As I eluded to in a previous post, we were fortunate enough to be contacted by Greg Squires awhile back, and ask if we would like to receive a Eureka tent.  Mr. Squires, from Shopatron.com, was a pleasure to talk to, and quickly sent us the tent knowing that it would be a few months before we could actually do the review.  We do live in Michigan, and it tends to not be great camping weather in February.

This past weekend we finally headed out for our first camping trip, and our first opportunity to actually use the tent and see how it performed – and perform it did.

Our first night spent in the tent was done so during a Tornado Watch, and subsequent downpour.  And when I say downpour, I mean downpour.  We awoke the next morning to approximately 6 inches of standing water – or more – not more than a foot from where the tent was setup.  And I’m happy to report that the tent, or us, were not wet.  In fact, the tent didn’t take in any water at all, even with a dog patrolling the outer edges of it throughout the night – and any of you who’ve camped before know, that usually, touching the outer walls of a tent during a downpour is a no-no.  The Copper Canyon just held its ground, though, and kept us dry throughout the whole ordeal.  Apparently, the Stormshield was functioning in full force.

The Copper Canyon is an excellent tent all around.  Its 15 X 12 frame provided ample space for an air bed, a pack n’ play, and a large dog crate – with plenty of space left over to move around inside the tent.  I think the biggest selling point of the tent is its sure height; the copper canyon is 7′ 4″ tall, and allows for any adult to stand up inside it.  Also, its straight walls allow for standing room in any part of tent – there is no ducking to get into the tent, and as any of you who’ve camped at all know, that is a HUGE plus.

Despite the tent’s sure size, it is still very easy to set up, and can be done in mere minutes with a two-person crew.  The wife and I had no problems getting the tent set up, and the directions are very easy to understand as well.

I only found two drawbacks about the tent:  weight, and the awning.  The sure weight of the tent, at 44lbs, might discourage some.  Honestly, though, it is a necessary evil in order to have such a big tent, and was well worth the trade-off for me.  The awning on the tent was very helpful, considering the amount of rain we had, but it is also one of the negative aspects of the tent; it tends to hold water no matter how the awning is set up.  Also, if it is not set up exactly right, and tightened down properly, it will drip water between the actual tent entrance and the start of the awning – kind of an annoyance, but not a major problem.

At almost $400 I can understand a few families shying away from this tent.  My overall opinion, though, is that this tent is worth every penny.  The space of the tent is more than adequate for many families; the inside height of the tent is its best feature, and makes the tent well worth the price; and the ease of use, and sure durability of the tent makes it well worth the investment for a family, like us, who camps quite often in not the best weather conditions.

The Eureka Copper Canyon 1512 is a great tent, and gets a 9.5 out of 10 from the wife and I.  If you doubt the construction, or the durability of this tent, all you have to do is take a look at the pictures in this post, and remember that – even with all that water – we were kept completely dry throughout one heck of a thunderstorm.

The weekend was a great time, and despite some bad weather we whethered the storm – no pun intended.  The Copper Canyon was instrumental in that great time, and allowed everything to stay dry despite some very harsh conditions.  We would recommend the tent to anyone, and are looking forward to our next camping trip with it.

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