Kelty Acadia 6 Tent

Since there were no reviews of this tent, I thought I would share some first impressions of the Acadia 6 after receiving mine last week. Hopefully this will help others in the search for your next tent. I have set the tent up, but have not used it extensively yet. Once I have a chance to use it in the field, I will share more thoughts.

Perfect size: Bought this for use while camping with my two young sons, and the size is perfect. I am 6'1" and can stand up in the tent without any issue. The vestibules that are created by the fly are also very nice and will provide a ton of dry storage for shoes and other stuff you don't want in your tent.

Super easy to set-up: The tent sets up with two poles that slide easily through the pole sleeves. The poles are heavy duty. The sleeves cover 70% of the pole, so you only have two clips on each corner to snap on, which is nice. The fly has its own pole which fits very tightly into the fly. The only time I wish I had a 2nd person helping me set-up the tent was when I was trying to get the fly onto the tent. Once I figured out a way to balance the fly support pole on top of the tent, it was fine. I am sure next time will be easier, but a 2nd person will definitely make it easier.

Mesh: 3/4 of the tent is mesh, which will be really nice on hot, summer nights. I hate being hot so this was one of my top reasons for buying the tent. Since the top of the tent is mesh, there is no way to attach a "gear attic". There is a loop at the top of the tent to hang a light or small bag, There are two large (approx. 15" wide x 8") pockets at the base of the tent. If you have items you want to keep up and away from the floor of the tent, I would recommend hanging a small stuff sack from the small loop at the top of the dome.

Doors: the doors are very large and easy to unzip. classic Kelty design here. There are also little fabric straps to hold the doors open if you roll them up.

Stakes: Usually the stakes that come with tents are pretty weak, but the stakes with the Acadia 6 are pretty nice. They are lightweight aluminum and don't appear to be prone to bending.

Storage bag: The tent and fly come in what amounts to a medium size duffel bag. The best part is that the bag is large enough that you don't have to fold the tent up exactly the way it came from the factory to get it back in the bag.

Overall, I am pleased with the purchase. For the price, I think it is hard to beat.

I've used this tent twice, both times in similar conditions. The first use was definitely a learning experience. High winds combined with poor setup led to a collapse and damaged pole. The onus was on me, though, as I'd failed to run the rain fly guy lines (included in bag but not pre-attached) and the angle/force of the wind basically used the fly as a parachute, pulling and bending one of the main poles.

Once I got a replacement pole and realized that the guylines are essential for full structural support, it stood up just fine to similar winds AND rain on my next trip out.

I'm quite happy with the tent; it has more than enough space for me, lady, dog, and gear. It packs down compact, and the fly keeps us dry without getting muggy or allowing for too much condensation.

One drawback to the size/lack of solid sides on the tent itself - even with three warm bodies, the tent never gets all that warm at night. Summer's not a problem, but when temps dropped below 30 on my most recent trip, it was definitely a cold night.

Ironically, the attached pic shows it without the guylines placed. lol

Used the tent in Florida for a family of 6, just one night. Real sturdy, seems like it could withstand a good wind and rain. Setup went well, but directions could have been a little clearer because they were for two models of tents, not a big deal. It was hot and humid, no wind and the fly was left closed which created an even hotter tent. After opening both ends of the vestibule it created a nice cross breeze and cooled things off nicely. Would have left off the fly/vestibule if there were no chance of rain which is a strong suit for the tent, it's versatile. Since the tent is almost all mesh it would have been some good stargazing! The only problem is that while being quite large, I'm not sure I would classify this as a 6 person tent. Maybe 5 adults. We fit since we had small kids but it was a bit tight. Overall this tent is great and exactly what I was looking for and for the size it's reasonably lightweight.

This tent sets up very easy. It has two doors which can act as windows. Even though it is a screen body, the construction of the rain fly all the way to the ground means that your body heat will help keep you comfortable at night. If it is too hot, you can open the doors, hotter yet, unclip two of the rain fly connectors. They use wonderful snap connectors that make the rain fly a piece of cake compared to others mfgs that keep slipping off one side as you do the other.
IT EASILY FITS IN THE BAG IT CAME IN!!! When all is said and done, when you are dog tired it sets up with no fumbling. When you are dog tired and late hitting the road it packs up with no drama. The only tent that is faster up and down is the two person model which I use when I am only camping for one night. My pictures show my 2 person model.

I haven't used it in the rain yet so I can't comment on the waterproofing. I like that the fly covers the entire tent but the door/ vestibles can be opened to see out or let air flow. This tent seems well made to me. It was easy to set up with almost no need for directions. The fiberglass poles keep it very light as well. My wife likes the height of it because she can stand up all the way. That's great when getting changed. I would say this is not a 3-season tent. With all the mesh, it's like one big window that can't be closed so you only have the fly to keep heat in. That makes it a great summer tent but not cold weather. I am very happy with this purchase. I would buy it again and would recommend it to anyone who was looking for a large, family size summer tent.

We live in the Pacific NW so staying dry is a major priority. Sure enough, during our first time using the Kelty Acadia it rained through the night. We stayed completely dry. Not a single drop made it through the fly (unlike other tents I have used, where a few drips get through the fly but the tent itself catches those). There are only 3 poles with this tent (2 for the tent and 1 for the fly) so set-up takes less than 10 minutes for two adults. This was important, as it was pouring rain when we took down our tent. We stayed quite dry while the other campers in our party got soaked taking theirs down, because it had 5 or 6 poles and an asymetrical design. I'm sure we'll get lots of use out of our Kelty Acadia.

It is a roomy tent for couple with gear and kid, no kids. The rainfly covers the tent well a protect from rain but most of the tent walls are transparent mesh, so getting some privacy on a hot day can be a sweaty experience. The rainfly reaches almost to the ground which is really good and leaves the tent ventilated, but again having the mesh walls makes the tent a bit too cold. So when it is hot, it is too hot and when it is cold, there is no way to warm it. Last thing, the floor is made of really thin nylon that will not hold any rough shoes, gear, dog in the tent. Other than that, easy to set up and fold by one person.

Nice, but not perfect.

Great tent! Went camping for 3 days/2 nights and it rained on and off the whole time. The inside stayed dry as a bone. One vestibule area is big enough to fit 2 camping chairs under, to enjoy the outdoors/rain while being under cover. The size was excellent for 2 people - was able to fit queen air mattress and had plenty of space. Would still be plenty big for a family of 4. Need 2 people to set up as it is over 6 feet tall. Break down was easy but it was raining. We set it up to dry at home and all it needed was a good shake and all the camping debris came right off.

It was roomy and fairly easy to set up, which was good because the Instructions were not clearly stated. Especially confusing was the pole that appears to go in the fly. It actually looked like the wrong instructions were with this tent. The drawing of how the poles crossed at the top of the tent was not at all what it really looke like on the actual tent. I'm anxious to actually take it out and camp in it. Oh, a BIG selling point for me was the fact the the fly covered the tent all the way to the ground, it didn't just come part-way down.

I took this tent camping at Brainard Lake for my first run with it. It held two people and 3 dogs (one dog was only 7 lbs) pretty comfortably.

What really impressed me, though was that it held up beautifully through all kinds of rain and two hail storms. One of the hail storms actually had some pieces that approached golf ball size. We all stayed dry and the tent held through it all. I was very impressed. I do reccommend getting different tent stakes though. The ones that come with are kind of flimsy.