This handy shelter is billed by Badger as a short-stay shelter. I can see it's greatest value being to those who want to do overnighters or weekends.
The first pleasing aspect of it is that it is light and it packs down into a very compact carry bag and that, unusually for many bivvies and tents, the carry bag is big enough to fit it in after you have used it! It appears to me that many of the tote bags supplied seem to assume that you have a portable vacuum packing capability….
This bivvy is based oN the popular Badger Eclipse shelter but with the addition of a zip-in infill panel complete with a roll up door and meshed ventilation panels. The groundsheet is built-in with a velcroed on extension for when you use it with the front panel fitted.
Erecting the shelter is easy enough, the shock corded poles fit into the sleeves and the whole thing is up in a few minutes. The shelter can be used either with or without the front panel fitted according to your requirements or those of the waters you fish! Once set up and guy-roped out the whole set-up is remarkably stable.
Whilst it is not essential the addition of a set of storm poles and caps, which are available separately, do make a big difference to the overall stability of the front of the structure.
Once erected there is plenty of room for a bedchair and the rest of the kit that we all take along!
The shelter stood up well to the dreaded hosepipe test with no sign of water ingress which is more than can be said for some much pricier offerings from other companies.
The pernickety might argue that, as a single-skin shelter, condensation is likely to be a bit of an issue but this is true of most of this type of shelter, even some of the so-called breathable ones. Doubtless Badger will make an overwrap to fit at some point in the future and that would deal with it.
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FISHINGmagic VERDICT
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All in all this is an excellent product that will appeal to those who enjoy the odd short session, it is a flexible and versatile system and at a very reasonable price.
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