By: ISOBELSNO1 Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2011 Rating: Date: 12/05/2012
If you are looking at this review because you can't make up your mind about owning a BL6, then look no further. Go and get one. I am the type who looks into things pretty intensely, and I got the bear. After owning a Pennine pathfinder for years, we decided to downsize to a tent due to lack of camping time availability. My first thought regarding a tent was an Arkansas 5. When I started to look for one I discovered the Arkansas was an old model so we turned our attention to the Montana 6. This seemed perfect for us. One thing kept niggling at me, the material. My brother inlaw has one of similar material and it is very noisy in the wind and lets face it it gets windy on the coast or in the hills. I spoke to a mate who has a BL6. He told me about the noise factor not being a problem with the polycotton and he also said it didn,t get unbearably hot in good weather and it holds good heat in the cold. I got one and can confirm all of this is true. I had to get a roof box due to the size of it, a mant banc 4500. I can fit the tent and sleeping bags in there. One tip I will give you, because the poles are tunnel shaped, there is strap running between each end of the poles to prevent them spreading. These are attached to the top sheet using rings. I disconnected mine. When we put the tent up, before the pins are inserted into the bottom of the pole we hook the strap on to the pin, which holds it into place perfectly. The reason for this is when you take your tent down, hopefully it is dry, but these straps run under the bathtub style groundsheet and therefore are usually damp in not wet. Can you imagine unpacking your tent without noticing these were wet! The BL6 is a solid well built tent.
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By: Jerry1 Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2011 Rating: Date: 17/01/2012
After many days searching the Internet for tent reviews and visiting Yeomans tent exhibition at Ripley Castle last year, my wife and I eventually plumped for the Outwell Bear Lake 6 (our 1st proper tent!) We also purchased the front extension but did not bother with the side one as could not really see the point of it. The space for the 2 of us and the dog is fantastic (kids now grown up!) although I could not imagine 6 of us in there!
After standing in various polyester tents on a windy day at Ripley, I'm so glad we got a poly cotton. The Outwell Tennessee I originally wanted was like standing in a giant crisp packet in comparison! I am really pleased with the quality of the tent, several doors, opening windows etc etc. The footprint and Carpet also enhance the whole experience. I was very doubtful at the start as it was my wife who wanted a return to camping, I'm so glad we did, although having the Bear Lake makes all the difference! It seems the Outwell tents overall were the best quality on the market, not cheap, but you get what you pay for!
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By: Camping Tudors Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2006 Rating: Date: 03/11/2011
We have had a Bearlake 6 for 5 years for a big tent it is quite easy to put up my 14 year old and me (only 4'11') have done it. I like the idea of zipping the floor in there is lots of room for 4 of us and the dog and we do take everything except the kitchen sink. We also go away for weekends so have recently bought an Oakland xl which you can put up in a matter of minutes. We are going to buy the side extensions for both before next year as it gives you that bit of flexibility. Oakland are a very good make of tent and we are very pleased with both of ours sometimes it is worth paying a bit extra for good quality. I have been camping for 35 years and met lots of lovely people and stayed at some great places,
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By: Stuandtan Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2011 Rating: Date: 12/09/2011
After spending weeks, and I really do mean weeks, researching tent reviews on here and watching endless videos online. We'd also been to Go Outdoors and our local specialist indie shop, Norwich Camping and Leisure and received some great advice. We really wanted a poly cotton to cut down on the plastic bag rustle and stuffiness of regular polyester tents. A few quid more, ok nearly double, but so much more comfortable.
We wanted loads of living space and the Bear Lake does that. We can get two large hammocks in there and still have plenty of space for storage. I'm 6'5' and the good lady is 5'11' so we need good head room, we also need plenty of room in the bedroom area too. Another big 'YES' for the Bear Lake.
I could go on and on.I normally do! It's heavy and Outwell should have charged another £100 for a proper trolley bag for the main tent but hey ho. I wish they did a better quality carpet but at least the tent has the heavy duty zipped in groundsheet in the main & bedroom area. You really need this if you want comfort and durability. Prepare for colour fading of the canvas in the first six months but it's no big deal in my opinion.
The best all around tent we could find for around £1000 and we paid a whole lot less. Outstanding Outwell! Thanks to Norwich Camping & Leisure too :)
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By: Archie-noah Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2011 Rating: Date: 29/08/2011
We got our BL6 from the camping and caravanning show at the NEC this year. We are a family of 4 and this tent was ideal for us. The tent is absolutely amazing. Having done most of our camping in normal tents to then go to the BL6 with Polycotton the difference was second to none. Its like going from a 3 star hotel to a 5 star. If you use this tent then you will know exactly what I mean. The only slight mark I will put against it is the front canopy should have been made to go straight to the floor. We did look at the wolf lake which has the canaopy to the floor but the 4berth was too small and the 7berth too big. This is why I have marked the BL6 9 out of 10 instead of 10 out of 10. We are going to buy the front extension as it will be perfect to have your kitchen set up in without the rain getting to it.
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By: Christofy Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2009 Rating: Date: 27/08/2011
Following up from my last review. I have now used this tent on two occasions. Once was a short 3 days and we saw moderate amounts of sun and rain in which the tent worked fine worked well in both. The pretty was over the last week in Somerset and I have to say the tent took a right hammering by the rain. We had 17hrs of near non stop rain and for most of the time very heavy. Fortunately the tent was fine with only a small drip coming through at low level where a baby seat was pushed hard into the side of the tent but once removed soon stopped. There were a lot of people on the site packing up and going home as the rain was to much for some tents, even my mates kampa frinton 4 leaked which are regarded as a quality tent(my friend was amazed at how totally dry the tent was on the inside with not a hint of moisture getting through). The main difference I have noticed between the polycotton and the 100% polyester tents is the lack of condensation and dampness you always get from the polyester tents, also very quiet in the wind as doesn't flap about as fabric is weighty. All in all a very nice tent and definitely worth the extra weight and if the price tag is a bit steep go for a second hand one like I did ( used twice £350 +50 postage bargain) and the tent is pretty much identical to the newer models so all good. I won't be changing tent for some time. Might treat myself to the front extension though
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By: 5shephards Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2011 Rating: Date: 27/08/2011
Ok this is not going to be a tech review of the tent but a purely wifey, mum review!
I love this tent, we are a family of 4 with 1 large dog and the tent gives us so much space and comfort I wouldn't swap it for the world or a caravan (which is what I so wanted until we got this tent)
It takes me and my husband from start to finish 2hrs to put up with no arguments and that includes everthing; zipping in ground sheet, inner bedrooms, carpet, tables, air beds,sleeping bags, kitchen set up, electrics etc etc
We have table and chairs inside and kitchen table and still enough space for 2 kids to play and a dog to snooze. I love the sun porch as in the evening you can sit out with a drink and watch the world go by or keep kids out of the sun on hot day but without full sides still feel you are outdoors.
I'm very impressed with the tent, would recommend taking ground sheet out each time as VERY heavy with it zipped in, doesn't take long to attached when you putting tent up.
Been camping in some weather this year, wind and rain and the bearlake takes it all in its stride without moving or letting a drip in.
What can I say, I love this tent!
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By: Rosie70 Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2010 Rating: Date: 24/07/2011
There were several reasons we chose this tent, head height and living space being one of the most important. The windows are great giving a great view if your having wet weather and can open completely in hot weather. Love the zip in ground sheet, which is really easy to zip into place. Pretty easy to put up, but really needs two people to do so. We bought the side extension too, which is a brilliant kitchen area. Would love to have the front extension too, but think a lot of money and there is only so much space you can pitch on :)
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By: Christofy Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2009 Rating: Date: 15/07/2011
I have just bought a second hand bl6 after reading so many good things about them. I have given the tent 8 out of 10 because we have only done a test pitch so far to see if everything was as it should be. Fortunately I was not disappointed the tent was like new and seems very well made. The main two things that I noticed over our last tent (Vango diablo) was 1 how stable the tent is and 2 the Polly cotton made the tent feel much nicer inside as we sat in it to get out of the sun which would have boiled us in our old 100% polyester tent.
The bl6 also seems a very well thought out design. I especially like the air vents and zipped Windows. The ground sheet also seems to be very very thick and would expect it to last a long time along with the oily cotton.
My wife and I managed to get the tent pitched with the sun canopy and bedrooms installed in just under 30 mins. I didnt peg down all the guys though so saved 5 mins there. I really don't know how some people on hear are taking 1 1/2 to 2 hrs to put the bl6 up, must be moving in slow motion or something as it really is child's play.
We will be going away for a week next month so will write an update and maybe mark it up a point once I know it satisfactorily weather proof which the previous owner assures me it is.
Can't wait to give it a real test.
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By: RobertSongs Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2011 Rating: Date: 23/06/2011
Upgraded our sunncamp vario 6 to the Bear Lake 6. Pitched it for the first time this week had to do this on my own while my wife kept our two kids busy and it was easy I used the one pole in at a time method starting from the front and working towards the back then I pulled the canopy up at the end. To get everything set up right down to opening a bottle of wine to celebrate took just under two hours.
It is a big tent and comes in two very large bags which were larger coming home than they were going but I packed it up in a bit of a hurry with dark clouds threatening and in heavy winds so I am gonna have to repack it when the weather is better as space is of premium in our car. I did not bother weathering the tent before use as it clearly says on all the literature provided that this is NOT required on our two day stay at Top End Farm in Beds we had typical British weather HEAVY rain, strong wind And Sunshine the tent was completely water tight and hardly moved in the wind when the sun shone. It stayed very comfortable inside by just opening a couple of side vents above the windows.
All in all I think you would be hard pushed to find a better tent it was pricey but worth it. We are looking forward to spending many holidays around the country in a fantastic tent.
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69 User Reviews of the Bear Lake 6 - Showing 01 to 10 Page:
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Sponsored by Camping in the Forest Caravan and Campsites If you have used this tent please leave a review, or your comments for other visitors, and have a chance to win and have a chance to win a a 2 night stay on a standard pitch for two adults, courtesy of Camping in the Forest. 20 beautiful campsites set in Forestry Commission locations throughout the UK. From forest walks and trails to active adventures like River Exploration and Kayaking there is something for everyone to enjoy.
This spacious version of the Bear Lake sleeps 6 persons comfortably in 4 + 2-berth inner cabins that have standing height. Easy to pitch, the stability of this tent is enhanced by the sturdy alloy pole system and the numerous guying points. Other strong selling points include the zip-out tarpaulin groundsheet in the living area, the zip-off front canopy, low-light windows, no-see-um mesh screen doors, 2 side doors, 1 front door, and excellent all-round ventilation. Bear Lake 6 is a high-quality family tent that will provide years of service life and trouble-free camping.
Specifications: Flysheet: Outtex® Airtech Inner tent: Polycotton Floor: PVC Tarpaulin Pack size: Tent: 40 x 101 cm / Poles: 24 x 100 cm Weight: Tent: 38.6 kg / Poles: 13.1 kg Poles: Alloy poles #6063, 22
Features: • Zip-off front canopy • Organiser pockets • Full length mesh pockets in the inner tents • Lamp holder and light cable tidies • Reinforcement patch on all stress points • Adjustable pegging points • Luminous guy ropes • Heavy duty Outwell zips • Outwell doormat included
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Date: 12/05/2012
Date: 03/11/2011
Date: 15/07/2011
