Complete Review of the Tarptent Protrail

The Tarptent Protrail is an excellent ultralight tent, assuming you know what you are getting with a one-person tent. There are lighter options, but rarely do you find them at such a great price point of less than $250.

Like many brand-new backpackers trying to gear-up for their first backcountry experience, I started with heavier and cheaper gear, primarily to gauge my interest and not waste too much money, but also because I didn’t know what quality gear was in the first place. 

My first tent was a no-named three-person tent on Amazon that cost around $50. I can’t complain too much about it, because ultimately, it did enough for me to learn that I love backpacking. So, job well-done brandless friend!

But alas, eventually I had to upgrade. And the more I researched, the deeper I fell into the endless realm of ultralight gear and the massive expenses such gear imposed on rookie backpackers, especially tents! 

Dazed and confused, I eventually found myself on a small, cottage company’s website. That company was Tarptent, and it was there that I would find my first real backpacking tent: The Protrail.

Ultralight and cheap, the Protrail seemed like forbidden fruit. Were these two qualities even allowed together? Would their parents approve of this affair? I seized the opportunity to grab one of these up before the world discovered this renegade and made it disappear.

Years later, the Protrail has not disappeared. But it has gotten lighter and still maintains a superb price point, a good reason for rookie backpackers to heavily consider this tent from Tarptent. However, there are other considerations to take into account in determining if this is the right tent for you. I’ll share my very own personal experiences with this tent in hopes of helping you make the best decision. 

Who this tent is NOT for

Though the Tarptent Protrail is one of the larger one-person tents available, it is still a one-person tent. In other words, if you like a little more space to lounge around, spread your gear out, sleep with your dog, that sort of thing, then this isn’t the tent for you. But not just the Protrail. Any one-person tent will likely seem too confined and you will probably want to look at two-person tents, such as the larger version of the Protrail, the MoTrail. 

If space is a concern, you will likely have to sacrifice more money, more weight, or both. This is why the Protrail is such an outlier. But, if you have a little wiggle room in your budget and can spare a little more weight, the MoTrail will probably be the best bang for your buck. The MoTrail costs $40 more and is only nine ounces heavier (32.7oz total weight), yet affords you extra space and comfort. Or if you want to see a few other options, be sure to check out this article, Ultralight 2-person Tents: The Best of the Best.

Getting back to the Protrail, you will also need to consider this is a tent requiring two trekking poles, possibly swaying your decision if you only use one or don’t use them at all. However, you can purchase substitute poles for either the head end, foot end, or both at a small additional cost.

With this preliminary knowledge in mind, if you are fine with minimal space, always plan to use two trekking poles, and want a budget-friendly, ultralight tent, then the Protrail is worth your attention, and I’m about to tell you why, describing my personal experience starting from packed, followed by pitching, and finally, livability.

Disclosure: I have an older version of the Protrail with a fly made of silnylon, unlike the current version which uses silpoly and comes in two ounces lighter. Neither of these should be confused with the Protrail Li, a DCF version that is even lighter, but less friendly to your wallet.

Tarptent Protrail Review

Like almost any piece of backpacking equipment, the Protrail comes stuffed in its own stuff sack. Not too much to brag about, but it is adequate for also stuffing a piece of polycro I use as a groundsheet. 

The Protrail’s packed size from the factory is 12-inches by 4-inches. This makes it easy to fit into almost any backpack horizontally, or vertically if you prefer. Stuffing it back into its sack after use, you may or may not achieve this same size, but it isn’t difficult to get it back in its sack, even when packing extra stakes and a polycro sheet. If you use Tyvek as a groundsheet, you won’t be able to stuff it in the same sack, but no big deal to pack it separately. You’ll likely want to do this anyway after having used your groundsheet and before cleaning it to prevent damage to your tent. 

Since it’s currently packed, now is a good time to put the Protrail on a scale. With a two-ounce piece of polycro and a four extra stakes, the entire setup weighs 29.95 ounces. This older version of the Protrail weighed 26 ounces straight from Tarptent and the newer version comes in at 24 ounces. However, this weight is before seam-sealing. This will add additional weight, but the increase is pretty insignificant. In fact, my setup minus the extra stakes and groundsheet, the exact way it came from Tarptent, weighs 26.15 ounces after having sealed the seams myself.

The Setup

Now I’ll walk through setting up the Protrail and highlight and discuss its exterior features.

The amount of space needed to pitch the Protrail is very minimal, an advantage worth noting as small, one-person A-frame tents tend to offer. This makes the Protrail perfect for stealth camping, the act of camping in a non-designated campsite. I try not to do this, but in a pinch (and where allowed), having the ability to set your tent up without having to have a large, clear area will save you time and effort (and maybe a couple of miles of extra hiking).

The process for setting up is quick and simple, as this video from Tarptent demonstrates:

Obviously, the person in the video has set this tent up numerous times but pitching a tent with trekking poles does take some getting used to. However, if you have done it before on another tent, I’m sure you will be able to handle this one. If you have no experience with a trekking pole tent, I recommend you practice setting this tent up several times in your backyard until getting the hang of it.

Now that the tent is set up, let’s talk about what it’s made of.

What it’s made of

For the fly, the current version of the Protrail is made with 20D silpoly while the version I have is silnylon. The silpoly is an upgrade as far as weight reduction and reducing potential sag overnight. 

Regardless of version, the Protrail’s bathtub floor is a 30D ripstop nylon, which to me, borders on the necessity to use a groundsheet, or footprint. I recommend doing so for peace of mind, but if you are careful with your tent placement, you can get by without one.

Both ends and sides of the Protrail have a 15D no-see-um nylon mesh that seems durable enough considering there should be little to no stress ever applied to these areas. It works as it should, preventing bugs from getting inside the inner tent.

Functionality

With the Protrail now set up, it’s hard not to admire the simplicity and sleekness of this tent. But the big question is, “How does it perform?” 

The Door

The door zippers work flawlessly up and down and side to side. However, rounding the corner takes a little guidance, not to be unexpected though. When unzipped, the door can be rolled up and secured with a tie to keep it out of the way. 

When you need privacy or protection from the elements, the front storm flap of the Protrail is fastened to the side with velcro strips. Unfortunately, this forms a wall-like structure that gives wind more area to attack, so on windy nights, I recommend using more than the four necessary stakes.

The door fly can be left open in pleasant weather to allow for a breeze, especially with the rear storm flap open. This helps with condensation, but isn’t a cure-all. As a single wall tent, condensation will be inevitable in some conditions. However, the Protrail is designed to minimize the problem, especially when optimally set up.

And if you haven’t noticed, the Protrail has a front door, which is more inconvenient crawling in and out of. To add to the inconvenience, you have a trekking pole in your way. The trekking pole can be tilted, extended slightly, and moved out of the way to give a larger window to crawl through. Still, this method of entry/exit just isn’t as nice as a side door.

The Floor

Moving on to the floor, the height of the bathtub walls is adjustable. This is a handy feature if you need to fend off splashing from heavy rain. Simply pull the webbing away from the tent on either side to create more tension, thus lifting that side’s wall. Loosen the webbing back through the buckle to lower the wall.

Considering the Protrail is a one-person tent, it is actually quite spacious when compared to the competition. At its peak width, the Protrail is 42-inches wide and 30-inches at the foot end of the tent. Compare this to the Flash from REI that is 35-inches at its widest before narrowing down to 27-inches. Or how about the One from Gossamer Gear, which starts at only 33-inches wide and ends at 21-inches. You can’t even fit a wide rectangular pad at the foot end.

Speaking of a wide sleeping pad, the Protrail easily accommodates one. However, space is drastically reduced. I like keeping my gear inside my tent, and with a wide sleeping pad, it gets very cramped, even with this being a larger one-person tent. You can use the vestibule, but its size is minimal when the storm flap is open. And there is one pocket inside, but it seems mostly intended to hold your phone and maybe a charger. But I don’t want to harp on the size of the Protrail. Again, it is a large one-person tent, but if you want more space to keep your gear inside the tent, opting for a two-person tent is the way to go.

Weather Resistance

Let’s move on to weather resistance.

To test the Protrail out, I set it up and left it for several days. One of those days happened to be an all day shower. I was pleased to find there was no trace of water getting inside the tent. This may be more to my credit since I seam sealed it myself. But this does prove the 3,000 mm waterproof rating is enough to keep you dry in very wet conditions, assuming you aren’t camping all day through a monsoon.

After being left untouched for a couple of days, the Protrail eventually fell. Given the consistent rain from the prior day, followed by a slightly breezy day, I won’t complain about this. Mainly given the softer soil due to how wet it had been, I assume a stake finally gave or maybe even the trekking pole.

Unfortunately, I was unable to gauge the cause of failure as I didn’t see it happen immediately. However, upgrading the stakes that Tarptent includes to something with a little more hold, like the MSR Groundhog Stakes, may be worth it. But I also know, the older version of the Protrail being silnylon and having two days of sag pulling on my trekking pole, that this may have caused the collapse. 

Honestly, this isn’t something you should be too concerned about, even if you plan to keep your tent in one place for a few days as a routine tensioning should be common practice anyway. 

Tarptent Protrail Score Summary

Value – 9/10

The Tarptent Protrail is an exceptional value being as light as it is and at such an alluring price point. It does receive one ding for not coming seam sealed without an additional charge. This inches the price closer to $300 where you will find similar tents that do come sealed from the factory. That said, being able to save some money by doing the work yourself is perhaps worth it.

Ease of Setup – 8/10

The Tarptent Protrail is easy to set up. You do have to adjust your trekking poles accordingly, but this can be done quickly. However, if you don’t have telescoping poles you will have to get some or use the optional poles Tarptent sells. And if your pole for the rear doesn’t collapse to near 24-inches, extra steps are required for a good pitch.

Weight – 7/10

The Tarptent Protrail is ultralight at only 24 ounces. While you won’t find many (if any) tents lighter at this price, lighter tents are available. If you want the lightest version of this tent, check out the Protrail Li, weighing only ~17.7 ounces.

Functionality – 6/10

I don’t want anyone to believe the Protrail doesn’t perform well where it matters most. It does what it is intended to do, which is keep you sheltered from the elements, so keep that in mind. 

The biggest knock on the Protrail in this category is the lack of interior space, and I’m not referring to the bathtub floor, which is large for a one-person tent. The foot end of this tent is unusable for anything but your feet and maybe tossing a few loose items. Also, you can only sit straight up at the front end, which limits maneuverability.

Another knock is having a front door which is harder to crawl in and out of. Granted, with this design, this is the only thing that works.

I give it this score because when compared to other one-person tents, there are options with more usable interior space (though smaller floor), plus a side door.

Weather Resistance – 8/10

After an entire day of rain, the Protrail stayed completely dry. This was with silnylon, but I don’t expect any less with the silpoly version. 

The tent did collapse on a breezy day having not been touched for 48 hours. Regardless of the reason, it did fall. There are several reasons this could have happened, but I’m not impressed with the front end forming a wall when the storm flap is closed. This creates a structure that probably doesn’t shed wind as well as I’d prefer.

Durability – 7/10

Let’s not kid ourselves. Most of these ultralight tents are not as durable as heavier tents using 200D+ fabrics. But that is a sacrifice we make to go lighter. This is why DCF is so expensive, excellent durability and extremely light.

However, the Protrail can and has lasted through thousands of miles of use with proper care. As stated before, I recommend using a groundsheet to prolong the floor and there are cheap, ultralight options. So why not use one?

Overall – 7.5/10

Would I buy the Protrail again? Honestly, probably not. However, this is because I now know I want more space and that is the only reason I say that. Otherwise, I would recommend this tent to not only someone on a budget, but anyone wanting an upgrade over their heavier tent. 

But if you’re like me and want more space, as mentioned before, the Motrail will be an excellent option. However, I would like to see this updated with a silpoly fly. A DCF version to go even lighter, is something else I would like to see from Tarptent. 

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, the Protrail is carried by its excellent value. I don’t believe you have a better option at this price point and weight while still having a generous amount of floor space. Plus, this tent is easy to set up, saving you time at the end of an intense day of hiking. For these reasons, the Protrail from Tarptent earns my personal recommendation.