Campman Outdoor Gear & Apparel

The Big Agnes Mica Basin Camp Chair is just one piece in the Big Agnes camp furniture lineup that is brand new for Spring 2019. We haven’t had a chance to field test it yet, but we’ve done enough lounging around the office in the Mica Basin to feel comfortable giving it a review. We’ll start with some general features of the chair and things we noticed and then we’ll tackle the ups, downs, and all around feel of the chair itself.

Features

Weighing in at 2 lbs 3 oz and with a packed size of 17” x 4”, or about the length of four beer cans, this backpacking chair is easy to take with you whether you’re headed to deep into the backcountry or to the park for a barbecue. The aircraft aluminum pole system is both lightweight and strong, so you don’t have to worry about the chair breaking the first time you sit down in it. Designed with a shock-corded architecture, hub-less design, and color-coded frame, the Mica Basin offers a no-frills design that is simple and easy to set up and with a pre-bent pole structure, this chair offers a wider, more stable platform than previous ultralight backpacking chair models, giving you that much needed extra bit of wiggle room.

Although it is similar in design to a camp chair that many of you may be more familiar with, the Helinox Chair One, there are a couple of key differences, bringing us to the pros of the chair itself.

Pros

• One of the issues that a lot of people ran into with the Helinox camp chairs was that the central plastic hub would break, causing the chair to become useless. Big Agnes instead opted for a hub-less design with their camp chair models which, although it takes a few seconds longer to assemble, is clearly a sturdier and more dependable option.

• The Mica Basin, while lightweight and packable, sits a comfortable 16 inches off the ground, two inches higher than the Helinox Chair One, giving you a little extra height so that you don’t feel like you’re about to fall over whenever you need to rest your weary legs from a long day on the trail.

• Pre-bent poles give a wide, stable, and incredibly comfortable seat, especially for a lightweight camping chair.

• It’s super light. At 2 lbs 3 oz, the Mica Basin is finally a chair worth lugging into the Backcountry with you.

Cons

As the chair is brand new to the camping community, it’s hard to say what issues might arise in terms of longevity. Based on our use of the Mica Basin and of the Helinox Chair One, we couldn’t find any major flaws in the design itself but we did come up with a couple of notes for buyers to think about:

• The wider base offers a more comfortable seat but does take some coaxing to get the seat onto the frame, don’t be afraid to pull the material a bit to attach it to the frame. Doing so will create a taut and comfortable platform.

• Similarly, when you go to break the chair down, the plastic caps on the pole-ends can be pulled off by the body of the chair. As they pop back into place without issue or damage it isn't a major problem, but you wouldn't want to lose one as that would make the chair more difficult to assemble in the future.

All Around

The Mica Basin is great for someone who wants to be comfortable while backpacking but also wants to keep their pack light. That said, even with a couple of extra inches in height, it is still lower to the ground than a traditional car camping chair, meaning that while it is comfortable for an ultralight chair, you still end up sacrificing chair height to save on weight. Overall, if you’re looking for something to take car camping for a long trip or as your daily driver for soccer games and days at the park, this might not be your best option. In that case it’d be worth your time to look into something larger, like the Big Agnes Big Six Camp Chair, also new to the Big Agnes camp chair line this Spring.

All said, while the Mica Basin it isn’t as cozy as your favorite spot on the couch, it’s about as close as it gets, especially when the alternative is sitting in the dirt. If what you’re looking for in a camp chair is a lightweight, durable, and efficient design that’s simple to set up, the Mica Basin should be at the top of your list.

We’ll be sure to post any updates on the chair as we field test it and learn more about how it functions on the trail. In the meantime, if you have any questions on the chair itself or about any other camp furniture here at Campman, don’t hesitate to contact us at info@campman.com or call us at 801-999-8117, we’d love to chat with you!

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 experience of a lifetime can come down to the gear you take with you when you head into the outdoors, and we want our customers to have the best experiences possible. That’s why we put our gear to the test, write reviews, and work directly with our customers to make sure that every piece we sell is simply the best.

Questions? Feel free to contact us by phone at (801) 999-8117 or by email at sales@campman.com so we can get you the gear you need to get outside.