Advnture Verdict
The Fjällräven Abisko Lite 1 is a fantastic option for four-season camping, backpacking and bikepacking. Lightweight, super robust and so well designed that it can withstand almost any conditions, it’s a great choice when you’re looking for that one tent that can do it all.
Pros
- +
Very strong
- +
Easy to pitch
- +
Excellent ventilation options
- +
Lightweight and very compact
Cons
- -
On the pricier end of the spectrum
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Fjällräven Abisko Lite 1: first impressions
The Abisko Lite 1 has risen to be one of the most popular and highly-regarded and versatile four-season tents for backpacking all year round. Named after one of Sweden’s most northern national parks, the tent is designed to tackle the worst of the frosty Scandinavian tundra, being built to put up with howling wind and freezing temperatures, all while being super compact, lightweight and easy to use.
• List price: $600 (US) / £600 (UK)
• Style: Tunnel tent
• Weight: 3.5lbs / 1.6kg
• Rooms: One bedroom, one vestibule
• Compatibility: One person and gear
The brand behind this shelter is Swedish outdoor powerhouse Fjällräven. Known more for their clothing, such as the epic Keb walking pants, than for a deep catalog of tents, Fjällräven have become one of the top brands out of the region, leading the charge for the Scandinavian invasion we’ve seen penetrate the backpacking space over the last decade. Renowned for making kit that lasts, Fjällräven has long invested in quality over quantity, creating a strict line of exceptional products that do the thing they were built for better than anything else out there.
Weighing just 3.5 lbs (1.6kg), the Abisko Lite 1 is an ultralight yet durable four-season shelter that is easily capable of putting up with some brutal conditions. When purchased directly from Fjällräven, this tent will cost you $600 (US) / £600 (UK), which puts it firmly at the ‘premium’ end of the spectrum and has it competing against the likes of Hilleberg, Nordisk and Tarptent. Does it live up to the hype? And is it worth the hefty price tag? Read on…
Meet the reviewer
Growing up just south of the glorious Brecon Beacons National Park, Craig spent his childhood walking uphill. As he got older, the hills got bigger, and his passion for spending quality time in the great outdoors only grew – falling in love with wild camping, long-distance hiking, bikepacking and fastpacking.
Fjällräven Abisko Lite 1: in the wild
Over the years, I’ve hunkered down in dozens of similar four-season tents, and even though I’ve got a handful of favorites, the Abisko Lite 1 has long been at the top of my list of tents I wanted to try. You see, few seem to have received the level of praise the Abisko has amassed across social media, YouTube and other review sites, with many pundits praising it more highly than the excellent Hilleberg Akto, the impressive Tarptent Scarp or the exceedingly good Nordisk Telemark. With that in mind, I couldn’t wait to get out and test the Abisko in some trusty UK wind and rain.
The first thing I particularly appreciated when I used this tent the first time was how easy everything was to use. And I’m not just talking about pitching. First of all, the stuff sack it’s packed in comes with handy lashing straps to tighten everything down, as well as a pull cord at the bottom of the sack which allows you to more easily pull the tent out of it. Underneath the main opening, the tent instructions are printed on an extendable sleeve, which avoids any unnecessary paper waste and means you’ll never lose the information.
Now, granted, these are super minor things. If the tent blows down in the first big gust, who cares about the stuff sack? But I always appreciate it when a tent has been designed with clear thought and consideration, which is exactly how I’d describe the Abisko Lite 1.
Unsurprisingly, pitching the Abisko is also a simple affair. It comprises four lightweight aluminum corner poles and one central ceiling pole that gives the tent its shape. As these are all DAC Featherlite NSL poles, they’re super sturdy, wonderfully light and a joy to use. They instantly instil confidence in you as a user even before the tent has properly been set up. Around the tent, eight guy lines allow you to glue this thing to the floor. That’s two more than both the Hilleberg Akto and the Nordisk Telemark 2 which, in my experience, makes a huge difference when camping in heavy winds.
Inside the tent, you’ve ample space for one person and kit. The one-sided vestibule is also easily large enough to house a full four-season backpacking setup, as well as affording a little space to cook. Much like on the Nordisk Telemark 2, you can increase or decrease the size of the vestibule depending on what you’re using, sacrificing internal space for more vestibule space or vestibule space for internal space.
When it comes to the interior, I also really enjoy how you can comfortably sit up in this tent, even when perched on top of a thick winter pad. Of course, this fully depends on how tall you are, but at 5ft 10in (1.78m), I can sit up inside the Abisko Lite without my head hitting the ceiling, which is a small but enjoyable characteristic that makes a lot of difference on those long winter nights.
Features-wise, the Abisko Lite is relatively ‘clean’. Despite there being a ton of technology ‘under the hood’, nothing feels overly game-changing about this tent once it’s up. It’s void of the many bells and whistles you get on a Nemo tent, for example, and it doesn’t feel as ‘rich’ as the likes of the Nordisk Telemark 2. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
Inside the Abisko Lite 1, you’ve got numerous pockets for storing bits and bobs, a handy line for hanging up washing/getting things out of the way, and a ton of smart ventilation options that help to regulate condensation and optimize the inside feel in the summer. Take the ventilation ports at the head and foot end: in contrast to the Hilleberg Akto or the Robens Starlight 1, these can be fully opened and closed from inside the tent (thanks to a handy internal zipper), meaning you can regulate airflow without needing to get out of your tent.
Fjällräven Abisko Lite 1: performance
The Fjällräven Abisko Lite 1 is, without a doubt, one of the best-performing four-season backpacking tents out there. Thanks to the eight guy lines, this thing barely budges in the wind, especially for a tent weighing so little. What’s more, the flysheet comes down very close to the ground when pitched correctly, minimizing drafts and preventing spindrift from coming up under your tent.
The fly sheet comprises a mix of 20 and 40D TripleRip silicone-coated polyamide (nylon), which is remarkably durable for its size and weight. Super flexible and malleable, the material is some of the softest I’ve ever felt, and you might not think it would do as well as it does when you pitch it for the first time. But don’t worry – my own experiences reinforce just how strong this material really is, and it never leaked once even in torrential rain combined with gusts of well over 30mph.
As is often the case with silnylon, however, I did notice that the tent looked noticeably saggier in the morning after a proper lashing of rain. This is a common feature of silnylon and a small price to pay for its weight and packability. And even though it doesn’t impact the tent’s effectiveness, it’s something to be aware of before you make a purchase, as if it’s not pitched correctly the night before, the Abisko Lite 1 has a habit of looking a little sad the morning after.
Overall, I massively rate the Fjällräven Abisko Lite 1. It’s well thought out, hyper-dependable, tiny when packed and easy to carry. Everything about it just works, and I for one love the way it looks in a photograph. To me, this is one of the best options out there for dependable four-season adventuring. But I never expected any less from Fjällräven.
