Cascadia Vehicle Tents Pioneer 2 Tent vs Roofnest Meadowlark 2 XL
The Cascadia Vehicle Tents Pioneer 2 Tent and the Roofnest Meadowlark 2 XL are both softshell tents in the same part of the market, which makes them a genuine head-to-head rather than a comparison across categories. Cascadia Vehicle Tents and Roofnest take noticeably different approaches to the same problem.
Setup is not close. The Meadowlark 2 XL opens as a fold-out in 60 seconds; the Pioneer 2 Tent takes 7 minutes. Over a trip with a new campsite every night, that gap compounds. List prices are within $113 of each other, so price is unlikely to decide this one.
Canvas differs too: 320g canvas against 600D rip-stop polyoxford, 2000 mm waterproof rating.
Cascadia Vehicle Tents
Pioneer 2 Tent
The Pioneer 2 is Cascadia Vehicle Tents's fold-out softshell, offered in four sizes named for mountains: 48-inch Mt. Bachelor, 56-inch Mt. Shasta, 72-inch Mt. Rainier and 87-inch Mt. Denali, priced from $1,999 to $3,199. CVT rates it for 4-season use and lists a 5-8 minute setup, a 47-inch maximum headroom, dual stargazer windows and annex compatibility on the larger sizes. It uses a 320g canvas body over a 1000D PVC travel cover with a 3-inch mattress, and CVT's guide lists it in 2 to 4+ person sizes.
- Four sizes spanning roughly 2 to 4+ people
- Manufacturer-rated for 4-season use
- Lower entry price ($1,999) than CVT's hardshells, with annex compatibility on larger sizes
- Longer 5-8 minute setup than CVT's hardshell models
Roofnest
Meadowlark 2 XL
Roofnest's soft-shell entry point, and the cheapest tent they sell. It delivers a 3.60 m² three-person floor for well under half the price of the hardshell Condor, at the cost of a fabric cover instead of a shell.
- Well under half the price of Roofnest's hardshells
- 3.60 m² floor for three
- 54 kg suits mid-size SUVs
- Soft cover means slower pack-down in bad weather
Which one to pick
Take the Meadowlark 2 XL if you move camp most days. Beyond that the feature rows below — heater port, skylight, annex, cargo rails — are where the remaining difference lies.
Every specification, side by side
| Specification | ||
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Type | Softshell | Softshell |
| Opening style | Fold-out | Fold-out |
| Sleeps | 2— worst of the tents compared | 3— best of the tents compared |
| Season rating | 4-season | 4-season |
| List price | $1,999— worst of the tents compared | $1,886— best of the tents compared |
| Weight and size | ||
| Weight | — | 120 lb |
| Packed length | — | 5 ft 5 in |
| Packed width | — | 4 ft |
| Packed height | — | 13 in |
| Living space | ||
| Sleeping length | — | 7 ft 6 in |
| Sleeping width | — | 5 ft 2 in |
| Floor area | — | 38.8 sq ft |
| Interior height | 3 ft 11 in— best of the tents compared | 3 ft 9 in— worst of the tents compared |
| Mattress thickness | 3 in— best of the tents compared | 2.5 in— worst of the tents compared |
| Setup and build | ||
| Setup timeManufacturer's claim where published; otherwise estimated from tent type. Expect longer in practice. | 7 min— worst of the tents compared | 60 sec— best of the tents compared |
| Shell material | 1000D PVC travel cover | — |
| Fabric | 320g canvas | 600D rip-stop polyoxford, 2000 mm waterproof rating |
| Warranty | — | 2years |
| Features | ||
| Integrated LED lighting | — | Yes |
| Heater / HVAC port | — | — |
| Roof skylight | Yes | — |
| Annex available | Yes | — |
| Solar ready | — | — |
| Carries cargo on top | — | — |
| Sources | ||
| Last verified | Cascadia Vehicle Tents product page | Roofnest product page |
Related comparisons
- Pioneer 2 TentvsWalkabout 62 2.0
- Pioneer 2 TentvsElements Gen II 140
- Pioneer 2 TentvsGen2 Overlander XL Tent
- Meadowlark 2 XLvsEvolution 2 (140)
Or read the full spec sheets for the Cascadia Vehicle Tents Pioneer 2 Tent and the Roofnest Meadowlark 2 XL.