The RAB Latok summit one person tent is the high altitude, cold weather specialist in this selection and as such is designed as a single skin, freestanding, 1 person shelter with a small footprint, built to squeeze into tight spots in sometimes extreme conditions. The poles cross in the centre, are internal and fixed by Velcro tabs to the shell. These are difficult to fix with gloves on, but this design means carefully pushing the tent walls out as you erect the shelter from inside – brilliant in high winds. The single skin fabric is Pertex Shield Air with a membrane. This is effectively waterproof, as is the nylon bathtub floor with taped seams. Outside, there are 6 ground pegging points and 6 guylines, plus 2 integral belay loops (useful as grab handles). The pitch overall is very wind resistant.
David Lintern Recommends
The Latok summit one person tent is the high altitude, cold weather specialist in this selection and as such is designed as a single skin, freestanding, 1 person shelter with a small footprint.- Weather Resistance
- Small footprint
- Breathability in some conditions
- Internal size
- Price
| Quick specs | |
|---|---|
| Price: £750 Weight: 1563g (tent 1421g, pegs 142g) Pitching: As a unit (single skin) Shell: Pertex Shield Air 15D polyamide 3L ripstop with PU membrane and polyamide backer/ 90gsm/ Hydrostatic Head: 15,000mm/ MVTR: 20,000 gm2/ DWR Liner 70D nylon with PU coated back / 160gsm / Hydrostatic Head: 10,000mm / DWR Groundsheet: Bathtub nylon with taped waterproof seams Poles: 9.6mm DAC Featherlite NSL internally pitched poles Pegs: 12 DAC V-stakes Porches: none Inner Dimensions: 110wide, 210cm long, 80cm high at crown rab.equipment |
The single door is 2 way zipped from the bathtub floor upwards and part protected by a beak. This minimises the amount of snow that enters the tent from entry/exit and means that ventilation is kept high up on the shelter walls, to reduce the chance of carbon monoxide poisoning in heavy weather, but the door will let snow and rain in when open, and there’s no vestibule. There are 4 huge zip ring pulls for ease of use with gloves. Another ventilation point at the rear of the Rab Latok Summit is a simple but ingenious draw string sleeve, which in more extreme weather can be shaped as a snorkel for air direct to the mouth.
Inside, the sides are steep and there’s enough room for storage of bulky winter kit, but with a winter mat, I could only just sit up and I’m a mere 5’8. It’s also not hugely long, which means your sleeping kit can get wet if the door is open.
Despite these caveats, it’s a real refuge in bad weather high on the mountain. I used it between -15C and -2C in sometimes blustery weather and it fared well. It’s not so great at the milder, more humid end of that spectrum, but by ventilating properly I avoided dripping condensation. It’s not designed to deal with bugs, and its tiny footprint means sometimes cramped living conditions, but it does what it’s built to do extremely well. You will need more pegs than those supplied, and probably snow stakes too.
