Golite Poncho/Tarp Review
For ultralight hikes, using gear that can serve double duty is the only way to go. I’m not recommending that you go so far as using your titanium spork to dig a cat hole, that would just be taking things waaay too far. If you are doing that, stop now — it’s just gross.
Back to the Golite Poncho Shelter. Is it primarily a poncho whose secondary mission is to also serve as an ultralight shelter? Or is it an ultralight shelter that you can stick your head through and use as raingear and pack cover? That’s a mystery that can only be solved by endless posts in a gear forum somewhere that usually ends with some overzealous gear nerd calling you a dirty name. You respond in kind, and the thread gets locked and you get booted from the site. Hate it when that happens.
Ok, ok — I’ll try to focus a little harder. The Golite Poncho/Tarp weighs in at a paltry 10 ounces, making it perfect for fast and light activities. You’d think that a piece of gear like this would be fragile, scaring you every time a rain drop falls from the sky. With the first drop you shriek, thinking that it will pierce the nylon. Can it, you sissy- the Golite Poncho is tough, withstanding heavy winds while staked out in shelter mode. The SilLite fabric can take a beating, so don’t worry too much about having to baby this piece of gear. Just don’t be silly and try to rig it up between the trees and bounce on it like a makeshift trampoline.
This is my go-to gear for quick, ultralight hikes. It works great as both a poncho and a tarp shelter for one. The snaps hold tight, but they will rust a little, so be sure to dry out your gear properly afterwards. On several rainy hikes (well, more like tropical storm conditions) the Golite Poncho kept me as dry as you could expect from a poncho. It’s got great coverage for your pack, thanks to a section on the bottom that can be unsnapped to drop down a little lower in the rear. As a shelter, the Golite Poncho provides minimal coverage, so be sure to pitch it as a lean-to (with your trekking poles, of course) facing away from the weather. When things are a little rougher, you can set it up with only one pole in a pyramid fashion. Works great to block wind and weather.
The Good Scoop
At only 50 bucks, the Golite Poncho/Shelter is an affordable way to lighten up that monster pack you are carrying. You can combine your shelter, raingear and pack cover into one unit, and it weighs under a pound.
Remember, coverage as a shelter is minimal, so if you are the size of Andre the Giant, you ain’t gonna fit.
Get the full specs and detail without all my ramblings at www.Golite.com.
Here’s a direct link to the Golite Poncho/Tarp: http://www.golite.com/product/proddetail.aspx?p=AC0207&s=0
