The MSR Hubba Hubba tent and its little brother, the MSR Hubba tent, look a bit different this year, with muted brown and green colors replacing the reds and yellows of previous years. The good news: these are still the same best-selling, award-winning backpacking tents, and they’re actually getting better.
Along with the change to a more subtle color scheme, both the Hubba and the Hubba Hubba receive a significant upgrade for 2011 with MSR’s proprietary Durashield™ coating. Arguably the highest-quality waterproof coating being used on any backpacking tent, Durashield lasts up to four times longer than standard polyurethane coatings, and is significantly more durable than the silicon-treated silnylon fabrics used by many lightweight tent manufacturers.
The Hubba Hubba is also incredibly easy to set up. With a single hubbed pole, you won’t need to refer to any color codes or try to remember what order you’re supposed to assemble the pieces in. With a simple grommet system for the tent body and rain fly, you won’t need to struggle with a complicated “jake’s foot” setup or properly orient Fastex buckles. The fly doesn’t have 37 different velcro pieces to loop around the poles, the guyouts don’t require you carry a copy of Ashley’s Book of Knots, and you don’t have to convince an accomplice to hold one corner while you awkwardly jam the poles through a fabric sleeve. It’s freestanding, idiot-proof and basically self-explanatory; just roll it out of the storage bag and you’ll be in your tent before that thunderhead opens up, watching your friends fight to pitch their lesser tents in time.
Can a 2-person backpacking tent be ultralight? At 4 pounds on the trail, we think so. Split the MSR Hubba Hubba tent with your hiking partner and it’ll pretty hard to complain about the 2 pounds in each of your packs. Can’t find anyone to go backpacking with you? That’s fine, too, because the 1-person MSR Hubba tent rings in around 3 pounds, and with a functional vestibule and plenty of headroom it’s about the most luxurious solo backpacking tent you can imagine.
As an aside, I specifically enjoy these tent names; just try and explain to a non-backpacker, your mother or some innocent bystander what the difference between the Hubba and the Hubba Hubba is. Hubba Hubba Hubba Hubba Hubba Hubba Hubba Hubba. And, yes, I own one.
Using the MSR tent footprint (ground sheet) with your tent protects the tent floor from unnecessary abrasion and provides an additional barrier against moisture intrusion. For this, nothing works better than these custom-fit MSR footprints, which mate perfectly with your tent and keep things simple. In addition, using the MSR footprint allows you to pitch the tent in a footprint + rain fly configuration if you’re looking to save weight.
Our free MSR Hubba Hubba footprints — and free MSR Hubba footprints — are available while supplies last at rockcreek.com, so there’s no reason to wait. Besides, with an inner tent body that’s almost entirely mesh, these are perfect for hot summer campouts and stargazing on the beach; you’ll get the breeze, and the view… without the bugs!
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