Tip of the Ultralight Spear: Samaya Alpinist2 Ultra Review

I just landed my paraglider at the back of Laguna Toncek, below the granite spires of Frey, Argentina, and a short walk away from the mountain hut. I unpack my bag so I can repack my glider, tossing out 3 days of food, a full double rack with a tagline, sleeping pad, sleeping bag, and — oh yeah! A tent. I almost forgot I packed it, as it feels as light as a rolled-up jacket. 

Space and weight are at an absolute premium when vol-biv (fly-camping) paragliding. Even more so when you tack on the weight of climbing gear. I picked out the lightest kit I could get away with to fly into Frey to climb, and naturally, the Samaya Alpinist2 ULTRA ($1,440) was coming with me for this mission. The sub-1-kg two-person, four-season bivy tent was the right tool for the job when weight savings mattered most.

Since the release of the Assault2 Ultra in 2020, Samaya’s name has been synonymous with the leading edge in alpine climbing tents. It made the world’s first four-season sub-1kg bivy tent with industry-leading Dyneema Composite Fabric waterproof-breathable membrane walls.

Since then, Samaya’s R&D team has been hard at work refining its line of tents with DCF technology, the most recent of which is the Alpinist2 Ultra. The Alpinist2 Ultra is the tip of the spear in the world of ultralight alpine-climbing bivy tents. It comes in at a claimed packed weight of 930 g and a minimum usable weight of 810 g.

At the cost of some livability and durability, the Alpinist2 Ultra’s design mantra is clear: Remove everything unnecessary. What you are left with is a pure function, no faff tent for the most weight-critical ascents.

In short: The Samaya Alpinist2 Ultra is a specialist’s weapon when every gram counts. It uses extremely light and durable Dyneema_X fabric and Carbon_X poles to achieve a minimalist weight of 810 g. It is minimalist and devoid of features, packs down small, and fits anywhere you put it. This is a tactical assault tent for ultralight alpinists who value weight savings over comfort.

Check out GearJunkie’s guide to the Best Backpacking Tents for more options.

Samaya Alpinist2 Ultra Review

Design

At its core, the Alpinist2 Ultra is devoid of many “features.” As the saying goes, “Good design is when there is nothing left to remove,” and the A2U is no exception.

Materials

The core feature that makes this tent so light is the Dyneema_X fabric along the main tent walls. Dyneema custom-produces this material for Samaya. Dyneema_X is composed of a Dyneema Composite Fabric laminated to an ePTFE membrane. The porous ePTFE membrane provides waterproofing and breathability, while the DCF layer provides strength to the fabric, without absorbing water or stretching.

For the rest of the tent, mostly the bathtub floor, Samaya uses a traditional DCF fabric (34g/m²). It was a top choice for its extreme lightweight/waterproof properties and tear-resistance. The DCF floor is welded to the Dyeema_X walls in a bathtub-style configuration.

To minimize weight, the tent comes with Carbon_X poles that weigh only 200g. The poles slide through slots at the front of the tent into a reinforced corner cup at the opposing corner. A grommet then secures them in place. That way, the tent can be pitched with the door closed in the event of poor weather.

Pitch

The interior pitch of the poles is a nice design touch. It maximizes available interior space while maintaining a small footprint and steep tent walls to enhance snow shedding. The poles are then secured to the ceiling at nine points using a simple Velcro loop to keep them in place.

Vent & Window

The only other feature of the A2U is a small vent window in the rear of the tent. A mesh layer and a Dyneema_X layer can be zipped open or closed individually. That provides a variety of venting or weather-sealing options. Unzipping both allows you to thread an anchor rope or sling into the tent when pitched in a precarious spot.

Exterior Features

On the exterior, there are eight guy-line anchors for securing in strong winds. Each corner of the tent comes pre-tied with a triple loop of Dyneema-core cord through a ring. It’s a clever design that allows for extending the loop to sling around rocks. You also have the ability to tension the corners to a stake by clipping two loops and pulling the third loop to tension, followed by a slip-knot tie-off.

If you need extra rigidity, the grommets are tensionable where the poles secure. When guyed out, Samaya claims a wind resistance of up to 120km/h, or about 75mph.

On the inside … there is nothing. Not a single pocket. Simple as that!

Testing

Over the course of a few months, I had the chance to test the A2U while climbing in El Chalten, Argentina, Frey Argentina, and an ice climbing trip to the Ghost wilderness in the Canadian Rockies. Conditions ranged from sunny summer in Bariloche to -5 degrees F overnight in the Rockies.

Condensation has historically been the Achilles heel of single-wall bivy tents. Warm moisture from your breath builds overnight in cold temps and condenses onto the walls. It then either freezes or drips, sometimes leaving a small pool of water in the bottom of the tent overnight.

While not perfect, I can confidently say the A2U does have the best condensation management of any single-wall bivy tent I’ve used. That includes the commonly used Black Diamond FirstLight tent.

During a couple of nights in the Canadian Rockies with lows in the negative single digits (Fahrenheit), I woke up to a noticeable amount of frost near the head of the tent. It was above our heads, pasted to the door and side walls. However, with a standard single-wall tent, I would usually expect significant moisture buildup on the rest of the walls.

Surprisingly, the A2U seemed to do a much better job in this regard. I noticed minimal condensation near the mid-body and foot of the tent. Again, it’s not perfect, but it was better than any other single-wall tent I’ve tried.

Durability

Main Wall Fabric

Where the A2U shines in its featherweight category, it should be expected that it may lack some durability. My first impression when opening the tent was just how thin the outer wall of the Dyneema_X fabric was. It feels almost like tissue paper in hand!

The Dyneema used in the Dyneema_X walls and DCF floor provides a high tensile strength, in general. However, these fabrics are still very prone to holes through abrasion. In my case, from just a few nights pitched on rocks. A collection of small holes in the DCF floor after just a few uses.

Luckily, this is easily repairable with repair tape. Samaya even provides some patches in the kit with the tent.

Carbon_X Poles

The main disappointment for me with this tent was the Carbon_X poles. While exceptionally light, I had issues with a pole tip cracking after only a handful of pitches. Although it was easy enough to repair with a couple of wraps of duct tape, it gave me pause having to worry about tent pole failure in a high-stakes climb where your shelter is your life.

I also noticed small chipping on the ends of the carbon poles from normal use, which further worried me about their longterm durability.

I did reach out to Samaya directly about this, and the representative said it is not an issue they see commonly. However, Samaya will provide a custom pair of aluminum poles if requested by the customer. In future versions, the Samaya representative said aluminum poles will be readily available for purchase on the website.

The Rest

I did not have any durability concerns with the rest of the tent. The choice of zipper on the door never gave me any issue, and the pockets in which the corner of the tent poles sit are reinforced.

It should be noted that it is always best practice to dry out tents before storage. That’s especially important with welded-seam tents like the A2U, to increase the longevity of the bathtub floor welded seam.

Pack Size & Weight

The one minor downside of DCF-style fabrics is that they do not pack down exceptionally well. However, given the extremely thin fabrics used in the A2U, the final pack size is reasonable for a two-person, four-season shelter.

Samaya claims a minimum pack size of 3.5L. I found that to be accurate if packed neatly. I would generally recommend using the supplied DCF stuff sack both for compression and to protect the tent while packed next to other items. The poles pack down to 40cm in length.

When carrying the tent in its stuff bag, the four stakes and repair kit, and the poles in their bag, the whole package weighed 935 g on my scale. With the most minimalist setup with poles and tent only (no stuff bags or stakes) that can be reduced to 849 g according to my scales (including installed guy lines).

Value

At an MSRP of $1,440, the Alpinist2 Ultra is the most expensive bivy tent on the market by a long margin. For reference, that is more than double the price of the Black Diamond Firstlight. For this price, though, you get a solid four-season bivy tent that disappears on your back for the most weight-critical ascents.

It is certainly not a tent for everyday use, but if you have made it this far down the single-wall bivy tent rabbit hole, it is certainly worth considering for the right mission.

Samaya Alpinist2 Ultra: Who It Is For

So who is this tent for? If you are doing cold, technical climbs with multiple days of food and bivy gear on your back, the Alpinist2 ULTRA is the right tool for the job. It has just the right features to shelter you from the elements in the most demanding conditions, pitched high on a mountain face or ridge, but none of the extra fluff to carry when it really matters. This tent belongs in Alaska, the Himalaya, the Karakorum, or Patagonia.

The Alpinist2 Ultra represents the most cutting-edge tent technology for weight-critical technical climbing I’ve seen. You simply won’t find another four-season two-person tent in the sub-1kg weight range.

If you are looking for an all-around four-season or quiver-of-one tent, it would be better to look elsewhere. What makes the Alpinist2 ULTRA shine is its lack of features, making it a very specialist tent.

For more livable, lightweight, and durable options, check out options such as the Slingfin Hotbox, or for a cheaper but equally minimal tent, the Black Diamond Firstlight. Find more options on GearJunkie’s guide to the Best Backpacking Tents.

The Alpinist2 Ultra comes with a hefty price tag. It also has some noted durability concerns with the poles over time. That said, for the right kind of mission, this tent is an exceptional companion. I’ll be taking mine to the Indian Himalaya this spring, where it will feel right at home.