WITH a name like Phad, you can guess that you might have a tent that’s not your run of the mill, and indeed, you don’t even have to unpack it to appreciate that. The stuffsack has a top opening with drawcord, but still with carry handles and quick release compression straps. With the tent laid out on the ground, you’ll notice the colour-coded external mesh pole sleeves are one-way, hence the three poles have a “blunt” end which goes first into the sleeve, with the conventional tip on the other end locating into a webbing strap eyelet. There’s also an adjustment strap and buckle to keep the poles snugly in place.

The whole structure is self-supporting, so on a calm day you have the luxury of getting the tent standing first, then deciding where and in which direction you peg it out. The supplied square section alloy pegs are pretty effective, although the smaller than average curved tops can make them a little hard on the hands. If you do have the wind gusting around you, there’s an entrance on each side of a generously-sized porch, which also has a small zipped window in the end panel. As you come inside, the porch area even has its own groundsheet, although you can unzip it if you’d prefer to save a few grams while admiring the grass.

Once unzipped round to one side, the inner tent door stows in a pocket with a loop and toggle closure for good measure. Inside, the steep walls and high ceiling give a good feeling of space. Lots of wall-mounted pockets to keep smaller items off the floor, but surprisingly no hanging loop in the ceiling for a torch or lantern. Ventilation is good, with mesh panels on each side at ceiling height opposite stiffened vents with Velcro-fastened stays in the flysheet. The top quarter of the inner door also has a zipped panel with mesh on the other side. And to make sure you get a really good through-flow of air when required, the bottom corners of the inner at the front incorporate Coleman’s Variflo drawcord adjustable vents. Apart from the flysheet vents, both doors and porch window are double-zipped so you can leave a small gap at the top for a bit of extra air.

You won’t have much trouble spotting the Phad at night – the seven guylines incorporate retro-reflective flecks, as well as their attachment points on the flysheet. The flaps over the zips around the flysheet doors and window have reflective trims, as do the edges of the flysheet vents.

Verdict: Masses of porch storage space make the Phad a great choice for a basecamp style tent, or for two beginner trekkers – the inner detaches to make splitting the load easier. Excellent value.

Size
•310cm x 160cm
•Inner 210cm x 140cm (98cm)
Packed size
•42cm x 17cm
Materials
•Outer ripstop polyester, PU coated 4000mm and taped seams, UV Pro
•Inner Breathable polyester and no-see-um mesh
•Groundsheet Nylon, PU coated 5000mm, taped seams
•Poles Aluminium 7001-T6 Pegs 18 square-section alloy
Expect to pay £209.99

www.coleman.eu
01275 845024 for stockists