Zpacks Splash Bivy – experience?

I recently received a splash bivy..and it does have a great deal of bathtub to it. In fact, towards the head, it naturally rises higher b/c of the pull of the drawcord that keeps the mesh off your face, and without weight in the very corners by your head, the bivy pulls up. And….add to the fact that at the top of the bivy there is also a great deal of black waterproof breathable cuben, it basically turns into a wall of cuben by your head. For me….there wasn't enough mesh. Right above my head it was WPB cuben, not mesh, and there was 0 visibility on all sides. There was also green nylon that is attached to the bathtub floor, so I couldn't see out on the sides either. Felt like it was getting stuffy, for no reason b/c the cuben bathtub floor was coming up several inches higher than the rest of the bivy anyway near the head. So, I sent the bivy back to Joe with this image -> And now it looks like this -> As you can see, the bathtub floor gets larger towards the head, which is good, but now I still have lots of ventilation and I can peak my head up a bit and actually see 360 degrees. Awesome. Unfortunately….Joe forgot to put the loop in the middle of the bivy head…though I could just sew one on. It would have looked better if he did it while he was replacing the mesh though. I really want a loop there, b/c as you see in this picture, the middle of the perimeter head kind of "caves in", so some mesh can hit the top of my head -> Now, if I used the two perimeter corner loops that are already on it and tie both of those out with some shockcord, it would eliminate the problem…but I really think just having 1 elastic cord in the middle of the bivy would be simpler, less weight, and accomplish what I want.

Thanks Dan, That's really helpful. I can see that modification would make sense. I also wonder if there is a halfway house that enable some more head cover but with a wider window to the mesh with greater vision to each of the sides. Otherwise, are you content with the materials used, breathability, ease of access with the centre zip etc or any other comments?

Construction quality and customer service are at the top of its class with Zpacks, so no worries there. I like the 1.0oz cuben bottom…..one less thing to worry about (bomber). With the mesh mod….plenty of breathability and openness. I personally like the center zip option….with a shoulder to shoulder to hip curved zipper like on most bivies (don't even think about just shoulder to shoulder….those are just plain difficult to get in/out of), its usually a two handed affair to unzip and zip those back up. With a center zip….I can do it one handed and its easier to use in the dark.

Thanks Dan, That's all very helpful and enlightening. It's also telling to only get only one user response. This looks a tremendous piece of kit with some unusually helpful, quite unique features. I wonder why it is not a more common choice amongst bivy users?

Hi Jim I thought I'd add some feedback having just come back after having used this bivy for the first time in Kintail over two nights. The previous poster's amendments are good and I'd do the same if I could, I'd also lengthen the bivy so that you could keep the zip mostly done up and your head out. I was under a tarp, and one night was stunning and I didn't realise that you have to be fully inside the bivy (I should have); so there is no real option of lying feet in and head out to enjoy the night; I'm only 5' 8" and found the fit to be snug. I also found a lot of condensation between the inside of the bivy and the outside of my bag which surprised me (it was a still humid night). If you want to borrow the bivy to test it I'm sure we could arrange something. Pete

Thanks Peter, Interesting as I would definitely want to be able to have my feet and torso up to my chest in the Bivy with the top unzipped some of the time, e.g. if there are no midges and mozzies. Are you saying this is not possible with the splash bivy? Thanks so much for your offer to try it. That might be very interesting depending on it being easy to arrange. Thanks for that very kind offer. The condensation issue sounds a little concerning. I wonder if that is a feature of the fabric used? Dan do you have any experience of condensation on your bag or quilt? Perhaps it is just a feature of our UK island conditions……..

I sold my bivy last summer after a trip. Did not care for the time it takes to get situated in a bivy, nor the associated condensation. I had condensation most if not all nights. It gets your gear wet that is laid out along side your quilt or sb. I'm happy using a tent at 19 oz or so, where I can crawl in, zip it up and be done. Then fiddle getting into my sb/quilt, away from the wind or bugs. Also, don't have to lay my pack or rocks on my sleeping arrangement if it is windy. Duane