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The North Face

Brand details

40 Years of Innovation and Exploration We are named for the coldest, most unforgiving side of a mountain. We have helped explorers reach the most unfathomable heights of the Himalayas. But The North Face legend begins, ironically, on a beach. More precisely, San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood, at an altitude of only 150 feet above sea level. It was here in 1966 that two hiking enthusiasts resolved to follow their passions and founded a small mountaineering retail store.
Soon thereafter, that little shop became known as The North Face, a retailer of high-performance climbing and backpacking equipment. In 1968, The North Face moved to the other side of San Francisco Bay, to the unbridled possibilities of the Berkeley area, and began designing and manufacturing its own brand of technical mountaineering apparel and equipment.
Through the 1970s, The North Face brand cherished a following amongst avid outdoor athletes and began sponsoring expeditions to some of the most far-flung, still largely untouched corners of the globe. This launched a proud tradition which continues in full force today and constantly reinforces The North Face mantra, Never Stop Exploring™.
By the early 1980s, The North Face was taking exploration to the outer limits of the ski world, adding extreme skiwear to the product offering. These were the days of pastels, neons, hair dye, and mohawks; they laid the groundwork for today's free-spirited snowsports athletes. By the end of the decade, The North Face became the only supplier in the United States to offer a comprehensive collection of high-performance outerwear, skiwear, sleeping bags, packs and tents.
The 1990s ushered in an era during which The North Face further broadened the outdoor world it helps athletes to explore. The decade saw our debut in the sportswear market with the launch of Tekware™, an innovative collection designed to provide rock climbers, backpackers, hikers, trail runners, and outdoor enthusiasts with the ultimate fit and function. The North Face half dome logo began to appear with greater regularity on ultramarathon courses, high-country trails, and big walls. And, as the calendar clicked toward a new millennium, The North Face launched its own line of trekking and trail-running shoes to ultimately address the head-to-toe needs of those always striving for the next horizon.
Now, more than 40 years after its humble grand opening, The North Face delivers an extensive line of performance apparel, equipment, and footwear. We push the boundaries of innovation so that you can push the boundaries of exploration. We remain deeply proud to be the first choice of the world's most accomplished climbers, mountaineers, extreme skiers, snowboarders, endurance runners, and explorers.
There's little telling what the next 40 years hold for us. However, there is one bedrock certainty: The North Face will maintain an unwavering commitment to pushing the limits of design, so that you can push your limits outdoors. Never Stop Exploring.
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Recent products

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Recent Reviews

 
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Not really a review, as I don't have these boots...so can't give a review, although I'm happy to give my opinion!

I'm quite excited by the advent of the North Face's first Mountaineering Boots. For years The North Face's reputation as a genuine Mountaineering equipment provider has been being undermined by their trending towards fashion and the high street, but now it looks like they're fighting back!

The Verto S4k is a B2 boot, so a pretty serious piece of Kit in itself, but its set to pave the way for more to come, with a B3 boot due for release later this year/early next year, and rumour has it that an 8000m boot is to follow soon after. So, some pretty exciting stuff from TNF...but how will they compare to the competition? I worry that, with their damaged reputation, they're going to have to fight hard for their market share, and to be honest, they can't very well do that with a price tag like what they've attached to this boot...it makes me worry about what the B3's going to come in at!!

So, time will tell, are the North Face staging a come back? will they become a major player in the footwear market, and then maybe regain their status as a quality gear manufacturer...watch this space!

Review star rating all given 3 stars, pending trying the boots out properly (hopefully soon!)

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I used to have a VE25, it was probably my favourite possession...but it all went so wrong.

One hot summers day, when camping at a popular site with my partner, a small child ran past the tent, tripping over the guy line, ripping it clean off the side of the tent! picked up the guy line and brought it to me, saying 'this came off'. I told him not to run around the site, in case similar accidents happened again, and then spent the rest of the day sulking about my poor tent :(
So...fast forward about 4 months to a very wet & windy night, in Snowdonia again, pitched my VE25 (shy of 1 guy!) on a nice spot, and went to the pub.
When we returned, the tent was tangled in a barbed wire fence, shredded to pieces. I've never been so pee'd off!!!
the following morning (we slept in a bunkhouse) we inspected the pitch, and found all the guy lines securely pegged into the ground, just unfortunately, not attached to the tent any more!! Cue many emails to TNF...to no avail, leaving me tent less!

So, about 6 months ago, we got offered another VE25 at a very discounted price, an offer I couldn't refuse. First time out, someone trips on the guys in the dark, rips it clean off...2nd night, same story, another guy ripped off,... so disappointing, I'd hoped the weakness was just a one off, but seems not.

The tent itself is lovely, so spacious, so many storage pockets too. Loads of room inside, and in the porches, and with the optional gear loft and footprint available, the flexibilities of the tent are brilliant.

The tent's bag is made of the same lightweight ripstop nylon...and needless to say, the first time you try to put the tent back in the bag, it rips!!

so, a message to North Face: WHY have you sacrificed quality and strength for a few grammes of weight...on a heavy tent that's not intended as a hike tent anyway?

Conclusion for potential customers: Great tent, lovely inside, probably ideal at remote high mountain camp sites which are free of clumsy children/drunken friends...but I'd have second thoughts about trusting it to withstand a storm, and when you're descending a significant summit, getting back to camp to find neatly arranged guy lines, but no tent would be a massive psychological trauma, and quite possibly a fatal mistake!

EDIT:

I've since been in discussions with TNF, and the tent has gone to their warranty department...watch this space for an update!

  • Spacious
  • Good looks
  • loads of storage pockets
  • poor construction
  • too lightweight
  • rips easily
  • poor storage bag
  • VERY expensive!!!
  • useless after sales service
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A regular discussion on climbing forums seems to be 'which light weight 2 man tent should I buy' and I'm always quick to respond with advising the North Face's Tadpole.

What struck me about this tent, other than it's weight and packed size, is it's sturdiness in all weathers. I've camped out in a mountain storm in Snowdonia, alongside other, far more respected tent brands, and ours has been the one that stands strong whilst others have flapped, ripped, and even blown away!

The North face bill it as a 3 season tent, but I really wouldn't hesitate in taking it to more extreme environments, as it's never failed to satisfy me.

Internally, its big enough to sleep two fairly comfortably, and you can even get your rucksack inside too. I think most people would be surprised at the amount of space in there, and the porch offers a brilliant level of shelter against the elements, both for cooking, and for getting ready to depart, and gives adequate space for storing extra gear or rucksacks overnight.

Small gear pockets around the inside walls of the tent ensure you've got somewhere to put your valuables or other items which you need to hand, and the option of additional storage space in the roof of the tent, using North Face's 'gear-loft' means you can put wet clothes in the warmest part of the tent to dry, or anything else you'd like to store up there.

The guy-lines are rigged in such a way that they offer equalised pull on multiple points, and so this facilitates pegging the tent out, and definitely contributes towards its exceptional sturdiness.

North face also do an optional 'footprint', an extra groundsheet to place under the tent to protect from rocks or other potentially damaging protrusions. Although I choose to put my roll mat under the groundsheet, rather than in the tent, as this protects it, and means I don't need the extra weight.

One suggestion though if you do buy the tent...the pegs are crap! fact! Go out and buy some new ones! Yes, the North Face Pegs won't bend...but they won't hold your tent down either, which isn't ideal!

So...conclusion...Great Tent, perfect size, lovely weight, well made, strong, reliable, but needs new pegs.

  • Strong
  • Reliable
  • Lightweight
  • Packs down small
  • Spacious
  • optional extras
  • bad peg design
 
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