Nemo Dragonfly 2P Oslo review.
I've quite enjoyed this tent so far. It is spacious, light weight, and (relatively) sturdy. This was my first experience with the OSMO fabric, and as it didn't rain at all during my outing, I doused the tent with water using my camp shower. The tent shed water easily and while it didn't dry all night, the water never passed through the fly or the tent body/floor.
Design and Versatility:
I kept going back and forth between the Dragonfly and the Dagger. Ultimately I chose the Dragonfly because it is lighter and I was looking for a light weight backpacking tent. I already have a Switch 2p (which I love) for more car/moto camping applications. The tapered shape helps minimize weight and streamline wind around the tent. (It's important to note that in high winds you should pitch with the narrow (foot) end into the prevailing wind). It's definitely lightweight. My scale puts it at 3.1 pounds with nine of the 10 included stakes and two of the four included guy lines.
The two vestibule/door design allows for easy access from either side, which is nice even if you’re solo camping.
On that note, while this is a 2P tent, you need to be very friendly or comfortable with your tent mate. It will fit two people but only with mummy style pads due to the tapered shape. The taper isn’t too severe, so there is room. However, two wide (25”) pads will not fit together. This is not an issue for me as I tent alone. The 1p may have met my needs for space just fine, but I prefer the two-door/two vestibule option of the 2p.
I really appreciate the dive cube, so I can separate the poles and and stakes from the tent, and still compress the tent down nicely. This makes fitting everything into my ruck much easier.
The overhead gear loft is VERY handy. In particular, it made a great place to put my iPad so I could lay back and watch a movie. There's also a gear storage loft at the foot end which is handy for keeping all the various stuff sacks up and out of the way.
There are two small gear pockets at the head end, but they are very small (just large enough to hold a phone or a pair of glasses). Honestly, I found with the gear loft up above I didn't need them for more than my phone anyway.
There is a thoughtfully placed snap ring for attaching a lantern to the ceiling, which is handy. I don't use a headlamp so the light diffusing headlamp pockets don't do anything for me, but having the snap ring for my lantern (Goal Zero crush light) was very nice.
Set-Up:
Set-up was super simple. The first time I set it up on trail it took me ten minutes, and I was going VERY slowly. The structure is extremely intuitive, with color coded poles and tent corners to make sure you set it up correctly the first time. The Jakes foot design also allows for easy setup in the rain without getting water in the tent. (This requires you to have the fly attached to the tent before you unpack it, but then you just spread it out, stake it down, and slide the poles between the two walls…then stand it up. Easy peasy). The Jakesfeet also make it easy to set up in high winds. Attach the clips at one end and slide the fly over the top to the other end.
The pre-bent subbed pole design is handy. Though, honestly I think I would prefer if it were in two separate pieces instead of one large one. I don’t know why. Regardless, snap the pole ends into the Jakesfeet and they’re held in place. This is a “free standing” tent (without the rain fly), but stakes will make a world of difference in terms of interior space.
Comfort:
Getting into and out of the tent wasn’t too challenging. It’s definitely a crawl in/out model, which again, is fine for a backpacking tent. But the way the vestibules are designed you can easily get in and out while it is raining without a bunch of water getting into your tent. The vestibules were plenty large with space for my ruck and a table (Helinox Table 1). I didn’t even use the vestibule on the other side and left it open to increase ventilation.
The high vertical wall construction at either end means lots of room inside. I have plenty of room to sit up on my pad (Nemo Tensor) and not brush the top or sides of the tent. (I’m 69”. The length of the tent means there’s no risk of either feet or head rubbing against the end walls and getting wet. That’s good, because there was some pretty significant condensation on the inside of the rainfly, even with the vestibule door open on one side. That said, the ground and my blanket were also SOAKED the next morning so it was VERY humid. Regardless, I stayed bone dry inside.
There’s even enough room for my cot (Helinox Camp Cot One High) if I set it up in the low configuration. It doesn’t touch either the side or end walls. I won’t use that backpacking, but it’s nice to know this can be a backup for car/moto-camping if need be.
Construction:
The construction feels flimsy, but that is likely due to the OSMO fabric. I was very nervous in handling the fabric, rolling/unrolling it, and worried about tears, but I haven’t seen any. I do use a ground cloth (redcap universal 2p) to protect the floor. The DAC poles are very small and very light, but also seem very strong. All the stitching is high quality, reinforced where it needs to be, and sealed to keep out the water.
I really like the gatekeeper door clips which make opening and closing the door and vestibule an easy one-handed operation.
The zippers are VERY small/delicate. While they can be operated with one hand, it requires a rather specific technique that took some work to develop. It also requires the tent to be very tightly staked. I would definitely prefer to have had a split panel instead of the round zipper door. I’m still nervous every time I operate a zipper as I’m concerned I’m going to tear/break something, but so far they’re standing up well. They’re just a lot daintier than I’m used to, but they seem well made.
Upon receipt I immediately checked everything, as my last tent (Switch 2P) had a manufacturers defect. There were no issues with this tent at all. I’d also like to say that Nemo went out of their way to correct the previous issue, and ultimately wound up just sending me a replacement tent. Their warranty service is unparalleled and I am VERY pleased with how they handled the entire interaction. This was a part of their reputation that drew me to try them in the first place. I’m glad I did.
Dimensions:
I measured the dimensions against Nemo’s stated dimensions and they all check out. The floor is 51” at the head and 45” at the foot. It’s 88” long. These dimensions assume the tent is staked tight at all four corners.
Add ons:
I do not have the Nemo footprint, as I already owned a RedCamp ground cloth which worked perfectly.
Other thoughts:
Ventilation - The design made me think that there would be plenty of ventilation to prevent condensation, however, I still experienced quite a bit of moisture on the underside of the rain fly. As previously mentioned I’ve been camping in some very humid conditions. The two vents (one on either vestibule) are not very wide at all, but it is nice to be able to open them from inside the tent. Because of their design, as long as you set up with the foot end into the prevailing wind, you can have them open, even in the rain. Overall I’m not impressed by the ventilation so far.
Stake out the head end of the rain fly. This is a must as you will otherwise risk splash back up into the tent. If you do stake it properly, you won’t have any issues at all.
The stakes are lightweight, and pretty strong. I’ve only used them in soft ground so far, but they go in easy, and come out easy. They also have a hook which works great for removal if they do get stuck (and can double as a bottle opener LoL)
This is definitely NOT a four season tent. I don’t see these lightweight poles or fabric standing up to snow at all.
Overall, this is a great tent. Works wonderfully for backpacking, or could be a good car/moto-camping backup. It’s high quality, the fabric sheds water amazingly well, it’s super lightweight, and it’s spacious.
Overall I would say, absolutely recommend for backpacking.
