Cuddling Couple Sleep System

My girlfriend and I appear to have the same sleeping habits you guys have. Although we haven't found a good solution to the slipping of pads yet. Currently we are using the Nemo Tango Duo quilt with the slipcover. The slipcover holds up well except for the middle of the pads. I guess I need to try some cord around the middle to see if that helps the slippage.

We actually really like the quilt, although we may order a 20 degree quilt from Enlightened Equipment (Accomplice) sometime this fall. This will be a good place for you to look for a quilt. I think they offer down to 0 in the Accomplice.

I think it is about time for a company to make a double sleeping pad that is light enough for backpacking!

I had been eyeing the Nemo quilt, as it looked like a pretty cozy way to go, but it was just really hard to figure out how warm it actually is. What temps have you guys used it in? How did it work out warmth-wise?

I think the 30 degree rating is pretty good. We sleep warm since we snuggle. We have slept in the smokies with the bag and it was probably down to 40 that night and we were fine. We are going to the Mt. Rogers area next weekend which it can get pretty cool up there. I'll take a thermometer with me and check it out. I'd be interested to see myself.

awesome, let me know! also, that enlightened quilt looks pretty sweet! i like the simplicity of it

You need the SEXY HOTTNESS SLEEPING BAG by Alite Designs :0

My girlfriend and I use two pads and a BA Big Pine bag as a quilt, which has lots of down but sewn-through baffles so it's not as warm as it could be. If you're serious about spooning and cutting weight, maybe try a Klymit Static V Luxe – the 30" width may be just enough for you. We don't use the full 40" of our two pads anyway (which are held together by a sheet that the bag also zips in to)

Pads:
Even though you are "tight" spooners, I'll bet there is still a small "unused" gap, so close is good enough. Use grograin loops (two or three) with adjustable buckles twisted into a "figure 8" to hold pads together. An untwisted loop would bring the pads closer together, but "override" becomes an issue until you each lay down to anchor the pads. Once you get the loop length dialed, sew it and eliminate the buckle. Or go with a 1.0 ripstop two-pad envelope (with zippers for a quilt top?).

Top:
A custom quilt is the way to go. They are available from many folks (like Enlightened Equipment). You can specify your loft, and your preferred "down control" construction. Side-to-side baffles allow you to shift down to the cold sleeper. "Karo" baffles will result in "shiftless" down.

Some like zips so the "heater" can cool off as needed. (attached to a bottom layer or envelope). Some are zipperless, with a quilt wide enough to function just like a blanket at home. It depends on your "gapposis tolerance".

Zipping the quilt to the envelope has it's own problems, so is not an "automatic win". Visualize it, evaluate it, then decide.

Adding an "anti-draft panel" at the midpoint helps a Lot. 12"x12" is usually sufficient. Get help for sizing it for a "back-to-back" arrangement. Bigger is better, it doesn't add much weight, and the result is amazing. Ours is attached with four small plastic snaps, so can be removed for warm weather sleeping.

Our top quilt is about a pound, good for 25F.

[Edit: I added some more stuff…]

@Link – thanks for the suggestion, but if you read my post, the sexy hotness is exactly the type of thing I don't want. I don't want two bags to zip together, and the SH is way too heavy and bulky.

It was A JOKE, notice the surprised face at the end of the post and yes I am well aware of the weight….again it was A JOKE :)

ahh, my apologies!

One thing I do love about my Lithia Spring is the DownTek – it just takes so much stress out of worrying about keeping my down bag perfectly dry. The Big Pine is a possibility…though like with the Nemo, I'm just worried about being cold. The temps we're backpacking in are routinely in the 20s-30sa. We do produce more heat together, but also recognize the extra space in the quilt is less thermally efficient than a mummy bag (really I'm just worried about me being cold). I'd rather go for warmer, and then be able to vent, then freeze during the night (which used to happen in my GoLite Adrenaline 20 degree bag quite routinely).

I like the look of the BA Big Pine for warmer weather camping, though..

I'll definitely check out the Klymit as well.

What is the sheet that you use? It is a retail item, or MYOG? I'm interested in having some sort of fabric covering our sleeping pads because bare skin on sleeping pads isn't the most comfortable (not a worry with a bag, but a consideration if opting for a quilt).

Greg – what top quilt do you use? and do you use a sheet over the sleeping pads at all? thanks for all the info and stuff to think about!

Yeah the big pine I would be great with some baffles. My next mod to it will be a draft stopper at the neck. My girlfriend sleeps in a down jacket, thus solving the temperature differential between us (although I know you said you weren't interested)

The "sheet" is an myog deal just like this:

http://featheredfriends.com/penguin-groundsheet.html

It protects against drafts, is comfy on the skin and holds the pads. Definitely a luxury weight, although careful planning and the right material could make it pretty light.

Sophia,
It is a custom build from Nunatak, where things have changed, so I don't know what they would consider. Enlightened Equipment is great to work with, and far more reasonably priced that Nunatak. Tim will make any dimension and loft you want.

We use a top sheet, bottom straps, and a wide non-zip top quilt, with a 18"x18" draft stopper. The top sheet is primarily to keep the pads clean. (I'm a grease ball.)

[No vested interest to EE. Just a fan based on years of ease dropping.]

If you guys truly spoon all night you might want to look at the Klymit Static V Luxe. It is a 30 inch wide sleeping pad. I wouldn't have thought it to be a suitable two person option (my girlfriend and I are big people)but someone asked about it in a thread recently and used it for two people succesfully. I do remember he said they were both smaller people.

I'm skeptical it could work for two people of average height and weight or bigger but if it is just spooning and you guys don't toss and turn much, it just might work.

I personally really wish someone would come out with a lightweight (relatively obviously) 2 person pad option.

For hard-core cuddlers one of whom might want more venting than the other, how about the two-person version of the Sierra Designs "bed-style" bag?

https://www.sierradesigns.com/sleeping-bags/bed-style

There is both a down and a synthetic version.

Took a look at the Static V Luxe, but I'm not convinced that I'm really getting significant weight savings here over 2-20 inch NeoAirs, for the R-Value. The Static V Luxe has an R-value of only 1.7, which is a bit cold for me, so I'd actually pick up the Insulated Version with an R-value of 5, but then it's also 35oz – seems like we might as well get the extra 10 inches of roll around space for…extracurricular activities :)

Those backcountry beds are cool! The nerd in me just gets so damn excited over sleeping bag innovation like this. Only issue is in the two person, they're only making a 30-degree version right now…no real 3-season version. But it would be great to see a 3-season 800fp down version of that bag (would also cut the weight of it a bit). Definitely a design I would try out if I were looking to buy a new solo bag and they upped the fill power of the down.

Greg – again, thanks for the info. The EE quilts are definitely a top contender right now. Essentially, I'm using the BA Saddle Mountain SL 15 with 2 NeoAirs as a baseline. Anything I can get with similar warmth, but weight savings is a winner – and EE quilts look like they might be just the ticket. Plus, from what I've heard/read they sound like good guys, too, who stand behind their product satisfaction. Always a bonus.

Sophia,
Another consideration –

If you and your SO happen to wear the same or similar puffy jackets you might be able to to zip them together to make a "cover" to increase the performance of the top quilt.

Both zippers have to be the same size, as designated on the back of the slider body (45C, 5CNu, etc). Both zippers need to be sewn on "coil in" or "coil out". You may have to turn one jacket inside out or upside down to get a match.

With a couple of pieces of velcro you can get it to stay in place.

And, pull the arms into the "inside" to increase "loft".

I feel like I'm beating a dead horse here everytime this comes up… but we love our zpacks double quilt. I don't know if you could beat the weight. She caries the quilt, I carry the tent, symbiotic lightweight backpacking bliss. As far as the pads go we use zlites. I bought some adhesive bungee things from zpacks to keep the pads together but haven't had the need for them.
However the zlite has also inspired use to try hammocks due to sore backs/hips and what have you!

Thanks for the idea, Greg. We actually *do* have the same puffy – patagonia ul down hoodies – definitely an idea to file away in the back of my head if i find myself shivering some night :)

Holocene – Thanks! Maybe you feel like it's a dead horse, but looking at zpacks didn't even occur to me. Their quilt looks very similar to the EE double quilt. Looks like I'll have to do a very detailed side by side comparison.

Hey! I'm a little late to this thread but here's what my lady and I do:

If we are hammock camping:

Warbonnet double layer 1.7 hammock
-EE 20* extra wide quilt (2012 ver) overstuffed (24oz, my primary all-season solo use quilt)
-exped multimat 40"x80" thin foam mat between the layers (10oz and R1)

For ground sleeping in a tent or shelter or hostel or whatever:

We each bought zip-together REI Flash 30* sleeping bags. There are other zip together bags, she already had the womens Flash bag, so I just went with that so we only had to buy 1 bag instead of 2.

they are right about 30oz each, mix of Water-repellant down, and some synthetic blend in the bottom part.

As the basis for bottom insulation, I carry the trusty exped multimat. it's like the california king of foam ground pads.

Then, we use the Klymit X-frame mats, inside each of our sleeping pads. We can each adjust the pressure as we see fit, the sleeping bags keep them more or less close together, and a puffy or fleece rolled up between them can solve any remaining gap.

In our bedroom we tested out using some velcro one-wrap to attach the X-frames together, which worked out pretty well!