I never elk hunt without one. My reference runs toward 10 oz fire and water resistant canvas although Relite appears to be an option especially in the walls for weight savings. Make certain that the walls are 5 feet tall, there is a sod cloth, you will need an insulated stove pipe hole, and only one door is adequate. Forget the windows. 12 oz. canvas (double woven) is more durable and warmer but tends to weight a bit more. More recently I have started using an internal aluminum frame. The frame is a little tough to pack on a horse but manageable. This frame rids me of the disgusting problem of arriving at a known camp site well in the mountains only to discover that the last user elected to cut up the tent poles and burn them for firewood. It is unsettling to tramp about the hills in the dark looking for more poles with the grizzlies watching. Try Reliable Tent in Billings, MT, Sheridan Tent in Sheridan, WY, or Davis in Denver, CO. All make good products in addition to several others that you can Google for in case you don't have a local tentmaker.

Thats a great question. here is some good advice. I have hunted elk in Utah, Montana, Colorado, Wyoming and Arizona. Up until a few years ago (three to be exact) I used a 10oz canvas treated wall tent and found them to be the best possible option for comfort and reliability on an extended hunt. My hunts were usually 10 to 21 days. Until...

Three years ago I purchased a Cabelas brand Alaknak tent. I now use both the Alaknak and Big HornIII also from Cabelas. I have made the change for several reasons.

1- The Alaknak and Big Horn are much lighter and in my opinion easier to erect.
2- The Alaknak and Big Horn provide just as much room, hold out the wind just as good (maybe better) and hold the heat from the stove very well.
3- I paid less for the Big Horn and Alaknak combined than I have for a single canvas wall tent. I did purchase the vestibule for the Alaknak and Big Horn and highly recomend any one do so as well. It completes the tent and situation, especially if the weather takes a turn for the worst, you'll be glad you have them.

If your hunt is going to last more than a weekend you need good equipment to be comfortable and safe. Rain, snow and wind can ruin a good hunt if you don't have the proper equipment.

Call a few Cabelas stores in your general area and check the "Bargain Cave" for a returned Alaknak or Big Horn III tent. You can save quite a bit that way, and Cabelas will let you inspect the tent before you buy it to make sure that all the poles and what not are there and that there is no damage to the tent material.

If you use a wood or coal burning stove, be sure to get the protective fly for the embers that will be present (you would do the same for canvas too).

I purchased some carpet remnants to use on the floor of my tents and also in the vestibule areas. This works out fantastic.

My last hunt was near Prescott Arizona between Christmas and New Years (Archery Mule Deer). The temps were 0 degrees at night with wind and snow. I took the Big Horn III, there was 2 of us, and we were very warm and comfortable.

before you go with heavy canvas give the Alaknak or Big Horn a look. Cabelas also has another style, made of the same meterial. It offers attachable sleeping pods. But other than than it's an Alaknak.

Good luck and have a great hunt!

One of mine weighs 65 pounds and the other 80. The horses carry them in and out and they don't care. Yep they are not only a pain to set up but also to take down and fold properly. I have been know to hire a wrangler to put up the tents, cook the grub, cut the firewood, and tend the horses. What I really want to do is ride and hunt but sometimes the rest is a necessity.

Sorry, one more thing, if you are interested in a military tent, you can try the following links:

http://gsaauctions.gov/
http://web.govliquidation.com/

Remember if you buy one to make sure you get the poles with it.

I had always wondered about the Alaknak but could not find anyone to recommend one until now. Looks like a good choice to me. For a spike camp in decent weather a range or cowboy teepee in 8 x 10 or so is good for two people. It is light, quick and easy to set up. Good wind shelter also.

Happy, I left my best old cowboy teepee set up all one summer. No poles at all, just tossed a rope from the top of the teepee over a tree limb and put four pegs down, one in each corner. The kids played in it the entire season. When I took it down in the fall to take on a sheep scouting trip the entire floor had rotted out.

My old tent has treated canvas top and white dam canvas sides. It is great! See recently added photos in my profile. I don't have to bother with a fly, and embers have never been a problem. It was originally 12x14 but I removed one panel and shortened it. The four-piece framed floor fits in the back of my pickup. Assembles together with carriage bolts and door hinges. It only has four-foot walls (orignally only three feet!) and I get by okay with my 6'2" frame. Five-foot walls would be nicer (but heavier). However, tents with five-foot walls are much more difficult to put up by yourself and I have always hunted alone. I made opening so I could slide the ridgepole (carefully!) through the tent rather than hanging it from the ridgepoles. It's much less likely to sag under snow and convenient for hanging the lantern and clothes hangers (sink screw hooks into the ridge pole). I also usually bring along chunks of fiberglass insulation to shred up and stuff in floor cracks between sections and around the ridgpole ends. That baby is snug and has withstood some horrible blizzards. I had a pickup camper for years and never liked it as much as the tent. And, of course, the horses couldn't pack the camper thirty miles into the wilderness.