Review and Analysis of Nordisk Halland 2 LW tent
Introduction
I bought this tent for 3-season expeditions to the high Siberian Arctic, when looking for a tent that will be lightweight (as I need to carry everything on my back), comfortable (as I’ll be staying in it for multiple weeks at a time), and, very importantly, able to withstand potentially very strong winds. It excelled in all these aspects, and more.
In general, it is a great tent for either solo or 2-person expeditions. Soloists will appreciate its robustness and ample space at low weight. 2-person teams will enjoy sufficient space at very low per-person weight.
Halland 2 LW is a tunnel-shaped double-wall tent with a two-pole construction and an outer-first construction. More technical information is available under the following link:
https://nordisk.eu/
Test Location and Other Details
I used the tent during solo trekking expeditions to Byrranga Mountains, the most isolated range of the whole Siberia. It is described in scarce research papers [1] as one of the least known areas of the whole Arctic; a region with extremely difficult access.
Photos and more information on the expeditions can be found here and here (the 2017 expedition received a distinction in the “Travel” track during the “Kolosy” festival on exploration).
Low weight
Halland’s total weight is almost exactly 1500 grams, including its pegs. It’s not much for a double-wall robust tent with ample space and high level of resistance to winds and rain. While not being an ultralight construction, its large interior improves ventilation and thus reduces condensation. One has to realize that lighter tents (which I also have been using) will tend to be single-layer and/or having much less space. That means that they would come with worse ventilation and much more potential for condensation to seep into clothes and sleeping bag, ultimately leading to additional weight being carried.
Wind resistance & rain protection
Wind resistance is of utmost importance on many of my expeditions: the targeted regions, such as Taimyr Peninsula and Byrranga Mountains, are very far in the north (their latitude is around the same as the central part of Greenland). Hence, they have no trees, and host frequent hurricanes. As they belong to the most remote and hard-to-get-to parts of the world, it was critical to have a tent that can truly withstand the strongest gales that I could expect. What I found very attractive is the fact that Nordisk does test their tents in wind tunnels and provides explicit specification on how strong the tent are in terms of endured wind speeds. This means, I was able to plan the expedition better, by being able to compare the expected worst case wind scenario with the tent wind resistance. Halland’s strong construction lived up to its test results, and I had no trouble with sleeping securely and peacefully during all the enountered hurricanes.
Any downpours never made me wet: both the waterproofness of the tent’s fabric and the construction itself ensure no water dripping even during longest rains. Taimyr and the Arctic in general are notorious for being very wet and cold – that is true, and Halland lived up to the challenge.
Space comfort, ventilation
Halland 2 LW is amazingly spacious and comfortable for solo expeditions – that is very important when staying for multiple weeks in the wilderness. However, teams of two will also find is accommodating. Ventilation is also thought through – I never had any issues with it, both the ample space and the construction of windows make it easy to get rid of humidity inside.
Setting up
Pitching the tent is straightforward and can be done is a matter of minutes. The tunnel construction makes is also easy to pitch the tent in windy conditions.
Beyond 3-season
I was even able to use Halland during winter. Thanks to the fact that the outer fabric reaches down to the ground, the tent can also be used in such conditions without compromising security in many scenarios. While I would not take this tent on a serious winter expedition in windy conditions, I used it successfully during winter trips to mostly windless central regions of Yakutia, where it was well below -45 C.
Summary
Nordisk Halland 2 LW is a perfect 3-season lightweight tent for solo and 2-person expeditions in very rough conditions, and even for simpler winter treks.
Bibliography
[1] E. B. Pospelova, I. N. Pospelov, A. V. Zhulidov, R. D. Robarts, O. V. Zhulidova, D. A. Zhulidov and T. Yu. Gurtovaya. “Biogeography of the Byrranga Mountains, Taymyr Peninsula, Russian Arctic”. Cambridge University Press. October 2004.