Any $75 canopy tent from a big-box store—we’re talking about the common square canopy with four spindly metal legs—can provide shade during midday. But when you’re camping or eating outdoors, you’ll likely want protection from insects, as well. That’s why we focused on collapsible camping shelters with mesh walls to keep bugs at bay.
A canopy tent is a purchase most regular car campers consider after stocking up on the basics. After all, you can find plenty of smaller and less-expensive items to help you fight bugs, guard against the sun, and shrug off rain. The Clam Quick-Set Escape was by far the toughest canopy tent we tested. It’s made with reinforced polyester and heavyweight no-see-um mesh, and it comes with the strongest stakes we’ve seen on any tent. The Clam also sets up and folds down with remarkable speed—we timed the process at 60 seconds.
There we encountered mild temperatures in the 50s and 60s. A later check of the weather at nearby Point Mugu Naval Air Station confirmed top recorded wind gusts of 40 miles per hour. We later used the shelters on group trips at Wheeler Gorge Campground near Ojai, California, and at the La Jolla group campsite at Point Mugu, as well as on a trip to the El Mirage Dry Lake in the Mojave Desert. With all that in mind, we found more than a dozen tents that met our criteria. One mad idea often begets another, and that is how this $34.95 purchase came about.
As I’ve mentioned elsewhere in the blog, I’m getting married in Joshua Tree on August 2nd, outdoors. It occurred to me that if I insist on inviting people into a blazing Mojave inferno in the height of the summer it would be polite to provide some shade. Shade can be a matter of survival there if you’re outside at midday. Then I started having other wild fantasies, like effectively adding ozark trail chairs a room to the desert shack where I live by erecting the shadehouse in the backyard. The set-up is extremely complicated and took two persons over an hour to complete, including all staking of the structure and guy lines as required by the instructions. We placed the screen house over a picnic table at the campsite and it did a fairly good job of keeping insects out while we were eating.
I think you need to do some redesign on the doors, make them longer or something. We love the size of the tent and we used it for a week with no problems. The second time we set it up one of the poles snapped and now I can’t find where I can get replacement poles. If you want a six-person tent made with high-quality materials but a traditional profile, we recommend the similarly priced Big Agnes Spicer Peak 6, or Nemo’s Aurora Highrise 6.
We bring a proven, unparalleled education program that includes expert coaching techniques and top tier class design. The Yosuda Pro Indoor Cycling Bike L-010 disappointed us with its cheap feel, and our testers did not enjoy their time on it (one called it a “tin can”). The resistance didn’t respond well, the flywheel was loud, and the LCD screen was so dim that we could barely read it. For our latest round of testing, in 2022, we set out to test the Diamondback 510ic. We rode the bike with cycling shoes compatible with its SPD clips; the bike also has toe-cage pedals for use with non-cycling shoes.
As a result, Schwinns became increasingly dated in both styling and technology. By 1957, the Paramount series, once a premier racing bicycle, had atrophied from a lack of attention and modernization. Aside from some new frame lug designs, the designs, methods and tooling were the same as schwinn tricycle had been used in the 1930s.
But with a ceiling that’s 6 inches lower, it feels smaller and darker. It always cost more than our top pick, but the price has gone up another $150 since we first tested it. Queen Bee has been one of my favorite pages to follow! A friend kept sharing her deals so I had to start following and I’m so glad I did. I have been able to purchase so many items at great prices because of her posts. She is great about commenting back to questions or even just saying thanks to people who let her know they picked up an item she posted!