4 Season Tents and 4th Season Tents - What’s the Difference?

[@harrymills2770]

LOL! I just saw "4th Season Tent" on an outdoor channel, and just chalked it up to semi-literacy! It's apparently a thing! Yes, the Russian Bear is comparable to an ice-fishing shelter, and may be used as such. I'm not positive it wouldn't work in the summer, although I think I'd use my venerable Hillary Modified Dome tent that I got from Sears in the late '80s or early '90s. They don't make them like that Modified Dome, any more. It uses super-strong steel-tube "poles" that go almost straight up from the 4 corners. They bend in at about 30 or 40 degrees at the top, and crisscrossing fiberglass poles are inserted in their ends to make a dome over the top. Nice, big fly that makes a tiny porch in front of the entrance. Its poles are rotated 45 degrees away from the tent poles. The fabric of the fly fastens to the 4 corners with plastic buckles, so the poles of the fly form a sort of hat brim over all 4 walls. Very ingenious and I never saw it before or since. I only guyed it out a very few times. As long as it's staked out at its 4 corners, it's not going anywhere, and it's not leaking. You don't want to set it up by yourself on a windy day, but once it's set up, it's the most wind-resistant tent I've ever had. I only used it, heavily for a few seasons, and only once or twice a year, after that, if that. But I got it set up this summer, and it's in virtually perfect condition! I spent half of a summer in that tent, prepping for my first time teaching advanced calculus. Thinking back, those kids really should have been given a good course in Real Analysis, and learned some basic point-set topology, because they really didn't know any set theory.

[@familycamptents]

I was interested in the tent you describe and tried to find it and have found three different Hillary tents, but it seems none is of the type you have, with fiberglass roof poles, and they have no fly you describe. This is why I cannot say much about the tent which you have. Not sure what you are saying in the last sentence, it seems you are referring to your first paragraph. You sound like a mathematician, I remember from my student days they used to have topology as a very tough course. I know because I was in the same department but in a different astronomy/astrophysics group.

[@tammyr1350]

Very informative. Thank you

[@familycamptents]

Thank you for the kind words.