One of the worst parts of car camping is dealing with the tent. You have to find room to pack it in your trunk before you go, of course, but that is just the beginning. The fun really begins when you finally arrive at the campsite. You have to wrestle the tent out of the bag, figure out where all those parts and pieces go and hope you arranged it correctly as you stretch to set it up. On a good day, it can be a pain, but throw in some rain or darkness and the process can be a nightmare. Camping gear company iKamperusa feels your pain and has created the Skycamp, a pop-up tent that sits on the roof of your car.
The Skycamp is described as an “an expandable tree house on wheels, ” and that is a pretty accurate description. The hard shell tent looks like any roof carrier that mounts to the rack of a car’s roof, but underneath that tough exterior, there is a whole lot more than storage space. Enclosed in the fiber-enforced shell is a roomy tent that can accommodate a king-sized mattress capable of sleeping up to 3 adults or 2 adults with 2 kids. There’s even a ladder that you can use to climb into your nightly accommodations.
Not only is the tent spacious, it also is incredibly easy to deploy. One person can open it and set it up in a single minute. Once opened, you can rest comfortably on the tent’s aluminum honeycomb panel floor and feel protected by side fabric that is both waterproof and wind resistant. And when you are done camping, you can fit the tent back into the shell with minimal effort and be on your way to the next adventure in no time.
The Skycamp is available as a Kickstarter project with a starting price of $1,995 for the basic Poly 250D model. For an extra $150, you can choose from a breathable poly-cotton canvas model. Both tents are expected to ship in July 2017.
