Friday 22 September 2017

Terra Nova Southern Cross 1, review

Chrissie and I have had a Terra Nova Southern Cross 2 for a while now. We bought it as a one-person-plus-dog, four season tent and it has served us well. We also currently own a Hilleberg Enan, which we use for three season solo use, and a Terra Nova Polar Lite 3, which we use for four season backpacking together (this will accommodate us along with both dogs, but we've mostly used it for just the two of us). And that lot doesn't include our old, faithful Terra Nova Ultralight Voyager, which we keep as a spare two person tent.

There was a gap in our armoury for a four season solo tent. We feel the Enan is a little flappy for wild, winter use. Our research revealed that the best buy, in our opinion, in terms of accommodation, price and weight, was the Southern Cross 1.

We bought the tent back in early August, before this year's Arctic trip, so have only just got around to using it. Chrissie took it out for one night close to home but I'd scheduled a 4 or 5 night trip through the Lakes with David (read about it here). So, these are my thoughts (mostly echoed by Chrissie) following that journey. We had overnight rain every night and three out of the four nights were in exposed locations. We had winds up to, probably, 20mph I reckon.

Developed from the Laser tent range, the Southern Cross 1 was a winner in the 2016 UK Outdoor Industry Awards. It's supported by two poles at right angles to each other. One is through a sleeve (blue pole)and the other pole section (red) forms an exoskeleton, with the tent supported by hooks. This second pole unit splits at each end to give two short legs. It has one door and the inner is asymmetric, with the side opposite the door following the curve of the outer. The inner door is half mesh, which cannot be covered. The inner is attached by small fastex buckles to the roof and four corners of the outer. The tent can be pitched inner and outer attached, or outer first.



The tent pitches easily and quickly. I normally place two pegs at the windward end, one at each of the two corners. The red pole is assembled and its ends located in the tapes at the four corners of the outer. There's a choice of two eyelets and I would normally use the outermost of these. The blue pole  slides into the sleeve and each end locates in similar tapes. This creates tension and erects the tent. Now the hooks on the outer are easily clipped to the red pole assembly and the tent is fully supported. There are a 11 pegging points but we've added short cord loops to the bottom of the blue pole tapes, to take a further two pegs. So we're using 13 pegs and carry 2 spares. Incidentally, we are using MSR Groundhogs in preference to the lighter Terra Nova pegs supplied. The whole process of pitching takes less than 10 minutes. It may well take longer in a high wind.

The guys at each end of the tent serve to open shielded vents in the outer...


...and vents in the inner (which can be closed with a velcro-secured flap) allow a through flow of air.


In common with the Southern Cross 2, there's a hook on the edge of the zipped outer door which allows the opened door to be clipped to the red pole.



We use standard NeoAir XTherm mummy shaped mats and, once inflated and positioned with the foot end as far down the tent as it will go, there is a good amount of space left at the head end of inner; between 10 and 12 inches. I place my base clothes here once undressed for the night.


The available porch is roomy. I placed my, virtually emptied, rucsac in the closed side, away from the outer door. This is my 68 litre Osprey Kestrel. My boots are almost hidden from view behind the sac.


There's ample room in the other half to use a stove and store my camp/river crossing shoes.


I found I could store pretty much everything else in the long, triangular space beside my mat.


My sleeping bag's still stuffed in that pic. Once it's in use, even more space is available. There was also plenty of space out of the left of this shot for me to place my watch, headlamp, specs and phone (attached to a large Anker charger) overnight. You can also see the two good-sized mesh pockets on the side of the inner. I usually put stuffsacs in these.

Another feature common to the Southern Cross 2 is a small fastex buckle at the bottom of the outer door zip. With the door closed, this allows the bottom of the door to be clipped up, leaving an open section at the bottom. If you combine this with partly opening the double-ended door zip from the top, you are able to create an inlet and outlet for air, which allows you, with care, to use a stove, inside the porch with the door closed against wind and rain.




You can actually open the zip more than I've shown in that last photo and still get reasonable protection from rain.

I used my Thermarest chair kit inside the tent. I'm 5' 9" tall and I could JUST manage that, with my head touching the top of the inner. I sometimes found I had my head out of the inner. Don't ask why, it just seems to happen. It's not a problem.

I experienced some condensation on the inside of the outer, but it was nothing unreasonable and nowhere near as bad as the notorious Hilleberg Enan.

Given overnight rain each night, but fine mornings, I wiped the outside of the outer down with a small, microfibre cloth to save splitting inner and outer. On repitching I experienced only a few spots of water on the inner floor; easily mopped up.

I quite like the tent. It's not seen high winds yet but I can't see them being a problem. I think all backpacking tents are a compromise. There's no such thing as the perfect tent. You have to make your own choice based on specification, price and, crucially for most of us, weight. Having said that, I think the Southern Cross 1 represents good value for money in a lightweight (for a four season tent) package. Time will tell but first impressions are good.

Do ask if you'd like any further information.

For completeness, here's a link to Terra Nova's site. Note that, with our MSR Groundhogs and the spare stuffsac we carry in case we wish to separate a wet outer from a dry inner, we estimate our carried weight to be around 1.75kg. 

Cheers, and thanks for reading. I hope you found it interesting and useful.

Here's a gratuitous pup pic. Smile!


21 comments:

  1. Tents are definitely not my forte Geoff, but I always find your reviews an interesting read. I would love to have a go at wild camping sometime in the future and the one thing I would like is a little headroom to sit up. Being 6'3", that could be a challenge. If and when the time comes, I'll be knocking on your door for advice.

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    1. Ask away anytime Andy. The SC1 probably wouldn't be for you but there's plenty of choice out there. As an example, the SC2, a lightweight two person tent, is 14cm taller.

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    2. Will keep it in mind Geoff. Cheers mate.

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  2. Hi Geoff, yours in about the best, most comprehensive and well written review on the SC1 I can find on the whole WWW.
    I'm thinking of buying one of these, I was wondering if you still like it?
    Have you used it in strong winds/rain/snow yet?
    Some say the big sides can catch the wind a bit?

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    1. Hi there, yes, the windward sides do catch the wind but I had it out in snow two nights ago (see latest post on my blog) and you can also check out this post by my wife, Chrissie https://chrissiedixie.wordpress.com/2017/10/30/a-bit-of-a-wild-weekend-in-the-lake-district/
      On balance I'd prefer if the sides didn't blow in but it's very stable and, since the fly is very weatherproof, even if it touches the inner it's unlikely to cause a serious problem. It's hard to find anything to beat it for size, weight and cost.

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  3. Thanks for your response. I found your wifes blog on DuckDuckGo a while after looking at yours. I'll read your latest report...Cheers, Phil.

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  4. Thanks for this great review! I'm tossing abput a few tents at the moment and this is in the top 3. You say you had the southern cross 2 for 1 man and a dog. How much room is there in the Southen Cross 1 for the same? I'm 5ft8 and I have a small/medium collie. Many thanks. Joanna

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    1. Hi Joanna.. Thanks for your comments. We have both SC 1 and 2. My lab is small but, in my opinion, there's insufficient floor space for a dog in the 1. We always have our dogs in the inner. That's specifically why we bought the 2. We don't use it as two person tent, just one plus dog. If we camp together with our two dogs we use a three person tent. We only use the SC1 for strict, solo use without a dog. Hope that's helpful to you.

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  5. Thanks Geoff. Very helpful. It looks as though I'll need deal with the extra weight and get the 2man. There's no way Ben is sleeping outside/not in the inner. Cheers again, jx

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    1. You're welcome. I'm sure Ben's worth it 😊 πŸ‘

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    2. In addition, you get two porches and doors. Lots of room for wet muddy gear in the one you're not using.

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  6. Fellow Southern Cross owner here. I've used mine for 7 trips . My thoughts of the tent are very positive. Solid ,quiet, light, stable and well made .I'd like the following upgrades though:hooded vent at the top of the door zip ,guy point at the middle of the 4 big panels, bigger porch, thicker winter pole option and finally, inner door that is wider so I can lie down and look at the view, instead of propping myself up. 8/10 in my book.

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  7. Interesting points. I reckon the pole stands all you can throw at it. We've an SC2 as well (use with dog) and both have been used year round with no real issues. I'm setting off this week for five weeks cycling across France with the SC2 just cos I like the space and weight's less critical on a bike. Thanks for visiting. Enjoy πŸ‘

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  8. Hi Geoff. Considering the SC1 and a Hilleberg Akto as my upgrade for situations beyond my Copper Spur. I often camp in northern Quebec where the bugs are unrelenting. Wondering if you have thoughts on ventilation and mesh, if any, in this tent, as I’ll want it to breathe and cope with high winds while halting the insect onslaught.

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    1. Hi Chad, thanks for visiting.
      The SC1 has a half mesh door so is relatively warm compared to a full mesh inner.
      I've not used an Akto but we have an Enan (the lightweight version) and I would say the SC1 is more stable in wind, given it I has a second pole and, effectively, six feet on the ground.
      My wife and I also have an SC2 which we use for one plus dog and we're happy with both tents.
      I've used the both tents frequently in snow too. They are good, solid, four season tents.
      Good luck.

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  9. Hi there. Thanks for this review. I wonder if I can ask a question. Noticed in one of your blogs a trip with a friend camping - you used the TN Southern Cross and he used the Scarp 1. I'm currently swithering between these two for my new winter tent. Do you recall any difference in handling condensation between the two or any other impressions. Thank you very much. Pauline, Edinburgh.

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    1. Hi Pauline. I've never slept in a Scarp so can't really comment but condensation in the SC is quite acceptable thanks to vents at both ends of the flysheet.

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  10. Thanks for your reply. Kind regards.

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  11. great review answered most of my questions. I enjoyed the photo of the pups

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    1. Thanks πŸ‘ and the pups say thanks too 🐢🐢

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