Review Nordisk Telemark I LW [EN]

Lightweight 1-person tent

The technique behind modern tents keeps amazing me. With their Telemark I LW, Nordisk proves how easy it can be. Pitching is only a matter of minutes. The inner and outer tent are already put together and with a single tentpole you set up the complete tent in one action. The short poles in the four corners are already put in place too, so you don’t have to worry about that either.

Light as a feather

Another big advantage of the Telemark I is its very, very low weight of less then 900 grams, including cover, tentpole, small corner poles, pegs and guy ropes, basically everything you will need. That is less than the average sleeping bag! Its low weight is mainly due to the coated nylon fabric of only 10 denier (10D).
If you want to go even lower on the scale: Nordisk offers the Telemark I ULW (ultra lightweight) with a tentpole made out of carbon instead of aluminium.

Waterproof

Despite the thin fabric the water colomn is 2.000 millimeter, enough to stay dry during a rain shower. Of course, there are tents that withstand more rain, but those are made of much heavier fabrics – not what we are looking for in an ultralight setup.
The groundsheet is also very thin (20 denier with PU coating) and at first sight I had my doubts about it. Not used to this kind of thin material, I suspected it could tear easily. But after the first night my doubts were gone. The groundsheet is robust enough for normal use (camping in a field for exmple). If you want to camp on rougher terrain, Nordisk offers a matching footprint.

Small package

The pack size is only 41 x 12 centimeter, very small as you can see in the image above. Together with a sleeping pad and sleeping bag it fits easily in my Saddle Pack from Apidura. Packing the tent is no problem either. Just roll it up slowly so the air escapes, and it will fit nicely in its cover bag.

Spacious

Thinking about a 1-person tent, you imagine a small tent where you have to crawl in on hands and knees and in which your head is pressed against the fabric when laying down. The Telemark I was a big surprise for me: it is actually pretty spacious! With my length of 1.80 meter there is enough room left inside to fit small bags and other stuff around me. And I even can sit up straight to change clothes or eat something.

Inside the inner tent of the Telemark I is a stow pocket for valuable items such as your phone. Two small loops in the top are useful to make a small washing line for letting wet socks dry for example. Or you can use them to hang a small light. Now it’s getting cosy!
As seen from the top the inner tent is straight on one side. You can use this relatively large outer tent for your smelly shoes or wet bags. You can even change the size of the outer tent a bit by sliding the bottom in and out on the black belt that runs underneath the tent. Smart feature!

Tarp

An extra feature is the integrated tarp. To save weight and space, Nordisk did not put an extra pole in the bag, but offers an ingenious solution: just remove three of the four corner poles and put them together to make a larger pole. With the extra guy rope you can secure the pole to the ground. The tarp is a handy feature if you want to stay somewhere longer and the weather is not to well. Keep in mind: only four lightweight pegs are included with the Telemark, so if you want to use the tarp, you will have to buy an extra peg.

 The pitching

Pitching the Telemark is easy. Just wave the tent in the air and put it in the desired place. Put the pole together, stick it through the fabric and secure it with the metal eyelets on either side of the tent. On the back side pull both guy ropes tight with two pegs at the same time and put the pegs in the ground. Do the same on the front side. Tense the guy ropes a bit and the tent is ready for use.

The aluminium pole (LW-version).

Four lightweight pegs are included, enough for normal conditions. If you want to use the tarp, you will need an extra peg.

The entrance for the tentpole is accentuated with a yellow marking, helpful during dusk!

The guy ropes are already installed. Tightening them is easy.

The zipper flap is closed with small round magnet.

The corner poles are already installed and there is no need removing them for packing the tent, easy!

Text and images: Stephan van Raay