Update: Too often, moto magazines review a piece of gear and you never hear about it again. I’m here to tell you that in mid-2024, I’m still using this tent. I don’t use it often, but when I do, I have zero problems with it. I’ve heard all the arguments about cheap tents letting you down, but as far as this one goes, it has lasted me through three years of infrequent use with zero issues. I’m very happy with my purchase—ZK

The older I get, the more I believe in “Buy once, cry once.” Buy cheap gear and it’ll fail when you need it, and you’ll end up spending as much money in the long run. Or if you really want or need certain specs and capability, but you compromise on pricing, you’re often unhappy and buy what you really want, eventually. So how did I end up with a $175 CAD no-name tent off Amazon, instead of buying something from a reputable manufacturer like Big Agnes or Eureka? Even those tents are fairly mid-range in pricing and they have a good reputation, so why spend less?

Really, I just wanted to see if I could handle life in a tent again. For the past decade, I’ve mostly camped in hammocks, but I wanted to try a tent out to see if it offered any advantages I’d been missing. Instead of stuffing my bulky old hand-me-down four-man Wal-Mart tent onto the bike, I decided I’d try something newer and smaller. I wanted it to be bikepacking-friendly, since those bicycle-oriented tents come with shorter poles that also fit easier onto a motorccle.

Enter the Naturehike Cloud Up two-man tent! I seriously considered a few different options before pulling the trigger here, and almost ended up with a small backpacking setup from The North Face. But the Naturehike freestanding, two-layer tent seemed better-reviewed, even though it was a no-name brand from China, and all the specs seemed to indicate it would pack nicely in my moto luggage. Storage size is about 16×5 in, and the tent weighs between 3 and 4 lb, depending how many of the accessories (groundsheet, pegs, etc.) that you’ve got packed. Not bad for $175ish CAD (currently, Naturehike lists the tent at $179 at Amazon.com).

Camped in the infield fog at Atlantic Motorsport Park, I could overlook a bit of condensation. Photo: Zac Kurylyk

First trip

The first trip with this tent was the Canadian Superbike race weekend at Shubenacadie, where I stuffed the tent into a Nelson-Rigg tailbag, along with a sleeping bag, sleeping pad and whatever else I needed for the weekend. Surprise, surprise—it all fit. While I would have needed to pack a few more clothes for a longer trip, I was definitely well on my way towards trimming down my previously too-bulky camping setup.

My initial tent setup was performed in the dark, with a flashlight, so I guess you could say it’s pretty non-complicated. Just make sure you’ve got the right tentpoles at the right end of the tent, and it all snaps together quickly. String out your guylines, snap on the fly, and you’re ready to go. It’s hard to get wrong, as long as you’ve got your groundsheet out in a level area.

Considering we woke up the next day with the Atlantic Motorsport Park infield blanketed in thick fog, it was no surprise the inside of the tent had some condensation. It dried out quickly in the scorching mid-July sun and the next day, with no fog and more attention paid to venting, I had no issues. I was already a happy camper, no pun intended, by the end of my first trip with the tent.

At a campground in Newfoundland. I had on-and-off rain most of this trip, and the tent did not leak. Photo: Zac Kurylyk

The rest of the summer

Although I didn’t get as much opportunity to travel as I’d hoped this year, I did take the Naturehike tent on my trip through Nova Scotia and Newfoundland in August, and the Fundy Adventure Rally Reunion in September. My initial findings were reinforced; the tent vents fairly well if you take the time to stake it out properly (and dries quickly when you don’t). Throughout my trips, it was waterproof through all rainstorms. It packed nicely into my luggage, compared to other cheap tents I’ve owned. The two-man size is perfect for one large guy and some luggage (I typically left my boots and riding gear under the tent’s tiny vestibule and brought what I needed inside). It’s quick and simple to set up.

Spec sheet

See Naturehike’s specs below.

Image: Naturehike

Not ultralight, but if you’re riding anything but a lean, mean enduro, this will work.

The problem (?)

I liked my tent well enough that I plan to use it into the future, and I’d recommend it as good value for money. It held up fine to my summer’s camping trips, and frankly if I get another couple of seasons out of it, I’ll feel I got my money’s worth. The only part of the tent that feels weak (besides the chintzy pegs) is the aluminum poleset. To be clear, I think they’ll last the natural life of the tent, but they don’t feel like they’d take much abuse, either.

But there was another potential issue with the tent, and I’m not sure how I feel about it. It’s very similar to the Big Agnes Fly Creek HV UL2 bikepacking tent. Take a look at the photos below, and you’ll see what I mean.

On the left, the Big Agnes tent. On the right, the Naturehike tent.

Is it an actual copyright or patent infringement? That’s a question for the courts, not for me. And if it isn’t a legal issue, then does it matter? Mankind has been making tents for thousands of years, and if there are no actual laws being broken, do we care if they look alike? After all, the Big Agnes is still a different tent, even it looks the same.

I really don’t know, and I don’t know if I’d buy this Naturehike tent again. There is more to life than saving short-term bucks; we want to support companies that innovate and improve their products and stand behind them. Big Agnes itself makes tents in China’s Guangdong Province, so I have no problem buying the Naturehike due to its origins in China—I’m just not sure that the designers weren’t too close to the line.

But this sort of thing is everywhere, even in the moto industry. Ever wonder why all the four-cylinder UJMs are so similar? If Honda popularizes the four-stroke dual sport, does that mean nobody else can ever make one? Does Harley-Davidson hold a patent on the potato-potato sound? How many luggage manufacturers, helmet manufacturers, jacket manufacturers are all gaining inspiration from each other? If it’s not a legal problem, does that make it right?

That’s a personal consumer choice you must make. If you are OK with buying this Naturehike tent, well—you’ll easily track it down via Google, but I do note that prices have risen since I bought mine last summer. If they rise much more, the Big Agnes tent won’t be that much more expensive, as long as you can find one in stock.