Big Agnes Fly Creek HV UL 2 Tent Review

Carrying around a light backpack, when you go camping, that fits everything inside, is every traveler’s ideal piece of kit. That’s why it’s important to take along vital items only, and also to pack the lightest version of everything.

Don’t take a thick towel, instead use microfiber toweling that’s also ultra-quick to dry out. Specialist lightweight pans are a must. This is one time that using plastic pots is a good idea because they’re light and reusable.

If you’re new to minimalist and lightweight backpacking, such as fishing or photography, watch this video for some great tips. When you get to the end of a long trail, what’s better than a good night’s sleep? That’s when you need a shelter that’s quick and easy to put up. Plus, it will keep you safe from the elements as you sleep off the day’s exertions.

We’ve come up with the perfect solution. An ultralight tent that’s light to carry around and easy to erect. Once up it will protect you all night long. Have a look at our review of the Big Agnes Ultralight tent, so you too can enjoy your next road trip with a light backpack.

Big Agnes Fly Creek HV UL 2 Tent Features

Size	Ground space of 2.6m2 = 28 Sq feet. 40 inches at the highest point. Packed size 4 x 19-inches
Capacity	Up to 2 people
Weight	Shelter only (using a separate flooring) = 1lbs 15oz Outer and Inner tent usage = 2lbs 5oz

One of the reasons the Big Agnes tent is so ultralight is because of the high-quality DAC Featherlight NFL poles. This tent is designed to maximize the smallest of spaces. The DAC angle of the poles helps to increase the inner wall space, creating more room within the tent.

There are a couple of ways you can use the Big Agnes Fly Creek HV UL 2 Tent:

1. If you need an ultralight backpack, then carry the fly cover and relevant poles only. Take along a small tarpaulin floor cover that sits underneath the fly cover set up. This provides a minimal shelter but will offer much protection from the elements.
2. The Big Agnes tent comes in 2-sections; the inner tent, and the fly cover. The inner tent is fully enclosed with a bucket floor and plenty of meshing to allow for good ventilation. The fly cover wraps around the inner tent and protects the user completely. It also has taped seams using solvent-free polyurethane for that extra waterproof defense.

Leave your muddy boots in the dry porch area so your tent stays damp free. Using the provided reflective guy lines, you’re unlikely to trip over them in the dark.

This is a mountain tent with great stability as the poles attach to the tent with the provided Velcro’s fasteners. Added to this are 3 internal pockets creating ample storage for items such as phones and wallets.

How to Set-up The Big Agnes Tent

The manufacturers of the Big Agnes Fly Creek have a great article on tips on how to put up their tent here. This information is very useful and worth having a quick read. It talks about:

• Guy lines.
• Staking out.
• The best way to stake down your fly cover.
• Importance of a Footprint (floor cover).
• Ventilation.
• What to do on rainy days.
• How to take down a tent.

There’s also a video in the article that compliments the page really well.

How to Clean a Big Agnes Tent

There are certain do’s and don’ts when it comes to cleaning tents. One important aspect is never to put a tent in a washing machine. Not only might it get shredded but the waterproofing of the material will be ruined. It’s so easy to clean a tent by hand, that you can have it done in ten minutes. Here are a few tips:

Use the bathtub, large sink, kids empty blow-up swim pool or anything that will hold the tent within water. Mind you, you can do it all in the shower if you don’t mind getting wet with it.

• Brush off any dried dirt of grass before taking the tent indoors.
• Soak the tent in cold water.
• You can use a specialist commercial solution that will not ruin the waterproofing. Even better, if you want to make your own then mix vinegar, salt and lemon juice in water.
• The lemon juice will help with unpleasant odors. The salt acts as an abrasive to help with stubborn stains, and the vinegar will cleanse deeper.

Use the sponge to dab the material and help clean it, something like a large car cleaning sponge is ideal.

• Rub your solution throughout the tent.
• Rinse it all off and hang the tent out to dry.
• Try not to hang it in direct sunlight. The tent’s UV protection might not work as well when it’s wet and could bleach the tent, damaging the waterproofing too.
• When completely dry, fold it up as you would normally, and put it in its storage bag. Keep it in a dry place for the winter so mildew doesn’t set in. When the warmer weather arrives, your tent is ready to go a-wandering with you, once again.

It’s that easy!

How to Fold a Big Agnes Tent

The bigger the tent the more difficult this task can be. Rest assured, once you’ve practiced it a few times, you’ll be an expert at folding any tent. It’s only a matter of learning the technique.

• Take out all the stakes, clean off and keep them in a small cloth bag. For the Big Agnes Fly Creek, you’ll need to take down the flyover first. Then take out all your poles and have another bag for them. When you come to put it up again, all the important parts are easy to find.
• One thing to bear in mind: if you’re forced to pack it while wet, then don’t forget to get it out of the bag as soon as you can, and spread it out to dry.
• When you fold it over and over itself, make sure you get all the air out or it will never fit into its storage bag. Lay it out flat and fold it in half. Roll your body over the material or use bare feet to walk on it to get rid of trapped air. Continue to fold it in half, until you can roll it to fit in the bag.
• For the smaller tent, many users simply scrunch the tent into the storage bag, without folding. This way it doesn’t suffer from constant folding lines. This isn’t so easy for a larger tent as you are bound to trap air in the process.
• Some tents, such as utility tents, fold a specific way. If you can fold one of those, you can fold anything!

Conclusion

The Big Agnes Fly Creek is an ultralight tent that comes in three different sizes for 1, 2 or 3 people. It’s proving popular as a good shelter for any rough terrain.

There are other designs on the market that are similar, such as the MIER, but it’s much heavier than the Big Agnes, weighing in at 3.1lb. Even the Veaga 2, which is also considerably less expensive, comes in far heavier at 4.5lbs. The Big Agnes Fly Creek is hard to beat for its lightweight feature.

About the only other option within that sort of weight is to use a hammock-come-shelter. See our interesting article on setting up a Hennessy Hammock. Then you’ll see what we mean.

If you truly want the best from your hiking trip, it’s important to keep everything to a minimum. That includes the weight of your backpack. Don’t worry, we’ve even got that covered for short trips, with a great review on the Lightweight Venture Day Backpack. Carry around only the basics needed in your ultralight backpack. That way your trip will be a pleasure, rather than a burden.

This article was last updated on November 28, 2022 .