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Camping

Our UK Camping forum has all the information you need on finding the right equipment for your tent or caravan.

Soulpad! I really want a soulpad!...

25 replies

Saggyoldclothcatpuss · 14/09/2010 22:19

I was Ill yesterday, and spent the whole day vegging out in front of the computer, trying to decide which tent to buy. I checked reviews, looked at layouts, compared prices, and finally decided on the suncamp constellation 800... then.... I clicked on a link for an odd sounding company, and the soulpad tribe appeared. I was intrigued, and as I looked at the gallery, I discovered it has a log burning stove as an optional extra!!!! Completely mad heating appliances aside, I think it's a gorgeous tent. Anyone out there got one, and is it worth getting? Feedback please...

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Lovecat · 15/09/2010 09:57

I don't have a soulpad tribe, they do look rather lovely, I went mad last week (whilst remaining practical*) and got a soulpad 5m hybrid.

It came the next day, I am road-testing it this weekend at Debden House campsite - have got my marshmallows and thermal underwear at the ready :)

*my definition of practical = tent has zip off groundsheet - not that we are a family of 3, one of whom is only 5, one of whom is not interested in camping...and I have a 5m bell tent to lose put them in!

Saggyoldclothcatpuss · 15/09/2010 10:03

I don't suppose this campsite is anywhere near me? (Colchester) I'd love to see one in the flesh!

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MrsMellowdrummer · 15/09/2010 10:50

We have a 4m hybrid Saggy, and it's is the bollocks. What I love most is the very very lovely feeling of peace when you are inside it - the canvas is so beautiful when the sun streams in. Ours is obviously a little bit smaller than Lovecat's, but perfect for me and two children. If my husband was coming along with us regularly, then I would probably want the bigger one. They're dead quick and easy to put up too - much more so than nylon jobbies which have lots of annoying poles and loops and things. And good in wind and rain. Just a bit heavy if you need to carry it long distances. Fine if you're planning to camp with a car though.

The tribe is the teepee one isn't it? I didn't go for one of those, as I figured it would be bigger/heavier to store, but not quite so practical in terms of space inside etc. They do look fantastic though!

Lots of threads on here about bell tents - have a read!

Lovecat · 15/09/2010 12:12

Saggy, the site is in Essex, but about as far away from you and still in Essex as it could be (only 15 mins in car from us which is why we're going there for the test!).
Website

If you'd like to drive for miles come see it we'll be there early Saturday morning til Sunday midday - you'd be very welcome - so far it's just me & DD, with possibly her best mate and best mate's mum (and lots of red wine) in a mahoosive tent!

Saggyoldclothcatpuss · 15/09/2010 22:02

Ok , question for you, lovecat, is it worth paying for a hybrid? The groundsheet doesn't come fully off does it? Still attached at the door? Am I going to want to roll the sides up? Basically, what made you buy the hybrid? I wish they had a showroom where you could view!

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Lovecat · 15/09/2010 23:31

Groundsheet zips off completely, as far as I can see. It's just that you can't roll the sides up at the door because of the secondary mosquito net door.

I have no idea if you'll want to roll the sides up (!), but given the weight of the tent, I preferred the idea of a detachable groundsheet so that I can clean and dry it separately when muddy, but also be able to zip it on so that no spiders, beetles or other things likely to make DD shriek at stupid o'clock in the morning can get in :)

The other thing that sold me on the hybrid was that it's got a mosquito net on the door, unlike the other one with the separate groundsheet. As DD is catnip to mosquitos and midges and I was unconvinced about the worth of an inner tent, this seemed a good compromise.

Yes, a showroom would be great!

hellymelly · 15/09/2010 23:36

I have the same one as lovecat,but our mission to spend our first night out in it a week ago was aborted at 11p.m. because I felt so nauseous I assumed I had a bug so we drove home (only ten minutes away).then I was fine,I think it was the pvc fumes from our new airbeds in such a confined space.Don't know when we'll get to properly test it out now.We did go back the next morning to hang out in it and it was so lovely having all that space.I have an inner tent too which did seem rather warmer than the other half.

hellymelly · 15/09/2010 23:39

Oh and I went for the hybrid because I thought in future years the DDs might want to lounge around in with friends and that they would like to be able to roll the sides up,but as I have a wasp-sting allergy I wanted the groundsheet to be firmly attatched.

amistillsexy · 15/09/2010 23:54

Tribe looks great, but 3 lots of pegs to put in - that's going to take ages to put up! Also, because the walls go right down to the floor, you've got a lot of wasted space which the bell tents don't have because of their walls.
That said, 5M is a massive footprint, so you'll have lots of useable space anyway, and it's the canvas and the height that makes these tents so wonderful, IMO, so a Tribe would be great too, I'm sure.
We have a 5M bell tent (with separate ground sheet). Had it for 2 summers now and don't ever want to holiday in anything else! It's totally wonderful.
Waking up in the morning with diffused sunlight coming through the canvas is amazing, and the feeling of being in 'fresh air' you get with canvas is what camping should be about.
We do occassionally roll up the sides on a warm day. It's not something I feel too comfortable with on a crowded site, though, as it exposes the entire innards of your tent to everyone who walks past! (It's the tent equivalent of tucking your skirt in your knickers to paddle, IMO).
Everyone I've read/heard talking about their bell tent has raved about it. I've never heard of anyone being disappointed or wishing they'd bought a different tent (unless it's a more expensive/luxurious version of the one they've already got!)
I'm sure you'd feel the same way about your Tribe if you got one.

SanctiMoanyArse · 15/09/2010 23:59

Locecat do feedback, we bought exactly teh same tent but can't use it to trial until Easter.

We've done the concentional tents- spent a forturne- but after a bad year with a manky faulty tent gave in and decided to try something completely different.

Lovecat · 16/09/2010 00:25

Ooh, thanks for that thought, hellymelly, I have bought new airbeds in the Wilkos sale, I will take them out tomorrow morning and air them so they can de-fume before the weekend.

I will do feedback on Sunday night! :)

Am now feeling a bit of a wuss, friends will now be joining us later, so DH is going to follow me on his way to work and laugh at watch me put it up in case there's a problem/am too weak and feeble to manage it alone. But he can do the stopwatch thing so I can suss out exactly how long it'll take to set up from start to finish.

DD is getting very excited now - but not as much as I am :o

MrsMellowdrummer · 16/09/2010 15:28

Saggy, if you're quick there are a couple of Soulpad tribes on special offer on the soulpad website as of today!

soulpad.co.uk/sanctuary/component/page,shop.browse/category_id,21/option,com_virtuemart/Itemid,38/vmcchk,1/

TheButterflyEffect · 16/09/2010 15:39

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Saggyoldclothcatpuss · 16/09/2010 21:12

Sad can't afford to buy just yet, got to get some heating oil in! Never mind. It's something to look forward to.
A bizarre thing happened today, I got to work at the pub down the road, and there is a soulpad pitched out the back! I had a good look at the outside, and when I go back on Monday I get to look inside. Smile

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TheButterflyEffect · 16/09/2010 22:13

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Saggyoldclothcatpuss · 17/09/2010 09:48

Lol! I'm going to be saving hard! Grin unfortunately, we HAVE to have oil! Got to keep the kids warm!

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Lovecat · 19/09/2010 20:29

Right, an update (am absolutely knackered and heading for bed before work tomorrow!)

It was very easy to put up but time-consuming for one person. DH sat and watched with the stopwatch and from opening the bag to final tent peg going in it took 55 (very straightforward) minutes - but he, the man who hates camping, was absolutely fascinated by how it worked, loved the tent and wants to go again asap, so I think with 2 of us working on it and with experience, it will be a lot quicker! Given that we spent nearly 3 hours in a howling gale trying to thread bendy poles into nylon tunnels and then anchor them in at Latitude, this was sooooooo much better!

Once inside it was blissful - so much light and space, a real feeling of calm and peace. I had 4 airbeds and several boxes of stuff in there and there was TONS of room. While we were waiting for our friends to arrive, DD kept wanting to play house inside it, or just lie on the airbeds (which I had covered with woven throws I'd picked up cheap from the market) and chat, and it was really, really lovely.

It was very hot on Saturday afternoon and we didn't roll the sides up, but we did unzip the half-moon windows and there was a lovely breeze blowing through the insect screens. The loops for rolling the tent up made great holders for the solar fairy lights I'd brought along and the girls loved having them on when they fell asleep.

At night the groundsheet was cold, but we'd been forewarned about that (see other thread) and with rugs it was nice and warm underfoot. It rained heavily in the night, the noise of which woke the adults up, but not a drop came in the tent.

The one thing that I found a slight drawback was that it was very easy with all that space to make it look messy - I am going to have to be disciplined when we go away for more than 1 night!

Taking it down was much, much quicker (15 mins singlehanded while my friend occupied the girls) and again very easy. When we woke up the outside of the tent was 'beaded' with raindrops but by 11.30 when we packed up, on a very overcast day, it was bone dry. Groundsheet not muddy beneath either. Only issue was that we must have folded it up wrong as after 3 goes we still couldn't fit it into the bag (have about a foot of it sticking out the top!) so I will need to review that one with DH (who is better at that sort of thing).

All in all, I absolutely love it, it's so simple yet the space and light and just the feeling of it is amazing, it's the best thing I've ever slept in and Saggy, you should have come because there were 3 bell tents of varying sizes on the site and a Tribe too!

Right, now I'm utterly dead (camping, swimming, unpacking) and off to bed :)

MrsFromage · 19/09/2010 20:58

Lovecat - I was at Debden House this weekend. Were you in middle of field five? I was very jealous of a cool looking tent with fairy lights which I suspected was a soulpad.

Lovecat · 19/09/2010 21:15

Yeah, that was us - next time come over for some winebox! :o Were you with the birthday party?

(You very kindly didn't mention our woeful attempt at a campfire - DH buggered off to work and so we had to fetch our own wood - being weak n' feeble, we only managed a small pile of it and ended up putting a bag of bbq charcoal on it to keep it going...Blush)

Saggyoldclothcatpuss · 19/09/2010 23:36

Lovecat, thanks. I seriously considered coming to visit, but I worked fri and sat all day and I was knackered today! It's totally random, there is a soulpad at the pub where I work! I reckon that's karma! Someone somewhere is encouraging me to get one!

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MrsMellowdrummer · 20/09/2010 12:13

Saggy - re packing away...

I found with ours, after a bit of experimentation, that folding it into four (two ends into the middle, so that the edges meet, and then over again to make a rectangle, if that makes sense), then rolling up, equals perfect packing every time.

We have a 4m one though - maybe the 5m one is different?

Once you've found your technique though, it's dead quick!

Saggyoldclothcatpuss · 21/09/2010 00:28

Hey, this bell tent lark gets better and better. I met the owner of the tent at the pub today. He looks like Tom Selleck! Yummy! Grin

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Lovecat · 21/09/2010 08:38

It's obviously meant to be, Saggy... :o

Saggyoldclothcatpuss · 21/09/2010 22:22

Shame every soulpad doesn't come with a tall dark sexy bloke? Grin

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Needanewname · 20/10/2010 12:17

Have to say not convinced by the tipis as I can imagine that the water comes straight in when ins raining, however I am too a proud owner of a 5m bell tent with ZIG (though not soul pad, I went directly to Holland to get it from Obeling - well worht the journey).

We also have the inner which is lovely, really big and doesn't affect the look and feel at all.

Right, just need some bunting and fairly lights now!!!

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