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Review: Fjällräven Abisko Lite 2 Tent

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Review: Fjällräven Abisko Lite 2 Tent
 

ITEM: Fjällrävan Abisko Lite 2
PRICE: £525
STYLE: Two person tunnel tent
WEIGHT: 2,070g/minimum: 1,740g
ACTIVITY: Trekking/expeditions
SEASON: Four season
WHAT THEY SAY: Lightweight, compact and stable tunnel tent with a small vestibule. The flysheet can be rolled up at both ends to capture the view and maximise airflow.


It was the end of an unseasonably warm afternoon on the far north-west coast of Wales. After a day of hiking through the coastal forests, we downed our packs in a clearing with views out across the Irish Sea, and prepared to make camp for the night. The air was warm and a gentle fresh breeze blew in from the sea, making us question whether this could really be North Wales in early spring.

My accommodation for the evening was the Abisko Lite 2 from Fjällräven (also available in one and three-person sizes). This is a four-season tunnel tent, designed for year-round use and suitable for trekking or long expeditions, and I was looking forward to putting it to the test.

Although at 2kg it isn’t the lightest tent in its class, the packsize is extremely small and, after a quick glance at the attached instructions, I put it up in no time. The tent requires just two poles (colour-coded to make things even simpler) that slide through fairly obvious sleeves and into plastic ‘cups’ at each end. Add a handful of pegs, tighten the guy-ropes and the tent was pitched in just a few minutes, made easier by having the inner tent already attached to the flysheet.

 
Review: Fjällräven Abisko Lite 2 Tent
 

The tent has a low-profile design, the front porch streamlined and optimised for wind stability – although still plenty big enough to hold a medium-sized pack or two. The door is on one side of the tent, with two openings on the larger three-person option. Once inside, the tent feels remarkably spacious with plenty of headroom for one person to sit in the entrance. It might be more of a squeeze for two whilst seated.

The evening was suprisingly warm so it was a good chance to test out the ventilation options on the Abisko. Fjällräven’s attention to detail really shows when it comes to the ventilation, and the airflow through the tent is superb, with various panels that can be unzipped and opened to cool you down if needed. You can completely roll back the vestibule to open up the front of the tent on warm days, also giving you a nice feeling of more space and, hopefully, a fantastic view. The rear section of the flysheet can be detached from the inner tent and rolled back too in order to further improve the ventilation if needed.

 
Review: Fjällräven Abisko Lite 2 Tent Review: Fjällräven Abisko Lite 2 Tent
 

Fjällräven have improved upon the previous series (the Lightweight 2) with their new high-performance TripleRip nylon on the flysheet. Various types of the material are used at different points to minimise weight whilst maximising strength, and a very fine mesh covers each opening to prevent even the tiniest of bugs from invading your sleeping space. It’s a fine balance of weight and performance and Fjällräven have nailed it. Mesh pockets and a washing line are also integrated into the inner tent, which is a nice touch. Fjällräven have kept to their environmentally friendly principles by avoiding the use of PVC plastic, toxic flame-retardants and fluorocarbon treatment in the production.

The tent feels extremely durable and well made, with good attention to design and detail. This is a really versatile shelter that, later in the year, performed brilliantly during a storm whilst pitched on a small island in the Scottish Highlands. But for this evening it was simply a case of rolling back the doors, settling in with a beer and watching the sun set over the Irish Sea through the edge of the forest.


Photography by Chris Davies // Written by John Summerton
For more information visit fjallraven.com
 

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