Lisa and the Tent

Marie T., an old friend from the early Moss Tent years, shared her memories of an early camping experience with her young daughter, Lisa, then four.

"This is a picture from an early trip to Maine (Lisa is now in her forties) in one of Bill's tents. You probably know better than I the name of it. OK, so it's a tent, but it has the qualities of all good architecture that of transforming the neutral space. In this case this tent seemed to recreate the endless sky. The seamless expanse of blue during the day is dotted with the shadows of the leaves and branches of trees...  

To this day we have this same tent that still is in service at our summer place in Canada. It is set up on a tent platform overlooking Mac Gregor Bay at the top of Georgian Bay. It is still as beautiful as the first day we used it."    Marie T.

This early version of the Moss Eave Tent was called the Mountain Tent. It was made of poplin cotton and bears the "Avis" label as it was licensed to Warren Avis for manufacturing in the '60s.

Marilyn

Bill Moss Rebelled Against Traditional Tent Design

and took it upon himself to shake things up. Here's what he had to say about the tents of old: "The design of tents hadn't changed since Civil War days. Even 25 years ago, tents were still made of heavy canvas:

They were drab green.

They smelled bad.

They were a pain to put up and down." Bill Moss, 1976

 Marilyn

A Moss Tent Enthusiast Writes to Us from Japan

We just heard from Yasuyuki N., an enthusiastic Moss Tent lover from Japan.

He is the proud owner of the Moss Olympic, Parawing and Starlet Tents. Of his Moss Tents, he writes:

"Moss looks beautiful also in the scenery of Japan very much!...Moss Tents is beautiful and seems to be sculpture! It is a favorite tent!"

Thank you so much for these beautiful photos.

Marilyn

The X-Campers Stage A Moss Tent Meeting

We recently heard from Franco L. who sent a  message about his adventures with his band of tent-loving friends, the X-campers. A tent collector, he says that Moss tents are among his favorite brands. "We are a group of outdoor guys always gather for camp by using/testing different of camping gears. Most of us have hold many tents. However, we can only go for camp maybe once a week. Therefore, we had hold a camp gathering for different main theme in order to set up most of tents together. Moss Meeting is one of our main theme. We'd conduct three times already." Franco L. 

In 2008, Franco and his fellow campers held a Moss Tent “memorial night" at the Ma Tso Lung grassland in Hong Kong. What a fantastic image this is. Thank you,  Franco.

Marilyn

A Weekend Get Away in the Moss Olympic Tent

In the '70s, when Marilyn Moss needed to get away from it all, she would pack up her favorite Moss tent, the Olympic, and head up to Schoodic Point in Acadia National Park in Maine for some solo camping. Like the model in the photo, Marilyn would set up her tent right out on the point even in the dead of winter. One Saturday morning she woke up to piles of ice blocks washed up on the beach with the sun reflecting on and through them, creating color prisms. It was the perfect get away from the pressures and stress of running the Moss Tent Work business!

A Home Away From Home in the Moss Starlet Tent

David M., an early Starlet owner, captures for us what made his Moss camping experience so special. "Freedom to travel, sleep anywhere flat enough to pitch a Starlet, what joy! Three weeks in the Faroe Islands by bicycle, camping everywhere. Daily rain, wind, and a cozy companion sharing a tent that never leaked or disappointed in the wind. We never met a hill we couldn't walk up. Long single lane tunnels, more sheep than people, no trees, frozen fish and frozen vegetables as part of our daily diet. Beautiful churches. Peopled ferries between islands, we were welcomed into homes. Met the same people again and again because we used the same guidebook. Would I do it again. Yes." David M.

Does it get any better?

Who Remembers the Moss Pop Tent?

                                  

The Pop Tent, designed by Bill Moss in 1955, revolutionized the world of tent design and camping. Were you around during this transition? How did the new Pop Tent change your camping experience?

Moss Stardome Tent

We received this nice note from David S., saying he has been a proud Moss tent fan and owner for many years. I am so happy to have found your site Bill Moss Tents! I purchased a Stardome II, a Stardome III and a Heptawing back in 1991. … I have had and still own several tents from many different manufacturers. None have been as well made, sturdy in brutal conditions, durable, or beautiful to look at as the Moss tents. The Stardome III’s design with its oversized .490 diameter Easton pole set is likely the strongest backpacking/expedition tent ever made. Mine has been with me on many incredible trips through all seasons and conditions over the last 21-plus years.

I just had Pendra at Tent Repair Services custom make me a second fly for it that incorporates matching vestibules on both front and back doors. I actually just received it two days ago. My faithful Stardome III now looks even more like a piece of art with the uniform silhouette with the matching vestibules.

The original fly is still doing just fine, but I will surely enjoy the additional space and increased weather protection from the new custom-made fly, likely sewn by the same person that made my Stardome III in 1991, in the same town of Camden, Maine USA! 

Thanks to you and Bill for designing and producing the best tents ever made!

David S.

Moss Tent Repairs

I recently had Pendra of Tent Repair Services in Camden, Maine, make a heptawing similar to this one for my grandson to attach to his Little Dipper. Pendra worked at Moss for many years and then continued to repair Moss tents for REI after we sold that division of the company in 1994.

Tent Repair Services is a great resource for Moss tent owners. It has all the poles, grommets, fabrics, netting and other materials needed to make Moss and other tents as good as new. The company's specialities include tent and rainfly modifications, panel replacements, construction of replacement rainflies for many tent models, and a variety of custom work. Have a look at the website at http://www.tentrepairservices.com/

Thanks, Marilyn

Message About Moss Tents From Japan

I was excited to receive this message with photos today from Tetk in Japan. We got in touch with him after seeing that he had started following Bill Moss Tents on Twitter and had a photo of a Little Dipper.

Marilyn

Photo is Little Dipper taken July 2002 at Mt. Kiso-Koma in Japan. I went with my family, wife, daughter (6 years old at that time), and son (2 years old at that time).

At that time, I was out with my family every year to mountain trip. Mt. Kisokoma (2,956 m)  is the first mountain from family increased to four. My wife carried son and his diapers, and I carried all of camping goods such as four sleeping bags, mats, tent, food, clothes and all the rest. Altitude of the encampment is 2,870 m. Usually, the Kisokoma is day trip mountain. But we wanted to stay and want to touch mountain air for the long time. Day trip is MOTTAINAI.

Little Dipper is our favorite family backpacking tent. Low profile and durable framework give us an excellent wind resistance. In fact, there was a heavy evening shower (squall) but inside was no problem at all with happy family circle. The Little Dipper is the best family tent which has the best weather resistance.

Thanks! Tetk

Moss Stargazer Tent

The Moss Stargazer design was used in several sizes and became our most popular tent. Bill Moss designed it in the '70s and we marketed it as a camping and backpacking two-person tent. A special version (in the above photo) was made out of Jack Lenor Larsen's silk fabric for the permanent design collection in the Museum of Modern Art.

Below is a camping version, the Stardome III, a three person,  9 lbs. 14 oz. tent with a vestibule that provided another 13 sq. ft of  storage space. I would love to hear from anyone who has used this tent or the Moss Starlet, Moss Stargazer or Moss StarTrak.

Thanks, Marilyn

Moss Stardome Tent III

Moss Tent Talk

Welcome to my blog! I’m 72 years old and find myself unexpectedly excited about communicating in cyberspace and embracing all the possibilities social media has to offer. I began by joining LinkedIn in an effort to contact people who have been associated with Bill Moss and his work in order to gather more information for my book. This led to my discovery of Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and the world of blogging!

And now I can’t believe my evolution into this world—here I am with a website AND writing a blog . . . the next steps in my journey chronicling Bill Moss’ creative path and revolutionary contributions.

Which brings me to you—the Moss tent enthusiast (I know you are out there!). This blog will be a place where we can share stories about our adventures in Moss tents—alone or with a friend, a spouse or our families. I am hoping this will encourage you, Moss tent lover, to submit your favorite tale with the possibility of being published in Bill Moss: Fabric Artist & Designer. (See our contact page.) If you have photos to share, please email them to  info@billmosstents.com.

Thanks, Marilyn