Our adventure started in the summer of 2005 when my wife, Cheryl, and I hiked the Havasu Canyon in Arizona. We are both outdoor enthusiasts but most of our adventures consisted of day hikes around Ohio's state parks.

Suffice it to say, the environment we encountered in Arizona was dramatically different from the one we had become accostumed to. Our trip to Havasu was incredible, but it became painfully obvious that we needed to upgrade our gear. We were carrying a lot of unnecessary weight. We decided to lighten our load before our next big trip to Acadia in July and started with our tent.

We picked up the Sierra Designs Sirius 3, a major upgrade from the tent we hauled into Havasu. On our second day at Acadia we hiked to the top of Cadillac Mountain. You could imagine our surprise when we reached the summit and found hundreds of people loitering at the peak in flip-flops. Unbeknownst to us, visitors can drive to the summit. I doubt, however, they expereinced the same degree of satisfaction as Cheryl and I.

We spent a few minutes snapping photos and admiring the scenery. The barrier islands off the coast caught our eye as fog raced over them. Clouds began to roll in as we descended and by the time we reached our camp site, the skies had opened up. We found our tent in no less than an inch of water and were seriously concerened about what we would encounter once inside.

Our fears were put to rest when we crawled into the Sirius 3. Despite the ever-growing sea engulfing our site - by this time the tent looked like one of those barrier islands jutting out of the Atlantic we had seen from the top of Cadillac Mountain - inside we stayed warm and dry.

The next night we found ourselved in the middle of another major soaker. It poured for hours, but the Sirius 3 performed admirably. The following day, after an incredible four-hour sea kayak tour around the nearby islands, we broke camp and headed for Baxter State Park and Mt. Katahdin, the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail.

The 4,100 foot climb up the Hunt Trail to Baxter Peak included a grueling scramble across a mile-long boulder field. The view from the top of Katahdin and the satisfaction that came with it was worth every labored step. We successfully navigated the boulder field and avoided a rather large snake sunning itself on the exposed rock on our way down the mountain and arrived back at camp eight hours later.

That evening, a passing thunderstorm rumbled through the park but the skies finally cleared and we were able to pull the rain fly off the Sirius 3 and enjoy a cool, star-lit night. Our two-week trip would take us to Burlington, Vermont and Lake Placid. At every stop along the way, we pitched the Sirius 3 and were completely satisfied with its dependability.

Click here to see how Sierra Designs was used by Curt Conrad and other people in the know.