bag warmth vs. extra clothing weight

[Joe L]

My dilemma is: My lightest kit is a warm quilt and no extra clothing. For extra miles, I need to get on the trail before sunrise which is the coldest part of my day. Extra bag insulation is much lighter than adding garments but then I want to wait until well past sunrise to get going. What do you do?

[John Haley]

It depends upon the time of year, but in the colder seasons I go for a lightweight down jacket/parka and sometimes lightweight down pants to make the hours before sleep and the early morning hours more tolerable. This regime allows me to use a quilt which would otherwise be marginal, and still be warm.

[j lan]

John, what weight quilt do you use and how cold are you going?

Thanks!
Jay

Ooops, should have checked gear lists, I am new here and for get about all the info people have in their profiles. This one? 16.0 oz Nunatak Specialist 30F Down Quilt

[John Haley]

Until my custom winter Nunatak arrives in a couple of weeks the Specialist is it. I recently used it in a hammock with temperatures in the mid 20's and a brisk wind. I was wearing a set of 200 weight Icebreaker and the 7oz Montbell down inner parka and was toasty. The hammock is a true test of temperature ratings since there's no warmth being kept in as it would be in an enclosed tent. BTW… I was using a similarly rated partial underquilt weighing only 12.3oz.

[Roger Caffin]

If it is really cold I might wear a thermal top under my normal Taslan shirt for about 15 minutes.

Cheers

[Anton S]

Seriously, make your (warm) breakfast and eat it before you get out of your bed. Then you have energy and warmth to start moving, works great for me :-)

But also, if you take no extra clothing what do you do if you have to stop or slow down for a while? eg a technical section where you can't keep up a fast pace, going downhill, stopping for some first aid or even lunch?

[Diplomatic Mike]

I'm from the, 'my clothing is part of my sleep system' camp. I don't pick a quilt or bag for the temps expected. Instead, i look at what clothing i need to be comfortable resting at camp at that temp. I then add my quilt for sleeping.
I don't want to have to dive into my bed to keep warm as soon as i stop hiking. Also, it's much nicer in the morning when you are warm and ready to hike straight away.

[Mark Verber]

I'm a bring enough clothing to been comfortable in the early evening. I don't want to hop under my quilt the moment I stop. These clothing wouldn't be enough to keep me warm if I was just sitting around at the coldest part of the morning.

I bring a quilt/bag + clothing that that would keep me very comfortable to what I expect will be the worse nighttime low of the trip.

I don't worry about warm clothing in the morning. I typically had a bit of a buffer from being under the quilt, and do a fast start so I start warm from activity. I try to start the day with a moderate climb. Sometimes I start the hike with my nighttime clothing… but it typically comes off within 1/2 of starting hiking.

–mark

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