I can’t handle a full weekend in this type of condition. So I spent the last year looking for a budget friendly sun shade. After researching many different models, I decided upon the Ozark Trail Sun Shade.
This would be great for anyone that plans to sit down in the shelter. The one exception to the rule here is for the larger cabin-style tents, especially those with an “instant tent” design that uses pre-attached poles. These shelters tend to be much heavier and bulkier when packed up due to the frame design, so you’ll want to make sure you’ve got room to transport them in your vehicle and store them in your home before buying.
These features all work together to make a tent feel more like your home away from home and less like a makeshift shelter in the woods. With that being said, there are a few things you’ll want to know going into your purchase. First, all Ozark Trail tents should be considered “fair-weather” shelters.
Again, Ozark Trail tents are mainly fair weather camping tents (so you won’t be hiking into the backcountry with them) which means weight and packed size aren’t a big priority. The Ozark Trail 9 Person Cabin shares the same shortcomings as the other discount cabins found in the Ozark Trail lineup, most notably being its weather protection and durability. We also don’t recommend this tent for high winds because although all the poles are steel, Ozark Trail uses a thin-walled alloy that can bend under stress and plastic hubs that we wouldn’t trust in serious storms. As far as fairweather shelters go, however, this one may be the best value in terms of livability for your money.
Again if you are a family needing BIG tent at a great price that is durable and comfortable in ALL weather conditions this is a great tent for the price. During set up one of the guys stepped on one of the poles breaking it. During the night some of the snow broke the other pole (both were in the section at the very end). This was easily repaired with a coghlan’s tent pole repair kit.
I do like the tent, lots of space, easy to put up, but a couple of things I didn’t like, the front door zippers always get stuck on the little rain flap that covers the zipper. I sprayed the tent with camp dry because I knew it was going to rain the next day. Some rain did get in near the bottom of rear window. I had a Coleman tent in the past and payed twice the money and this tent is just as good as that one. I would love to have a tent with sturdy metal poles, but nobody seems to make a reasonably priced tent with sturdy poles any more. I don’t like D-shaped zippers because they don’t seem to last long term.
In the morning we woke up to a STILL warm tent (grill still running of course) and 20 inches of snow on the ground and about 10 inches still on the tent. Tapped tent walls and snow slid right off the dome. That day it all melted and tent stayed dry inside while the fabric dried very quickly. Wind was now blowing at a constant 30mph and snow driving HARD. Lit the propane grill inside the tent and soon the tent was warm enough to take off our jackets.
The main thing to know going into an Ozark Trail purchase is that you need to do your due diligence not to overstress the materials because a heavy hand can absolutely damage them. Take time to inspect your tent when you ozark trail sleeping bag first get it (damages from shipping are common), and don’t ever “force” anything when setting up or tearing down your shelter. As stated above, durability and materials are the main pain point of Ozark Trail tents.