Cairngorms, February 2016

GoLite's Shangri-La 3 pyramid tent has been a favourite of mine for many years, especially for winter camping. With the demise of GoLite a few years ago it vanished from the shops, a good design seemingly gone. Not for good though as Nigor soon came out with the very, very similar Wickiup 3, which has proved at least as good as the original. I've been using it for quite a while and have now reviewed it in my column on the The Great Outdoors website.

The Shangri-La 3 in the Cairngorms, February 2013

12 comments:

  1. How do you go on with spindrift if there isn’t yet snow on the ground to shovel against the tent. Are there pegging points to allow the fabric sit lower?

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  2. Yes, the tent can be pitched right down to the ground. Some spindrift can still blow under the edges if there isn't enough snow to block any gaps but I've never had so much that it was a big problem.

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  3. Hi Chris,

    Thanks for the brilliant blog. I have read with interest your reviews on the Sony NEX cameras. Are you still using them? The reason I ask is I am very tempted to buy the A6000 or A6300, which seem to be the newer version of the NEX. I would probably go for the A6000 for price reasons!! Have you used these cameras?

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    1. Glad you like the blog. The NEX 7 is still my main camera with an NEX 6 as back-up. I'm thinking of replacing the latter with the a6000 as the price of the latter is quite low now. I've read a few reviews of the a6300 and I can't see it has enough advantages for me to spend that much money.

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  4. Chris, how would you rate this compared to a Duomid. Really interested in this due to shape and all the extra guy points for strong winds. Just have that niggle that it is too big. Your advice would be appreciated.

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    1. Ray, I think the stability is a bit better than the Duomid but I haven't compared them directly. The headroom is better, which I like in winter.

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  5. Nigor have now started selling their 2017 half inner in the UK. Twistmoto have them in stock apparently, but I bought mine direct from Nigor. The half inner weighs around half the full inner and is as roomy as the average Terra Nova 'two' person tent. I thoroughly recommend it if you don't like sharing your bed with ticks and find the Hexpeak V4 inner that many people use, a bit small.

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    1. Thanks James. I have one of these half inners on test.

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  6. Is it the same size as the Shangri-La? The flysheet inner on mine has lost its water repellency and Nikwax didn't really work so I was thinking about buying the Wickiup inner to replace it.

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  7. Yes it is about the same size.

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  8. Dear Mr. Townsend, first of all thank you for the always relevant and sensible reviews, and a very enjoyable blog!
    I live in the UK and am looking for a lightweight shelter that would work well in places like Scotland, Iceland, Sweden, etc., possibly in winter conditions as well. After much research, I'm considering the Nigor Wickiup 3 (or MyTrailCo Pyramid 3 - if worth it after shipping+tax costs are considered), the Tarptent Scarp 1 and the Hilleberg Akto. I'd like to ask if you have any thoughts on the difference between the two main designs, and if the steeper price for the Akto compared to the Scarp is worth it in the long run (although I read the Akto doesn't fare as well under heavy snowloads).
    Thank you very much!

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    1. The three tents you're considering are all excellent. The main difference between the two designs is that pyramid tents have much more headroom, which is good if you're tall. They're not quite as easy to pitch but practise solves that. Single-hoop tents will stay up in heavy snow but the ends need clearing regularly as the snow pushes the fabric down. The Scarp 1 will support a heavy snow load when the crossover poles are used. The Akto is made from more durable (and heavier) materials than the Scarp and so should last longer. This is not to say that the Scarp isn't quite durable.

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