The Unique Creations Anywhere Tent has won awards for design and innovation and has even featured on TV shows such as The Dragon’s Den and The New Inventors. But is it really as good where it matters – out in the scrub?
Words by Brendan Seymour - Photography by Paul Worsley
Those of you who enjoy watching TV shows like The New Inventors may well recognise this tent and its creator, Gary Lewtschenko. Gary’s been developing the Anywhere Tent for over five years now, putting a substantial amount of effort and capital into the project in an effort to see it transform from not much more than an idea in his head to a real product, and a fantastic one at that.
Those of you who haven’t seen the Unique Tent before might ask what’s so special about it. The first (and most obvious) difference it has to a normal tent is that it doesn’t sit down on the ground, but rather on six legs – and, because you’re not sleeping directly on the ground, you don’t have to contend with rocks, sticks and the like under your tent, disturbing your slumber. There’s also another trick to the legs – they are height-adjustable, and can be lengthened or shortened independently of each other, which in practical terms means that the tent can be made almost perfectly level no matter what angle of terrain you pitch it on. Say goodbye to searching for hours for a flat camp site!
Essentially, the tent is a canvas stretcher with a dome section that attaches to the top to provide shelter, but when you get down to it, there’s really a whole lot more going on. It’s the intuitive little additions that really make the tent – like the internally-accessible zips for the door and windows, so you don’t have to get out of bed to open or close flaps. The interior also features handy pockets on the walls, perfect for storing things like watches, mobile phones, rings and necklaces whilst you sleep.
The roof of the tent section sits approximately three feet off the stretcher, so there’s plenty of room to sit up in bed without hitting your head. It is a single piece design that securely attaches to the canvas via a Velcro strap the whole way around, to make sure no nasties can get in to visit you during the night. You can also adjust the tension of the stretcher to suit your own comfort levels – three straps run underneath the floor of the tent and can be tightened or loosened to hold the canvas taut or let it sag a little. During review I found the most comfortable position to be somewhere in between the two.
An awning is attached to the top of the tent roof and extends around six feet from the tent to provide a little extra cover from the elements. An optional feature of the tent is the front room, which attaches to the top of the awning, again via Velcro to form a fully-enclosed front room. There’s even a skirt that goes around the back of the tent to ensure complete privacy.
So, how good is it? Well, let’s face facts. A single-man tent like the Anywhere Tent is in direct comparison to a swag when it comes to sleeping arrangements – they’re both designed for one person (or two really, really close mates!), both find their niche in the market because they’re easier to transport, erect and dismantle than a full-sized tent, and a good quality swag will set you back around about the same price as the Anywhere tent. So – let’s compare apples with apples, shall we?
I have slept in a number of different swags, tents and camper trailers over the years, and I can honestly say I’ve never had a better night’s sleep out bush than with this tent. The stretcher was comfortable, albeit a little chilly when I woke up in the night after kicking my sleeping bag off. The room that is created when you attach the tent section to the stretcher is, put simply, fantastic. You can get changed in the tent, sit up and read, or just use it to store gear during the day.
Admittedly, the tent is noticeably heavier than a normal swag, weighing in at around 20kg compared to 5-6kg for a single-man swag. The tent, when packed, has roughly the same dimensions as a swag, so if you have room to fit a swag in the boot or on your roof racks, then transporting the tent shouldn’t be a problem. If you’re in the market for single-person camping accommodation, you could do much worse than to check out the Anywhere Tent. It doesn’t matter where you want to camp – it’ll follow you anywhere!
CONTACTS AND PRICES
The tent costs $429 for a single-man unit, or $499 for a two-person. The front sunroom is available for an additional $99. Unique Creations sell the Anywhere Tents through four main retailers, as well as attending the caravan, camping, 4WD and fishing shows around the nation. Visit the website www.uniquecreations.com.au to find out the location of the stockists, or to order an Anywhere Tent online. |
