Campman Outdoor Gear & Apparel

There’s more to choosing an ultralight backpacking tent than finding the lightest one and calling it a day.

When searching for a new tent, plenty of backpackers find themselves torn between the Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2 and NEMO Hornet 2P. In addition to being lightweight, they’re both proven shelters from brands that have earned great reputations in the outdoor community. While they appear to be very similar on paper, there are a few key details that will make your decision easier.

We’ll get into the details below, but if you’re in a hurry, here’s the low-down.

The Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2 offers a little more storage space, has more room inside when pitched, and won’t take as much room in your pack. This makes the Tiger Wall ideal for the backpacker who doesn’t want to sacrifice liveability to drop a few extra grams off their pack weight.

The NEMO Hornet, on the other hand, comes in at a lighter weight, has some incredibly useful and unique features, and is a little lighter on the pocketbook as well. In other words, if you’re cutting your toothbrush in half to drop weight for your next trip, you’ll find yourself more at home in the NEMO Hornet.

Livability

Comfort is king, as they say. It’s safe to say that although “they” weren’t talking about backpacking, the saying still applies to backcountry pursuits. Your tent could be the lightest, most packable design ever, but if you don’t have enough room, you’re in for a long trip.

Despite similar floor plans, there are a few notable differences between our two contenders. First, and most immediately noticeable, is the amount of usable headroom. This is a big one. Both tents feature a peak height of 39-inches, but the Hornet features a significantly smaller number of attachment points to the pole structure. This results in a slightly easier setup, but significantly less headroom.

Next, is the overall floor space. Both tents feature a semi-freestanding design, which is a nice way of saying that you need to stake out the foot-end corners in order to maximize your usable space inside. This can be a limiter in rocky terrain, which is why Big Agnes made the Blowdown Tent Anchor, so you never have to go without that extra volume at the foot-end of your tent.

Despite nearly identical dimensions, the Tiger Wall walks away with 0.5 square feet of extra floor space when compared to the Hornet. It might not seem like much, sitting at home in a 200 square foot room, but when you’re crammed in next to your partner, and neither of you have showered for the last week, every square inch counts.

Lastly, is the vestibule space. Cutting down on weight often means cutting down on size and materials. This leads to 2-person ultralight tents feeling a little like a sardine can when you actually get two people inside, making vestibule storage space incredibly important for storing boots and packs outside of the tent. Again, by a slight margin, the Tiger Wall comes in ahead with a combined vestibule space of 16 square feet compared to 14.2 square feet of vestibule space in the Hornet.

Advantage: Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2

Weight

While weight shouldn’t be the only factor in your choice of backpacking tent, it should definitely be a consideration. The difference between these two ultralight tents is only a few ounces, but every extra gram counts when you’ve got to carry it for hours at a time.

The Tiger Wall comes in at an impressive packed weight of just 2 lbs 8 oz, with a trail weight (just the tent body, fly, and poles) of 2 lbs 3 oz. Despite this, it still couldn’t out-do the Hornet with a packed weight of just 2 lbs 6 oz and trail weight of 1 lb 15 oz.

Whether or not a two-ounce difference is going to make or break your trip is entirely up to you, but when push comes to shove, a lighter tent means a lighter pack.

Advantage: Nemo Hornet 2P Tent

Durability

For those of us who aren’t fabric experts, the easiest way to think about denier and durability is that, in general, the lower the denier, the lighter weight and less durable the fabric will be.

Both of these tents are surprisingly durable for their weight class, and both use a silicone treated nylon material for the floor and the fly. While both tents feature a 15D Nylon Ripstop floor, the Tiger Wall uses the same material for the fly, with the Hornet using a lighter 10D fly material, giving the Tiger Wall the edge in terms of durability.

Advantage: Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2

Price

Ultralight tents don’t come cheap. While it seems like cutting down on fabric might save you a buck, unfortunately, ultralight materials cost a pretty penny. In either case, price always ends up coming into play.

With only slight differences between the two tents, you’d think the price would be the same. Yet, the Hornet comes in at a full retail price of $369.95, which is 30 dollars less than the Tiger Wall, at $399.95. That $30 could easily go towards getting yourself a nice, ultralight backpacking pillow or a few dehydrated meals for the trail.

Advantage: Nemo Hornet 2P Tent

Unique Features

Both tents offer a smattering of features that will make your life on the trail a little easier. Many of these features are shared between the two models like two-way door zippers, two doors, volumizing guy outs at the foot corners, and three pockets for additional storage space inside. But for all they share, they also have characteristics that are unique and useful in their own right.

In the Tiger Wall, you’ll find niche add-ons like cord-routing portals in the overhead pocket as well as interior loops for Big Agnes accessories like Gear Lofts and mtnGLO Lights. While being able to route your headphones cleanly down to you for a little midnight jam session might be nice, we’re willing to bet it’s not a deal-breaker.

But condensation build-up might be.

Big Agnes tackled the problem of condensation through their low vent vestibule design. This allows you to fold up the corner of the vestibule for better airflow throughout the night while still maintaining full, waterproof coverage for the inside of your tent. This works best if you aren’t storing gear in the vestibule, as that gear might end up a little soggy. Then they doubled down by adding a two-way zipper on the vestibule, letting you vent from the top, bottom, or both.

For the Hornet, they took on condensation with what they call a cutaway rainfly. The fly provides full coverage over the tent, but near the head of the tent, it only extends down just past the mesh. This results in a fully waterproof design that maintains substantial airflow with no extra work on your part and no risk of your gear getting wet.

That, combined with the Divvy stuff sack, which lets you easily divide the tent between two people, and the built-in light pockets, made from a special light-diffusing fabric, make the Hornet extremely well suited for life on the trail.

Advantage: Nemo Hornet 2P Tent

Packed Size

Sure, if you’re the type to carry a100-liter pack for a weekend trip, you don’t have to worry too much about the packed size of your tent, but for the rest of us, it starts to matter a lot more. While neither of these matches the ultra-packable size of a bikepacking tent, both are easily compact enough to fit in a smaller pack.

The Tiger Wall does come in a full inch shorter in length than the Hornet when packed at 5.5” x 18”. That’s extra space you’ll appreciate when your pack is stuffed to the gills, especially when you’ll be packing and unpacking it almost every night.

Advantage: Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2

Conclusion

As is often the case with backpacking gear, the right piece of gear is highly dependent on what features you value, and what you’re willing to sacrifice. Weight, packability, durability, and creature comforts are all valid considerations, where even the slightest differences in design can make a huge difference for the user.

If you’re a backpacker who’s willing to carry a few extra ounces for a bit more wiggle room, storage space, and durability, the Tiger Wall UL2 is the tent for you. Big Agnes is known as the Mother of Comfort, so it should come as no surprise that this ultralight tent offers a little more when it comes to accommodations.

On the other hand, if you’re more price-conscious, weight-focused, or want a tent that is packed full of useful features, the NEMO Hornet 2P has you covered. For an ultralight tent, the Hornet is a great option, especially if you’re worried about how light your wallet will feel when all is said and done. Not to mention that it’s still built with premium fabrics and some very well thought out design features.

About Campman

Campman is an outdoor retail store located in Salt Lake City, Utah, that specializes in gear and equipment for camping, skiing, backpacking, climbing, and everything in between. We understand that the difference between a bad memory and the adventure of a lifetime can come down to the gear you take with you when you head outdoors, and we want our customers to have the best experiences possible. When it comes to getting outside, we get it, and we’ll get you the gear you need to get there.

Questions? Feel free to contact us by phone at (801) 999-8117 or by email at sales@campman.com.