Wife needs a new bag. Any ladies out there have suggestions?

You should get your wife to use the Ultralite and then for winter you could combine the Ultralite with your quilt.

I used to be a fan of women-specific sleeping bags, and they are good — then I was lucky enough to score a 5'6" WM Megalite on GearSwap, which I sent back to WM for overstuffing. I'm a cold sleeper, but that bag was comfortable down to the low 30sF. (Even Guitar Lake at the end of August.)

Now I'm just a rabid WM-fangirl. So puffy, so light, so comfy, so well-made… I could go on & on (ooops — I just did!).

If I you, I'd scour GearSwap, eBay, Whiteblaze, etc. to try to find her a similar deal. Or try to get a trade on your WM bag…

So… you want light, warm, AND cheap!

At sub-2 lbs, light, compressible, and 10 degrees, you are talking high-loft down, and that ain't cheap. If wife is 5'6" or shorter, a womens' regular sized bag will save some weight, but it will still be pricey.

You don't say what your price range is, but I'll point out that a good down bag is an investment that will likely last a good portion of the rest of her life. If you figure out the cost-per-night amount for a good bag, perhaps that helps justify the price.

Or look for used. Or watch for sales (REI Anniversary Sale coming up in May – often decent deals on camping gear).

I agree with selling your ultralite and trying to pick up a used women's sized WM bag for your wife. Depending on what quilt you get, you'll probably end up spending more on a bag for her than a quilt for you. If your wife is taller than average, you can usually find the Marmot Helium on sale for a good price and its only an ounce or two over 2 lbs.

“my Ultralite is a long so it's a bit of a waste on her”

It may be OK. I just hiked with a group over the weekend near the Tetons. Temperature was 18F. One girl had a Helium but it was long on her so she just pulled the end of the bag inward and doubled it up around her feet. Her normally cold feet loved it!

-Barry

I got the wifey down booties for that! haha

Feathered Friends makes women's specific bags with extra down fill in the chest and feet, narrow shoulders, and a wider cut in the arms. I got my wife the 10 Degree Petrel in the Nano fabric. They come in 5'3" and 5'9" lengths- It is a great bag

The day backpacking became a thing for me was the day (night) I finally slept warm in a decent sleeping bag. Do not cheap out on the sleeping bag. It's the difference between suffering and splendor.

Of all the bags I've seen in person, the quilt Z-Packs makes has to be the fluffiest warmest thing I've ever seen.

Personally I use a Golite 20 degree quilt with a Jacks-R-Better 45 degree quilt on top. I'm happy down into the 20s.

>> I was lucky enough to score a 5'6" WM Megalite on GearSwap, which I sent back to WM for overstuffing

Holy crap, I had NO idea that WM could overstuff a bag after the fact. What kind of money are we talking ?

Western Mountaineering Price List for 2oz of overfill in a Megalite it is $31

Aren't those prices for overfill when purchasing a new bag ? I thought Valerie had alluded to having it done retroactively, to a bag they bought off gearswap.

You can send them your bag and they will overfill it for you. If you do a search you will find numerous people who have done so.

Anna is correct — WM are happy to overfill your bag at any time (not just when it's made), and my overfill was done several years after the bag was purchased.

They did my Megalite last year, at that point it must have been eight or nine years old. Came back looking like a new bag — all puffy :) — and I couldn't see anywhere they had opened and stitched the seams. Great job and dirt cheap.

I was working in San Jose earlier this year and they were happy to take my Alpinlite and my wife's Ultralite on a walk-in basis. I did wash the Alpinlite beforehand. They turned them around in 48 hours. It's an incredibly neat job.

WM also offer additional overfill in the footbox. 1.5 oz if I recall correctly. I think you can combine the two services.