Getting into the outdoors and camping or hunting in extreme temperatures can be quite the adventure. Enter this White Duck Avalon Bell Tent review. Depending on the gear that you have, it can be a relaxing, challenging, and fun experience, or it can be downright miserable. When you venture out for a late season hunting trip or to do some winter camping, the temperature swings can be extreme and unless you’re prepared with the right gear you may be in for more adventure than you bargained for.
Over the last year, we have had the chance to test out the White Duck 13’ Avalon Bell Tent along with the Camp Chef Alpine heavy duty cylinder stove. This setup can make for a really enjoyable time in God’s country while braving the extreme cold.
Picking The Right tent for your needs
If you’re reading this article, you’ve probably been looking into canvas hot tents so you already know there are a lot of options out there. Additionally, we all have unique needs in a canvas tent that play into the decision of which one to purchase. Therefore, there are quite a few things to consider when selecting the hot tent that is right for you.
The primary items I was looking at when I picked the White Duck 13’ Avalon Bell Tent were ease of setup, size of the tent, floor vs floorless, and whether it was compatible with a wood stove.
I was really intrigued by traditional wall tents as they are tried and true and we used one on hunting trips when I was a kid with my dad and brothers. The difference between a traditional wall tent and a bell tent are significant. Both of them are obviously canvas tents and can be used with the wood burning stoves, but their design is vastly different.
Make sure to check out our other gear reviews and the Backwoods Pursuit YouTube Channel to help you decide what gear will help you stay out in the field longer!
A bell tent is significantly easier and less labor intensive to set up. It is also very friendly in that it requires only two poles. However, one of the downsides to the bell tent is its footprint and the usable space inside due to the shape. Additionally, given the design of the bell tent, standing room is much more limited even when the interior square footage is the same as a conventional wall tent.
A wall tent has more usable room inside, along with more standing room, but the downside of the wall tent is that it is much more challenging and time consuming to set up. It also requires substantially more components. As I mentioned above, picking the right tent comes down to how you plan on using it.
The conclusion I came to was that while I was planning to make a base camp for my hunt, I was going to a new area and did not know exactly what to expect. I picked the White Duck Avalon Bell Tent because I wanted the flexibility of moving camp if needed without having to burn a whole day of hunting in the tear-down and setup process. If we were striking out at our first location I wanted to be able to move camp more easily to another area of the unit.
If I had been planning a hunt somewhere I was familiar with perhaps I would have gone with a wall tent because I knew where I’d be the whole week. For reference, the first time I set up the Avalon Bell Tent, it took me about an hour at most by myself to set it up (without the stove). That was with my four young kids “helping” in the backyard.
I took my time on the first setup to get a feel for how it assembled. Even out of the box, it wasn’t terribly difficult to see how the tent went together. Ultimately, that was my goal for this tent to be simple and relatively fast to set up.
Size and Color Selection – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
Once you figure out what style of canvas tent you are looking for, the next question that begs to be answered is what size and color to go for. If you are planning to use a canvas tent, clearly weight is not an issue like it would be if you were looking for an ultralight hot tent that you can backpack in with.
With weight as a non-factor in the decision, it opens up a lot of possibilities in the White Duck lineup of tents. For this review we opted for the Avalon 13’ Bell Tent since we previously reviewed the larger White Duck Regatta 16.5’ Bell Tent.
We used this 13′ White Duck Avalon Bell Tent with anywhere from two to five people with the stove. As you can imagine, the available space in this tent was like staying in the Hilton when there were just the two of us. We had room for all of our bags, packs, stove, foam pads, camp chairs and still had room to spread out. We used a combination of traditional foam pads and inflatable mattresses with just two of us in the tent.
When we added a third guy and foam pad, it was a little more pressed for space but still had more than enough room to spread out, move around, and store all of our gear. We did stack our beds (foam pads) to free up additional space in the waking hours, but the space was adequate.
We also slept up to five people in this tent with the stove but it was a really tight fit, even considering it was me with my four young kids between ages 4 and 9 who don’t take up a lot of space. I would not attempt more than four full grown people in the tent with the stove because you quickly start running out of space for gear. If you do try to accommodate four people, I would recommend small sleeping pads as well.
We also took the tent out for some summer camping (no stove) and slept six in the tent. As I mentioned above, I have four kids, so they don’t take up that much space. Six in the tent is doable but not overly comfortable or spacious and just doesn’t leave a lot of room for luggage, gear, or anything else.
TENT COLOR – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
Other than size on the canvas tent, the color of the material is another decision to consider. On the Avalon tent, White Duck makes the decision easy since it is only offered in the off-white/tan color. In some of their other models they offer some darker colors, but with the Avalon the decision is made for you.
Personally, I like the lighter color to allow some light into the tent during daylight hours. As we discovered in our Regatta Bell Tent review last year, the darker color really darkens the interior of the tent even when the sun is out. The only downside to the lighter off-white/tan color is that it shows dirt a little more and is harder to keep looking nice. Personally, it’s not a big deal to me if my tent looks dirty and well used, but that is something to consider if it would bother you.
Wood Stove Selection – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
Another thing to consider when purchasing a canvas tent is to pair it with an appropriately sized stove. If you undersize your stove for the size of tent you have, it will leave you wanting more heat than the stove can produce or you will have to burn it very hot to keep up and your burn times will suffer. You don’t want to oversize your stove too much either, as you won’t be able to burn it at a low enough level to stay comfortable in the tent.
For the 13′ White Duck Avalon Bell Tent I went with the Camp Chef Alpine heavy duty cylinder stove. In all reality this stove is probably on the larger size of what is needed in the 13’ Avalon, but I would rather lean towards having a little too much heat than not enough on those bitter cold nights. The alpine stove has 1.67 cubic feet of space along with the door damper to help control the temperature, so I’m ok oversizing a bit and just turning down the stove to get a slower burn.
The Alpine stove is made of alloy steel and comes with 10 feet of 5-inch diameter chimney pipe along with the spark arrester that fits on the top of the chimney. It also comes with the damper holes pre-drilled which allows the damper to install easily.
Additionally, the stove comes with two accessory shelves that mount on either side of the stove along with an internal log grate to allow air flow and a more complete burn. The legs of the stove are removable and can be stored inside the stove for transport.
One of the cool things about this stove is that all of the components pack up nicely inside the stove for transport and storage. I also added the hot water tank that mounts on the side of the stove so you can have hot water ready whenever the stove is in use. If you’re base camping and need hot water for coffee in the morning, cleaning up dishes, or taking a sponge bath before bed, the hot water tank comes in super handy.
WHAT COULD BE BETTER – Camp Chef Alpine Stove
The only thing that I think could be improved upon with this Camp Chef Alpine stove is if it came with a door gasket to create a more secure seal. I found that it was a little difficult to create enough of a seal to keep the stove burning low enough to not cook me out of the tent when it wasn’t super cold out.
It takes a few nights to get a feel for how the stove burns, but once I figured out how to load the wood and create as much of a seal as I could, I felt like I was sleeping in a hotel room. I did, however, order a gasket seal to help on the nights that are not quite as cold.
I also wish a carry bag was offered with the stove. The alpine stove weighs 74 pounds, so it’s not exactly an item you can just toss in your truck and move around easily. I did end up finding a stove carry bag online, but it would be nice to be able to get it all in one fell swoop.
how It Was Tested – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
We were excited to have the opportunity to use this White Duck Avalon 13’ Bell Tent in the most extreme temperatures we could find. After last year’s late season Colorado hunting trip, where the temperatures dipped down to -8 degrees and the highs barely reached freezing, we knew we needed a base camp setup that would help us withstand the cold a little more comfortably. The weather wasn’t quite as extreme during our testing as it was last year, unfortunately, but we were still able to use this tent down into the single digits.
Let’s jump into some of the specifics of this tent and how it performed from our late season Colorado hunting trip to family camping in February and even some spring and summer camping in the warmer weather.
Options and Accessories: 13′ White Duck Avalon Bell Tent Review
The White Duck Avalon Bell Tent lineup has a handful of options that you can consider adding to the tent in addition to what comes standard. Personally, I love the fact that the White Duck tent comes with several features included in a standard order that are stand alone items from a lot of other manufacturers. What comes with the Avalon Bell Tent sets you up to hit the campsite out of the box, but of course adding some extra accessories can just add to the leisure you’ll experience in this tent.
The standard Avalon Bell Tent includes the canvas tent with a complete sewn in floor, all the stakes and poles needed for setup including a rubber mallet, a carry bag for all components of the tent, compression straps for the rolled up tent, and galvanized steel poles and stakes. I love the fact that White Duck includes the poles needed for set up along with the sewn in floor. Oftentimes those are additional costs which can add up quickly.
If you want a little additional luxury beyond what comes standard, here are a few add-ons that you can purchase separately from White Duck.
TENT AWNING – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
The tent awning add-on is a great option to extend the covered area of the Avalon bell tent since it does not have a built in awning. The awning comes with three poles so you can configure the awning in a multitude of ways. I would recommend adding this awning as it is really nice to have some additional (mostly) protected space outside the tent to store boots, coolers, a cook top etc. It really adds a nice touch to have some additional covered space but keeps it pretty easily accessible.
GROUND TARP – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
Another option to add to the tent purchase is a White Duck ground tarp. While the tent has a sewn in floor, adding the ground tarp can just add an additional layer of protection from sharp objects and will help separate the tent floor from the ground to help extend the life of the floor. It’s not completely necessary but is nice to have.
FIRE/WATER REPELLANT MATERIAL – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
Lastly, White Duck offers a fire and water repellent option on the Avalon tent. It comes standard with the water repellent, so upgrading to the fire and water is an option. In my opinion, this is not a necessary add on but can give you some peace of mind if you’re concerned about embers escaping the spark arrester and damaging the canvas.
White Duck Avalon 13’ Bell Tent Specs
| White Duck Avalon Bell 13′ Tent Specs | |
|---|---|
| Fabric Options | Water Repellent, Fire/Water Repellent |
| Capacity | Sleeps 3-6 |
| Canvas Type | 10.10 oz Army Duck Cotton Canvas |
| Doors | 1 |
| Windows | 8 |
| Built-in Stove Jack | Yes |
| Floor Material | 16 oz heavy duty polyvinyl |
| Frame Material | Galvanized steel center pole & A-frame door pole |
| Electrical Cable Outlet | Yes |
| Center Height | 8’5″ or 260 cm |
| Door Height | 5’10” or 180 cm |
| Wall Height | 3′ or 90 cm |
| Total Weight | 99 -14 lbs |
White Duck Avalon 13’ Bell Tent Features
Next, let’s take a look at some of the features that are notable on the White Duck Avalon Bell Tent.
CEILING VENTS – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
The White Duck Avalon 13’ Bell Tent has four air vents located at the peak of the canvas tent. These help with the airflow through the tent and are particularly helpful when burning a wood stove. The vents are located at the highest point of the shelter and are covered on the outside to prevent unwanted snow or rain from entering.
TIPI DESIGN – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
The design of the White Duck Avalon Bell Tent is more of a hybrid tipi style tent than a traditional canvas tent or a true tipi style shelter. The side walls come off the ground at a 90 degree angle and are three feet high, which gives you significantly more space close to the wall than a standard tipi style tent.
These three feet tall side walls allow for use of the entire footprint of the shelter. While three feet isn’t all that tall for someone who is 6’2” it does make a big difference in comparison to a traditional tipi style tent. With the center of the tent being 8’5” it also creates a steep pitch of the roof which increases the height of the tent pretty quickly. The outer sidewall of the tent gives you plenty of room for storage along with the ability to sleep right on the edge of the tent without feeling like the roof is caving in on you.
SEWN IN FLOOR – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
One of my favorite things about the White Duck Avalon Bell Tent is that it comes with a full sewn in floor. It’s not an add on or an extra cost; it comes with the tent. Personally, I am a floor guy with my tents, even with my ultralight backcountry tents. To me it makes sleeping in the woods a little more comfortable. So to have the floor included with the tent is a huge plus to me.
The floor is a 16 oz heavy duty polyvinyl material. As we noted in the White Duck Regatta Bell Tent review (which features a polyurethane floor), the floor was a bit slick. Bringing along some carpet, a rug, or something else to add an additional layer inside the tent is helpful for traction and comfort.
STAKES AND POLES INCLUDED – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
One of the frustrations I had when looking at canvas tents was determining the actual cost out the door. I found it very hrlpful that White Duck tents include all the poles and stakes in the advertised price. Obviously, there are add-ons that you can choose to include, but what you see as the advertised price gives you everything you need to set up a functioning tent.
SCREENED WINDOWS – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
White Duck Avalon Bell tents come with screened windows and a screened door. The Avalon tent comes with eight screened windows and the door has two layers that include the screen on the inside and the canvas on the outside.
The windows are in a half moon shape and are on every portion of the exterior wall. Having that many windows is helpful for tons of ventilation, or if you end up getting the stove going a little too much and need to cool off a little bit (I may or may not have used this tactic while learning the capabilities of my stove the first night or two).
During the summer time having the ability to get a good cross-draft is really nice as well. The windows are another great feature of the White Duck tent that is included at no additional cost.
STOVE JACK – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
If you’re planning on using a canvas tent, you are most likely planning to use a stove. The stove jack that is built into the White Duck Avalon is really handy. They even give you the pre-marked 5” and 6” pipe cutouts to make it much easier to fit your stove to the tent.
EASY SETUP – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
One of my favorite features of the White Duck Avalon 13’ Bell Tent is the setup time. I don’t think I’m alone in my distaste for a tent that takes forever to set up. The Avalon was fantastic in the category of ease and time of setup. The setup is pretty self explanatory and not overly time consuming. I’m pretty sure after setting up my Avalon Bell Tent once, I can set it up faster than a traditional car camping tent and it doesn’t take an army to get this tent pitched.
I was able to set up the bell tent virtually by myself (I had my small kids “helping” the first time I set it up) in around an hour without the stove and taking the time to read all the instructions and such. Ultimately, the setup is one of the reasons I wanted to go with this style of bell tent as I mentioned above.
STURDY AND ADJUSTABLE GUY LINES – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
Another feature that made the White Duck Avalon Bell Tent a winner was the guy lines/ropes. They are made of a polypropylene UV reflective rope and are very heavy duty. The guy line adjustment system is very easy to operate and makes setting up that much easier. There is a ton of adjustment available which is nice if you’re setting up in an area that has rocks, trees, or anything else that forces you to be flexible on where the stakes go.
MESH STORAGE COMPARTMENTS – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
Something that is relatively small, but gives the Avalon Bell Tent a nice touch is the small mesh pockets that line the inside of the exterior wall of the tent. They are great for keeping track of keys, chapstick, your phone, or any other smaller item that you want to have a place for.
D-RING ON CENTER POLE – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
Another seemingly insignificant piece of the White Duck Avalon is the D ring located at the top of the center pole. It worked great to clip a lantern on to illuminate the whole tent. You could also tehther a clothes line between it and the A frame of the front door.
ELASTIC SHOCK CORD ON GUY LINES – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
Another seemingly small component of the Avalon is the elastic style tensioners on all the guy lines. It is a stretchy heavy duty rope that gives you a little more wiggle room in the set up. They are also great for pulling the floor and roofline of the tent tight without having to be perfect in your stake location.
QUALITY MATERIALS – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
The White Duck Avalon Bell Tent is made of 10.10 oz Army Duck cotton canvas. As I mentioned before it comes in the water repellent or water and fire repellent versions depending on your selection. They also come with their “top grade waterproof zippers” as well.
Hot Tent Camping Tips & Must Have Items
Whether you are a seasoned winter hot tent camper, or are just getting into it, we wanted to compile some tips and tricks that we’ve learned over the years to make things go as smoothly and comfortably as possible.
WOOD STOVE / HEAT SOURCE – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent
It goes without saying, but having a way to heat your tent is an absolute must when camping in cold winter temperatures. I know some folks do this with a Propane Buddy Heater, but you have to be careful to properly vent your tent as they are not recommended for inside use.
While propane heaters are faster to deploy and cleaner and easier to use than a wood burning stove, they don’t put off nearly the heat. In addition to that, if you’ve ever used a wood burning stove to heat with, you know it’s just a more desirable heating source all the way around. I know people who heat with a propane style stove, but it’s not something we recommend because of the potential safety concerns.
Make sure to check out our other gear reviews and the Backwoods Pursuit YouTube Channel to help you decide what gear you’ll need to keep you in the field longer!
Instead, something like the Camp Chef Alpine Wood Stove is a far superior way to safely keep your tent toasty warm. With a wood stove, you get much more heat output along with that welcoming “wood stove heat” feel. There is just something different about heating with wood, and that is never more apparent than when winter camping.
FIRE STARTER / LIGHTER
Assuming you go with a wood stove (hopefully you do), you’ll want to make sure to have a quick and easy way to get your fire started. For that, we highly recommend Bigfoot Bushcraft Fire Plugs. I’ve been using these for years for everything from an emergency pack item and camp fire starter, to my go-to fire starter on backpack hunts where we are taking an ultralight hot tent. I absolutely love them, and they work amazingly well. They are super easy to light, and they burn for over five minutes each which is plenty of time to get your kindling started.
SLEDGE HAMMER
I threw in a 2.5 lb sledge hammer with my tent kit to help get those large tent stakes in the ground. This is key, particularly in rocky soil or in colder weather when the ground might be frozen.
DRILL / DRILL BITS – SELF-TAPPING TENT SCREWS / Propane Torch
One thing we learned the hard way is just how difficult it can be to get tent stakes in the ground during winter conditions. You’ll want to be prepared for this, which can be done a number of ways:
- Self-tapping screw in tent stakes.
- By far the most effective way we found to battle rocky or packed soil, and particularly frozen ground (or breaking through layers of ice), is to utilize some screw-in tent stakes. They are on the expensive side, but the time and headache they will save you when setting up and taking down your tent is more than worth the extra money. If you go this route, bring an impact drill and your life will be much easier.
- Pre-drill your tent stake holes.
- If you don’t want to invest in screw-in tent stakes, you can pick up some long masonry drill bits and pre-drill your tent stake holes to aid in getting your tent staked out. If you go this route, we found that drilling a hole slightly bigger in diameter than the stakes works best. This helps keep the tent stakes from freezing into the ground as badly. Frozen tent stakes make getting them out of the ground when you’re tearing down the tent an absolute nightmare. Of course, you’ll need to bring a battery powered drill like this Dewalt to get the job done.
- Bring a small propane blow torch.
- Another option to handle frozen ground is to bring a small propane blow torch. This is more for getting your stakes out of the ground when it’s time to leave, as your stakes will likely freeze into the ground once you get them set. We had a very difficult time removing the stakes from the ground and wished we had used either the self-tapping screws with an impact gun or brought a blow torch to heat the stakes up enough to break them free from the ice in the ground. This is less than ideal and takes much longer than self-tapping screws, but it can get the job done in a pinch.
POWER BANK
While this certainly isn’t a “must-have” item, a power bank is very nice to have especially when winter camping. During winter months it gets dark early, and you can find yourself going through a lot of batteries in lanterns, headlamps, etc. (unless you use a gas powered lantern). You can even use a power station like this Biolite Base Charge to recharge your power drill.
If you accidentally leave home with a partially charged drill battery only to find you drill battery dead half way through setting up the tent, a power bank is a life saver.
Having a power source like that Biolite Basecharge 600 or the larger Biolite Basecharge 1500 can save your trip, and you can use it to power devices or recharge whatever you need while enjoying life at base camp. If you want some of your luxury items from home, you can even bring a coffee pot or other appliances to power your base camp.
COTS
Cots are something that can take your comfort in the backwoods to the next level. While they take up a lot of room in the tent compared to sleeping on the ground, they are a lot more comfortable and allow you to store things under your “bed.” There are a lot of great cots on the market, but Kodiak Canvas sells some good ones like the Disc-O-Bed cots.
The ones we use are the Cabela’s Cots, and they work well, but I’d like to upgrade to the Disc-O-Bed cots as they look easier to set up. Don’t forget to snag a cot pad as well as that’s what really makes these things comfortable!
LANTERNS
As mentioned above, you’ll want to make sure you have a way to light your tent if you are camping during the short, winter days. Take along a couple of these Fenix CL26R Pro rechargeable lanterns as they are AWESOME, compact and bright, with a good battery life. If you want to save a little change, these rechargeable lanterns have worked well but aren’t the quality of the Fenix. Either of these lanterns last a long time, but you may need to recharge them after a few days of use. If you bring one of the Biolite Basecharge units with you to recharge it, you’ll be set!
DAMPER BRUSH
If you are going to be out for more than a weekend and potentially burning a lot of wood, another thing we found helpful is bringing a wire brush to make sure the spark arrestor doesn’t get plugged and reduce/clog the airflow of the stove. If this happens you’ll find that your stove won’t burn very well and may even smoke you out of the tent. This really only comes into play if you are staying out for longer periods of time or are burning wood that produces a lot of ash.
SNOW SHOVEL
Finally, if you might encounter snow when out on your winter camping trip, you’d be wise to throw in a snow shovel to assist in clearing out your camp spot. This will make setting camp set up a whole lot faster. It might seem obvious, but it’s an easy thing to forget. I keep a lightweight, foldable shovel like the Rhino Survival shovel in my pickup for instances like these.
CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTOR
If you are going to be using a propane or other gas powered heater inside your tent, it’s a good idea to have a carbon monoxide (CO) detector to make sure the CO levels don’t elevate to an unhealthy level. It’s a small and inexpensive thing to throw in that could save your life. If you are using a quality wood burning stove, it’s not nearly as critical but is still recommended as it is also possible for wood burning to elevate carbon monoxide levels. It’s just another item to throw in your stove kit just in case.
SLIPPERS
This might sound a bit odd, but when winter camping, it’s a good idea to bring some good rubber soled slippers. The tent floor will stay really cold no matter how good the stove is, and a cold floor will keep your feet from warming up. Sure, you can just wear your shoes or boots, but it is really nice to be able to take off your shoes and relax in a pair of slippers inside your nice, warm tent. These slippers are ideal because they have a rubber sole that puts an extra barrier between your feet and the ground, and you can also go outside in them really quick if you need to.
Stove Tips: White duck Avalon Bell Tent Review
GET THE CORRECT SIZE STOVE
As mentioned above, selecting the right size stove for whatever tent you select will greatly increase your enjoyment. Pick a stove that is too small and it’ll have a difficult time keeping up when the temperatures really drop. Pick a size that is too big and you’ll find yourself needing to open the doors of the tent because it’s just too hot inside. Don’t get caught up in the “let’s just buy the biggest stove we can” trap and regret it later.
BRING THE RIGHT SLEEP SYSTEM
Even if you are heating your canvas tent with a wood stove, you will still need to bring a sleep system that will keep you warm for the temperatures you’ll be out in. Unless you plan to keep the wood stove burning all night long, bring a sleeping bag that will keep you warm throughout the coldest part of the night assuming you won’t be using a wood stove.
BRING YOUR WOOD CUT AND CHOPPED
I found it much easier to bring the wood I’m going to burn to base camp where it’s already cut and chopped into half or quarter rounds. Sure, you can do it when you get there, but you already have a lot to do to get set up, and having your wood already taken care of is a welcomed luxury.
CLEAN THE FIRE BOX AND SPARK ARRESTOR
During this review, we found that if you are going to be out for more than a weekend, you’ll want to be conscious of how full of ash the fire box is getting and empty it every few days if you burn a lot. It’s also a good idea to bring a wire brush and make sure your spark arrestor stays nice and clear to ensure proper air flow in the stove. With this larger Camp Chef Alpine Stove, it isn’t nearly as much of an issue as when using a smaller stove, but is still something to keep an eye on.
What We Liked: White duck Avalon Bell Tent Review
After testing this White Duck Avalon Bell Tent in several different camping situations there are a number of features that we really love about this tent.
Fast, easy and straightforward setup: As we’ve touched on a few times, the White Duck Avalon Bell Tent gets really high marks for the ease of setup and the time it takes to set up the tent. The first time setting up takes a bit longer, but once I set the tent up a few times, I was able to get it completely set up, stove and all, in a little over an hour by myself.
Built in stove jack: The first time you set up the Avalon Bell Tent, I would recommend doing it in the backyard so you can cut out the proper size stove jack (assuming you plan to use a stove with it). White Duck made cutting the opening for the stove jack really simple with the built in stove jack and both 5-inch and 6-inch cutouts depending on your stove.
Sewn in floor: I love the fact that the White Duck Avalon Bell Tent comes with a sewn-in floor. A lot of canvas tents either don’t offer one or it is an extra cost to add the floor. With White Duck including the sewn-in floor as part of the standard package, that is one less headache you have to figure out and makes it really convenient.
Lots of side pockets: Another feature we haven’t talked that much about is the side pockets that come standard with the tent. They are not terribly big, but very convenient for storing some of the smaller items. The pockets line the entirety of the inside of the tent, so there are plenty for everyone.
Electrical outlet port: White Duck tents have a sewn in electrical outlet port that is really useful if you’re someone who uses a solar charge station. I do not have solar panels so I did not use this feature, but it is available. This feature would also be helpful if someone wanted to run a generator with an electric heater.
Quality of ropes and tensioners: Another feature that we loved is the quality of the ropes and tensioners that the Avalon tent comes with. They are very easy to operate, work well, and are very heavy duty. To top it off, they also have elastic stake loops that make it that much easier to get the right tension.
Lots of windows: The Avalon Bell Tent comes with a mesh window built into every panel of the tent. It makes getting a cross breeze through the tent very easy. The door also has one mesh layer so you can literally open up the entirety of the exterior to get some fresh air, or if you want to let it a little more light.
Value for the cost: One of the biggest benefits of the White Duck canvas tents is the value you get at their price point. They are well made, but cost less than a lot of other options out there. Overall, I love the value and features of this Avalon Bell Tent for the cost.
What We Disliked: White duck Avalon Bell Tent Review
After testing pieces of gear, there are always a few things that stand out that we think can be improved upon. While we love the White Duck Avalon Bell Tent, there are a few things that I think could be adjusted to add a little more value.
A few bigger pockets inside the tent: It would be nice for the Avalon Bell Tent to include at least a few pockets that were a little bigger inside the tent to hold boots, gloves, hats, or anything of that size. While having a lot of little pockets is nice, mixing in a few larger ones would be ideal.
No windows up high: A window or two up higher on the tent in addition to the ground level windows would be a plus. It’s not a huge deal since the Avalon is such a light color and lets in a lot of light naturally, but it would be a nice feature.
Exterior wall height: Given the fact that the Avalon is a bell tent, the exterior wall height is naturally going to be lower than a traditional canvas wall tent. However, a 4-5 foot wall height would be a game changer inside the tent with how much head room you would have. Again, it’s a little nit picky, but would be a really nice feature.
Spare Parts Availability: While this is not an issue I personally ran into, there is currently no way to order extra stakes, guy line, floor patching material, poles, etc. This can be a bit of a headache if you lose some parts or need to repair the tent. White Duck would be well served to add the sale of spare parts to their website. This can be particularly applicable to wall tents where there are more parts and pieces that can be lost or broken.
Conclusion – White Duck Avalon Bell Tent Review
In conclusion, White Duck makes some great canvas tents. I love the option of being able to go traditional with a canvas wall tent or go with a bell tent depending on your needs and desires. Additionally, they make selecting a tent a little more simple with all the included features. You don’t have to piece together a tent during checkout. If you’re considering a White Duck, I would highly recommend pulling the trigger. It feels a little bit like cheating to be so comfortable in the woods.
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