I've been considering buying a screened enclosure for an annual basecamping trip with family. I think it would be really nice for those rain days when we sit around and play cards, or for cooking when the bugs are really bad. We currently run a mix of tents and hammocks for sleeping and a larger tarp for our community kitchen/cards space. This will be replacing the tarp.

Requirements:

Tall enough to stand up in
Seat 6 people around a table for cards or a meal (12x12+)
Highly bug resistant
Durable/properly shaped tarp (roof) to withstand moderate winds. I'm busy enough when those thunderstorms roll in at 1am I don't want to be tearing down a bug shelter, I'd like to just be able to quickly add a guyline or two as needed and make sure everything is tight like I do with our tents and tarps now. I would be OK with rolling the netting up at night but ideally this will get set up once per campsite and stay set up.

I've been looking at quite a few online. I've been weeding out the festival-style overly bulky pop-up contraptions. I find myself gravitating towards the ones without their own poles. We do not bring hiking poles, but I wouldn't be against having to source a couple organic poles. I'd like one that is similar in setup to the tarp we currently use. The Nemo Bug Out Tent is currently the frontrunner.

I know plenty of you use these enclosures as I see more and more each year in the BWCA. If you have, please offer some advice, especially if you have one that has made it a few years.

Zac

LL Bean Woodlands screen house, full fly and floor optional. Heavy, but worth the weight in gold.

We have a 12x12 Nemo bugout. It took awhile to get the 'hang' of it (pun intended) - but that thing can be a lifesaver. We love it.

Z4K

So I do something very similar on my annual kids trip. I usually choose basecamping areas that require very little portaging. Sometimes it's a decent paddle but the portaging is the key point in my annual kids trip. I bring a tarp and a I think mine is 12x12 screen tent. Mine is a cheap tent that gets used once a year lol so it is not great but it is like this Screen Tent

So I set that up and attach the tarp off on of the doors if it is going to rain. That way I have a 12 by 20 area for hanging out if the weather turns bad. It is going on its 5th trip this year so fir what I use it for it isn't terrible. I'm not a fancy person though ;)

My advice is, if it is once a year then don't worry about the weight. An extra walk on portages isn't something I would stress about.

I got a 12.5' x 12.5' CCS screen shelter this year before a late June trip. It made the trip much more enjoyable as the skeets were mighty thick. It's spendy, but I'll never have to buy another one and I can pass it down to my kids.

It's nice to finally be able to afford really good gear before I get too old to trip.