On hitting the shores of Blighty after returning from my Appalachian Trail thru- hike in late 2012, the air was buzzing. Catching up with work on the pc, I was constantly met by one word – Trailstar. Having been out of touch for a while in the woods, I admit I didn’t know what it was but everyone was raving about this shelter that, as far as I could see, didn’t seem to be attracting any bad reports whatsoever.
As attached as some hikers are to their Trailstars, many have even named them. I’m sure some of you have read about Alan Sloman’s affection for his, fondly referring to it as ‘Trinny.’ I haven’t become that affectionate to it, to me, it is known simply as ‘The Palace’ on account of the interior space. More about that further down.
(Photo: Jeremy Rowley)
I was familiar with Mountain Laurel Designs (MLD) prior to my hike and met a few people on the AT with equipment made by them. I met hikers extolling the benefits of their Exodus pack and Phill ‘Lazagne’ Colelli, a hiker I walked much of the way with, introduced me to their Spirit Quilt, I now rarely sleep under anything else. MLD’s reputation is not in question, it’s rare you hear a bad word said about their products and if you do, it’s a desperate gripe about something inconsequential.
Ron Bell, the proprietor over at MLD kindly sent me a silnylon Trailstar well over a year ago and as with the ZPacks Hexamid Solo, it has taken me a little while to get to know mine, and subsequently write this review. Do I like it? Yes, I love it. I can’t pick any serious faults with it. I do have some issues but none of these are related to poor workmanship or lack of performance. As with all shelters, and indeed most outdoor equipment, the Trailstar is best suited to certain situations and circumstances in which it excels, or which the user feels comfortable. There are situations I wouldn’t use it in simply because there are other shelters that are better suited to those circumstances. I have minor issues with the weight, but that is because my tolerance of what I take on a trip in terms of weight now has high expectations. What I consider over my limit is still super light to others and the Trailstar is light.
Pitch and 120cm for better ventilation. In stormy conditions lower down to 100cm.
It is, in fact, a very clever tarp. The original concept was being tested by MLD as long ago as the early 2000’s. Pyramid shaped, it is available in either silnylon (567 gr / 20 ounces) or cuben fibre (311 gr / 11 ounces). These weights do not include the stuffsac, guy lines, excellent lineloc adjusters and seamseal (all included) .
It utilises one trekking pole as a central, internal support and another to support the entrance as well as 10 tieout points, although in most circumstances six is all that’s needed. Five, equal sides form the pentagon shaped shelter. Pegging out points are reinforced by extra sewing and taped. The pole support area is reinforced with dyneema. There are internal hooks for hooking up a drying line or for utilising MLD’s inner bug net / ground sheet, supplied extra (Silnylon floor @ 354 gr / 12.5 ounces and cuben fibre floor @ 8 ounces / 227 gr).
The Trailstar comes with a large Silnylon bag. You need to compress it down to get a small size but once there it’s impressive.
My first attempt at pitching the Trailstar was, for an initial attempt, bloody simple. Not just to get it up, but also to actually get a great, taught pitch. This surprised the hell out of me, not anything to do with a mis-trust of MLD but more my pitching ability, especially a first attempt. So, I took it down, threw it around a little to lose the shape and pitching points and tried again with exactly the same result.
It’s a pretty straight forward process. Lay out the Trailstar loosely on the ground, it helps to have the entrance, which is identifiable by the MLD logo, facing away from the wind or in the best position for a decent view. Then, stake out the corners roughly equally, you just need to get a half decent footprint of the shape. Get underneath and erect your trekking pole at a height of 120cm for a high pitch, or 100 cm for a low pitch. A high pitch aids ventilation and a low pitch would be preferable for more stormy conditions. The second pole is used to support the entrance; I just wrapped the cord around the handle a couple of times and then tensioned it down to the ground at an angle. Just this process alone may result in a reasonable pitch but chances are you will need to move either the stake out points, tension the linelocs, or perhaps both. Job done in as little as two minutes.
Initial set up. Lay out the loose shape, peg out, insert trekking pole inside and adjust the guy lines.
Internal condensation does happen on occasion, especially if the pitch is low, but it’s no worse than any other shelter. A higher pitch benefits ventilation.
The first thing that struck me was the huge internal space. For one person it’s a veritable palace. It will take two plus their gear comfortably and three at a pinch although I reckon with a few arguments you could, conceivably, squeeze four in there. The central area is where the height is, better suited to sitting because of the headroom whereas the outer area is best used for gear storage as it slopes down to the ground. There is no ground sheet, either use something you already have, or a section of Tyvek or similar material.
Internal space is huge.
I did mention I had a gripe with the weight and you’re probably wondering why, at 567 gr (silnylon) I do. 567 / 20 ounces grams is a good weight, far below most shelters. My problem is that just using the Trailstar without a ground sheet / bug net wouldn’t happen very often so with a few exceptions, I would have to utilise MLD’s inner bug net and groundsheet which would add a further 354gr / 12.5 ounces, bringing the total weight up to 921 gr / 32.5 ounces which is not a weight I would consider acceptable. A cuben Trailstar and inner would weigh 537 gr / 19 ounces which is impressive, especially taking the size into account but there is a premium to pay for cuben.
On any hike in the US I wouldn’t use the Trailstar purely because of the bug problems, unless it was out of season or not in a bug area such as high altitude. The AT, PCT and CDT all suffer big bug problems. The PCT and CDT lend themselves to more minimal shelters because the weather is generally, dry and sunny. A Trailstar on these trails would perhaps be overkill. Of course taking the cuben version with inner would suit the AT where rain and storms are common, as well as mosquitos, so it would fare well there.
Internal clips for MLD’s dedicated bug net / groundsheet or for drying gear out.
I would deem it ideal for other situations though. The Trailstar definitely performs in inclement weather and this is where it excels. Because of the numerous stakeout points and the sloping sides, wind just slips over it. Check any of the reviews on line with this shelter and the praise it receives for stability in high winds is second to none. If I were expecting bad weather with no bugs then this is the shelter I would go for without even thinking about it. Up on the South Downs is perfect at any time of year because we don’t really suffer from mosquitos in the south and it is usually breezy up there, so I need only take the outer, and I often do.
This is backed up by the fact that when you do see photos of the Trailstar in use, quite often there are dark, broody skies lurking in the background. It’s a regular on the TGO Challenge because of Scotland’s inclement conditions, although you take your chances with the bugs being out in May when they first appear. These are the situations that it is renowned for performing well in. I’ve been inside with the wind howling outside and it’s one of the few shelters I have owned whereby I always sleep soundly, safe in the knowledge that it will stay put and I will stay dry, it is very reassuring.
I mentioned inconsequential gripes, and I have some. The first is that the seams are not sealed. I still struggle to understand why this is not done with new shelters, I can only assume it a time and labour issue but even so, a tent that has not been sealed will leak. Perhaps not in light rain but at some point it would be a problem. It’s not a difficult job, just messy and time consuming. However, my gripe with unsealed shelters continues.
The second is the foot print. It’s quite large, not a problem with plenty of available space on open ground but it would, and has, presented problems in the confines of a wood. The flip side of the coin though is all that internal space is welcome. Instead of lying horizontal and becoming uncomfortable in a tight space, in a Trailstar you can knock yourself out. Cooking is a breeze inside, albeit near the entrance and with care. You can go through your yoga routine, have your mates around for a party, get a beer from the fridge and watch a decent movie on the 50” widescreen over in the corner. There’s even room for a bike in there, not to mention a car if you reverse carefully. Great for those of you with a dog, or indeed dogs. Hell, just take the local kennel occupants.
As with most of the smaller manufacturers, check the delivery time because it can be a few weeks during busy periods but MLD are up front about it. Also remember that although equipment is generally far cheaper over in the US, and that the subsequent price after exchange rate is factored in is also very attractive, you may get stung by customs and excise in the UK, plus delivery. Even after all that is taken into account, I’d say it was well worth the money for the silnylon version (no inner) which comes in at £125.75 at today’s exchange rate of $1.00 = £0.6. The cuben version (no inner) would set you back £212.57, still very attractive. They’re both giveaways at those prices.
Sleep with your head near the entrance and enjoy those views.
In the unlikely event of any issues, you can rely on not just MLD’s top customer service, but most of the cottage industry manufactures over the US as well.
Colours: Grey, Olive Brown or Yellow (the last not recommended for the stealth campers).
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