Eureka Medium Solar Shade Tent

Enjoy a comfortable day at the beach with this medium-sized, cabana-style Eureka Solar Shade, which provides restful protection from the sun and wind. It's also a handy addition to your campsite or picnic party. Featuring a 7-foot, 6-inch wide floor, this medium Solar Shade is just right for two chairs, a small table, and a cooler. The front privacy door panel can zip closed or roll out of way as needed, and a hood over front opening provides shade without compromising side to side visibility. It also has three windows with toggled privacy covers that allow air flow. It's nicely light (6 pounds) and easy to carry, thanks to the included carry bag with shoulder strap. Other features include:

• Four wind guyout loops and four sand pouches for alternative anchoring
• 8.5mm fiberglass frame, post and grommet attachments, and power mesh pole sleeves make set up easy
• Sewn in floor with taped seam
• Two storage pockets
• Two clothesline rings
• Center height of 4 feet, 6 inches

About Eureka
Though the exact year is unknown, Eureka's long history begins prior to 1895 in Binghamton, New York, where the company still resides today. Then known as the Eureka Tent & Awning Company, its first wares were canvas products--most notably, Conestoga wagon covers and horse blankets for nineteenth century American frontiersmen--as well as American flags, store awnings, and camping tents.

The company increased production of its custom canvas products locally throughout the 1930s and during the 1940 and even fabricated and erected the IBM "tent cities" just outside Binghamton. The seven acres of tents housed thousands of IBM salesmen during the company's annual stockholders meeting, which had since outgrown its previous locale. In the 1940s, with the advent of World War II and the increased demand for hospital ward tents, Eureka expanded operations and began shipping tents worldwide. Ultimately, upon the post-war return of the GIs and the resultant housing shortage, Eureka turned its attention to the home front during the 1950s by supplying awnings for the multitude of mobile homes that were purchased.

In 1960, Eureka's new and innovative Draw-Tite tent, with its practical, free standing external frame, was used in a Himalayan Expedition to Nepal by world renowned Sir Edmund Hillary, the first person documented to summit Mt. Everest only six years earlier. In 1963, Eureka made history during its own Mt. Everest ascent, with more than 60 of its tents sheltering participants from fierce 60+ mph winds and temperatures reaching below -20°F during the first all American Mt. Everest Expedition.

For backpackers and families, Eureka introduced its legendary Timberline tent in the 1970s. Truly the first StormShield design, this completely self-supporting and lightweight backpacking tent became one of the most popular tents the entire industry with sales reaching over 1 million by its ten year anniversary.

Eureka tents have also traveled as part of several historic expeditions, including the American Women's Himalayan Expedition to Annapurna I in 1978 and the first Mt. Everest ascents by a Canadian and American woman in 1986 and 1988. In recent history, tents specially designed and donated by Eureka sheltered Eric Simonson and his team on two historic research expeditions to Mount Everest, this time in a quest for truth regarding the 1924 attempted summit of early English explorers George Mallory and Andrew Irvine. During the 1999 expedition, the team made history finding the remains of George Mallory, but the complete mystery remained unsolved. Returning in 2001 to search for more clues, the team found amazing historical artifacts which are now on display at the Smithsonian.

Customer Review: Great Tent
We took this tent in our luggage to Kauai. It is light weigh, easy to set up and sturdy. We were at the beach and it was quite windy. The tent with stood the wind no problem. It has a window on each side which is great for air flow and the front can be closed to create a changing area. there is even a line build in to hang things on. It kept us out of the sun when we needed it and was easy to roll up and put away for the next time. One of the best items I packed for our vacation!!
Customer Review: great investment
We bought this solar shade to take on vacation to the beaches in Belize and Mexico. It traveled extremely well, was very easy to set up and was a relief to have, particularly where shade was not available. We used it with a family of four and thought it was great. The only thing I will probably do in the future is add some of my own velcro strips to the back "window" flap. When the breeze blew, the flap would not stay shut with the two little tabs provided. Easy enough to fix on my own, though. Would highly recommend to anyone wanting to ensure they have access to shade - fits in a suitcase for travel as well.

Imagine sitting underneath a night sky so full of brilliant stars that you can actually point out the constellations to your kids. It sounds pretty spectacular, doesnt it? Camping is a pretty unique experience. You get to spend some time in nature away from the hustle and bustle of city-life stress.

After you finally decide that yes you are going camping, youre left with one important question: what to take. This is the big question no matter what type of vacation we are planning. Now add to the mix all the nuances of camping, and your list can quickly get lengthy.

Whether you're planning a weekend getaway or months on the road, you never know exactly what youll run into and what may need. Here are some tips and tricks to planning and more importantly packing for a camping trip out in the wilderness.

1. The first thing youll need to do is to establish a staging area. You can use a corner of your garage or living room and pile all of your gear there prior to packing. If you have the space, you could even begin moving gear to the staging area several days ahead of time. This prevents overloading your brain at the last minute. By waiting till the last minute to pack, youre guaranteed to forget to pack something important.
2. Take a good, hard look at your gear pile when you think it's complete. Spend a minute or two reviewing everything on your list of things you want to bring and check it twice.
3. After your done packing your gear, your next step is packing your clothing. You are going to want to layer your clothing in case of changing temperatures and conditions such as rain. Always pack spare clothing in case you get wet. Avoid cotton unless your trip is in a very warm climate. Cotton dries slowly and offers very little to no insulation when it gets wet. Synthetic long underwear and jackets work best. Bring a warm wool or fleece hat, too.
4. Test and try out your gear before you head out. Know how to operate your camp stove, and bring the proper fuel.
5. Purchase several small and medium nylon bags to divide up your gear. Cooking gear can go in one bag, first aid items in another bag, and so on.
6. Plan your water supply. If water is scarce near your campsite, consider having a large water bladder in your pack. In addition to offering a high capacity, water bladders have a hose that allows you to drink while you're on the move. Water purification tablets are indispensable. Make sure you pick up a few before you head out.
7. Buy a good sleeping pad or two. Many people like to stack a full length sleeping pad on top of a shorter one. The extra warmth and comfort makes the weight and bulk worthwhile. They arent too expensive with some camping stores selling several brands of pads, from $20 to $100.
8. Plan your meals ahead of time. This way you'll be guaranteed to have enough food. For short camping stints, your grocery list might include milk, butter, cheese and crackers, bread, buns, vegetables, fruit, dried and/or fresh, meat such as burgers, hot dogs, shish kabobs, canned foods like chili or soup, condiments and spices, trail mix, energy bars, cookies, soda, juice, tea, cocoa, cider, coffee and alcoholic beverages.
9. All of the above mentioned items are useful, but some are luxuries while others are absolute necessities. For instance, a handheld GPS is fun and helpful, but a map and compass will do just as well. Your specific destination may require additional gear or far less, if weight is an issue.

If you happen to forget something, dont fret. Many RV parks and campgrounds have well-stocked stores with most of the basic supplies you will need.

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