Eureka Solitaire AL Tent Review

Hello! Just a report for you. I have had an Eureka Timberline tent for 46 years now and the floor needed one repair only. I use a blue tarpolin under and I avoid camping over gravel. I have never experienced water in the tent but I put some seam sealer to make sure. And last, I still love it! It's tall enough for me to get dressed inside and the 2 extra space let me have everything I might need with me. It's large enough to spend a long rainy day inside reading as I can easily sit in there. I look at the fabricks of your tent and I would swear it's the same as for my tent. So I guess it should give you lots of great time if you take care of it.

Used this tent on the CDT. Never got wet and no wind took it down.

I remember those old tents with the tarp material for the bottom of the tents. It was heavier but you knew you weren’t going to get wet no matter how much water gathered around the base of the tent. Thanks for the review it’s a very cool looking little tent, might be good for backpacking. Cheers, Doug in Victoria BC

I have an older version that I have used many times for extended bike trip and one of the poles finally broke. I called Eureka to buy a replacement and they told me I likely put it up in the wrong order and told me what probably happened and sent me a new pole at no cost! Great tent. Great company!

Took the older version of this tent on a 4 day hike in Glacier National Park. Performed superbly with no quality defects or malfunctions. It was warm when the temperature dropped at night and I only experienced minor condensation in the morning. Additionally, it did quite well in windy conditions. While a bit heavy at 3 lbs, I think serves a unique function as being a hybrid between a tent and a traditional bivy, thus providing some additional room for those who might be a bit claustrophobic. At its cost point, I would rate it as an excellent choice for a backpacking tent.

Great video and amazing that you timed the rain so perfectly for the review. I have had eureka tents for a while and this looks great too.

Thanks for sharing the video. I'm a long term owner of the US version of the tent, and have found it to be excellent.

Good review, I also liked your disclaimer about buying the gear and just doing this because you want to. I watched this video because someone just gave this tent to an outdoor program I work with. I just unfolded and looked at it and thought I would look at a review of the product. thanks for doing it.

Just did a two night in mine. I like it so far. Going to get the pad. I have a small beef with the floor too. I do love the look! I miss the old ripstop nylon.

Great review. Convinced me to make the purchase. Thanks!

Thanks for making one of the most genuine reviews on YouTube. It looks amazing I especially like the top entry. The deal killer for me however was the garish dayglow colours it comes in that makes it stand out like a huge zit on the landscape! You might as well erect a big sign with an arrow pointing to it. In the end I went for an Alps Lynx 1 that's just a bit heavier but insanely fast to but up. That said, if they ever make this in a neutral color I'll give it a go.

Thank you for the review. Still using a 30 year old Clip Flashlight. Always liked Eureka. Timberline might be one of the best tents of all time IMO. This one peaked my interest by saying there is room for me and my dog. Lol.

I had the original yellow one I bought nearly 10 yrs ago and I used it a ton didn’t have any issues or anything it wasn’t until last yrs it started leaking so it lasted me 10yrs solid I loved the tent so much i just bought the new improved green version today

Thanks for the review.

Hey Pete. Great Review...

Bought this tent today at a second hand shop for euro 6,50. Looks nice and I like the roll up rainfly.

I used to have one of these that I used on my motorcycle trips. It stood up to the beatings I put it through. It was small but never leaked and packed up quickly. I gave it to my son because I don’t bend like I used to and found it too hard to get in and out of. Now I use a Hennessy hammock for my canoe trips. A good review - new subscriber. Cheers from Ontario.

We just got this tent and watch your video we thought it was awesome and you seem very real we trust your opinion and trust your video so we're excited to like your video and subscribe see you for the next one!!!!!B

Being an older backpacker as well, I too remember the tents used to have the tarp material for the tub of the tent. They were bullet proof and were a little heavier. I am like you, why did tent manufacturers stop using this material??? Just to make them lighter. But, if we have to carry a ground cloth to keep from damaging the floor of our tents, then we just added that weight back to our tents! I would rather see the tents come with the heavier tarp in the floor vs. having to carry an extra tarp or ground cloth. I have 3 tents for backpacking, and they all have the same thin material for the floor. And these are not a cheap walmart tent either. Two of them are Eureka, and the third is a OneTigris.

Thanks for this tent review. I'm looking for a backpacking tent or bivvy and this one has my interest. Just an FYI about the groundsheet - if rigged correctly, the groundsheet should not extend out beyond the edge of the tent (maybe cover about 3/4's the area of the actual footprint of the tent, and centred). That prevents rain from running down the side of the tent and pooling on the footprint (a.k.a. groundsheet). The outer edges of the floor don't take much abuse from underneath as one's weight is typically closer to the middle of the tent anyway, so wear at the outer edges would be minimal. Tent manufacturers are going to the lighter materials for the sake of weight and this tent is close to the "ultralight" category, so the floor is what gets a lot of the weight-saving measures. Ultralights certainly do not last as long, so I guess that's the penalty for lighter weight in the pack. Anyway, thanks again - this was very informative.