Zpacks Hexanet VS. MLD Bivy

never used either one,
but personally i'm not a huge fan of the bivy as i find it confining.

but…

travis bickle, yes awesome film

Travis,

Congrats on really doing a great and honest job of looking at the merits of both.

However, I would say that with the bivy, you would want to include the weight of a tarp of some sort. You probably might want to consider the same thing for the Hexanet.

I love my bivy, but I carry a the MLD Cuben Solo Tarp (smallest they have), just in case it rains.

Even with my Soul Side Zip with an eVent waterproof top, I still carry a small tarp.

When it rains, I want to have the ability to open up the bivy, sit up, move around and have some cover from the rain.

If rain is not an issue, I would say that the choice between the two is more going to be about your preference, "style", comfort level for when you backpacking.

Are you okay with the confines of a bivy or do you prefer to move around more?

Regarding the negative of the bivy about adding warmth when not wanted- you can always sleep with the bivy opened up.

I have done this a number of times and I have woken up with a bug or two in my bivy with me, but I have not been bitten or had my nose chewed off by some insect or animal.

One positive that I enjoy about the bivy is the experience of feeling more connected to the environment around me vs. having the walls of a shelter to block my views all around me.

I have really enjoyed falling asleep with the full moon shining down on me as I looked out of the bug netting of my bivy. Something that I would not get with a shelter that obsured my view.

Hope this helps, but I think you have nailed the big ones….it is about your style and the experience you want to have.

You can also have both of them…more expensive, but if you are expecting a very buggy trip, then the Hexanet would be a better choice.

I don't think there is one perfect setup, but it is a matter of what you compromise and can deal with.

-Tony

Tony – You raise a good point. I think I'd be able to lay and look up at the night sky more often with the bivy because I wouldn't need the tarp for wind protection which would obscure my view.

I'm going to be using the MLD pro poncho tarp in conjunction with either of these. I don't actually know for sure if the pro poncho will work well over the top of the Hexanet; I was just assuming that I could figure out some configuration that would work.

I'm in SoCal and will be doing PCT sections throughout the year and a full PCT thru-hike in '13. I'm mostly concerned about Oregon and WA for the rain/bug protection. I could probably cowboy camp with nothing but a ground cloth 98% of 3-season nights down here.

I'm actually considering the TiGoat Ptarmigan, which is roughly half the price of the MLD. I just didn't think it'd be fair to compare the Ptarmigan and the Hexanet, considering the Hexanet is twice the price and cuben.

I should look around for some more 1.0 cuben bottom/momentum (WRB) top bivies that don't have a 6+ week wait period. I recently saw bivies being offered in the Gear Deals section, going to check that out now…

Travis,

Up til recently, I have been using the Original MLD Silnylon Poncho Tarp with my bivy.

I have taken that poncho tarp through 13 hrs of rain and night time wind storms that ripped apart other shelters on Mt. Whitney.

Love the poncho tarp….rock solid and have total faith in it.

I am trying out the MLD Cuben Tarp because I moved to using O2 Rain Gear. I simply wanted to have "real" rain gear vs. the poncho tarp.

Once I was under the poncho tarp and in the bivy, I no longer had rain gear.

Then I started carrying a 1.0 oz disposable rain poncho for use in camp.

The deal breaker for me was realizing that it was really hard to put the poncho tarp over myself and my pack without help in poncho mode in the rain.

So in a sense, I went heavier for better rain protection and less fiddle factor with my gear setup.

Regarding your specific concerns….you might start out with the bivy and poncho tarp, but moving North into OR and WA, you might want the Hexanet and Tarp.

Having been stuck under the poncho tarp for all those hours in the rain, I was very envious of Cameron's MLD DuoMid.

He was able to sit up, move around, etc…I was getting back pains from laying on my side on my elbow, on my back, then on my belly….basically, tossing and turning while awake to not get sore or stiff.

Also, regarding the poncho tarp over the Hexanet….just an issue of how high your trekking poles will extend to get over the Hexanet and the poncho tarp really is limited to an A Frame pitch, which reduces overall coverage.

Does the Hexamid with bug netting help give you superior rain protection?

The down side is that you probably end up heavier because of the need for rain gear vs. duel useage of the poncho tarp.

The poncho tarp is very cool, but once you move off of it to tarp and rain gear, it messes up a lot of things for weight savings.

This bring up a question…if you are going to be in heavy bug and rain up North, maybe you should consider rain gear and have a more bomber shelter….hexamid with the full bug netting and zippered door?

If you are hiking in the rain, the poncho tarp is just a matter of when you are going to get wet, not if.

Plus, the poncho tarp can snag things while hiking in it.

More later….have to help a client.

-Tony

Since you mentioned the PCT. I hiked the PCT using the MLD superlight bivy and their cuben fiber Grace Solo Tarp and loved having them for the entire trip. Can't comment on the Hexanet. I cowboyed camped all but 9 nights wihtout the tarp. I used the bivy sack about 80% of the time. The other 20% was too warm for it and my quilt together. So for that 20% then a net shelter might be better. But there was a few nights when it was too hot for my quilt so I used the bivy sack as a lightweigh sleeping bag instead.

"I'm actually considering the TiGoat Ptarmigan, which is roughly half the price of the MLD."
I use to have a TiGoat bivy until I lost it off my pack when I slip down a snow covered slope. It cuts the wind better than MLD's (which can be good if its cold), but as a result it doesn't breath as well so you have condensation issues that I never really had with the MLD bivy. But its definitely cheaper and I think a bit lighter so it may work for you. It was well made.

Travis, I own a Hexnet but not a MLD Bivy. But here is my 2 cents:

"-: Tedious/time consuming to set up"
Depends on how you set it up. I will often opt for a hobo tent, which is just a rope tied between two trees with a tarp over the rope. After I set this up, I just clip the bug tent inside onto the rope. Easy.

"-: Extra stakes required"
Not necessarily. It will be more stable, sure. But I never staked out my Hexnet and just used it kind of "floppy" and it works great still. As soon as my sleep mat and sleeping bag are inside, it is anchored down anyhow.

"-: Have to set up tarp for wind/spray protection"
True. But if it's not raining, you're good to go.

"-: Requires tent pole if not using trekking poles"
Or a stick. Or (as above) a rope. It already comes with a small plastic clip to attach it to the Hexamid.

Granted, I have only taken it out a few times, but those few times it worked great and sans stakes. I too opted for stronger cuben.

Oh, and about Ti Goat bivy, I own one of those too. It's a good bivy, but has its limitations. I found it too small to use with inflatable mats, but self-inflating ones work great. It is tricky to get in and out of, and the zippers are small and hard to use with gloved hands. But other than that, a great piece of gear. For low/no chances of rain, I will use it as my whole shelter system for cowboy camping. I have yet to have any condensation issues with it, actually, and I have used it maybe 7 or 8 times now.

Hope this helps. Enjoy which ever choice you make :)

The decision would be much easier to make if Zpacks made a Hexamid poncho tarp. The MLD poncho tarp is very similar in dimension (9ft x 4-5ft), but the Hex has a shape more conducive to setting it up as a shelter (and over the Hexanet particularly).
Maybe I'll ask Joe if he can make one custom for me. Although, I think I'd much rather hike in silnylon than cuben.

Sean – Thanks for the insight. That really makes me lean more toward the bivy. I had the Ptarmigan for a short while and I agree that it was very difficult to get into. That makes the side-zip option on the MLD bivies very appealing. Why'd you choose the Grace Solo tarp over a poncho tarp? Part of the reason I'm into ponchos is because I don't feel like there are any good lightweight and breathable raingear options available right now.

Tony – I can definitely picture a situation where I'd be envying someone with a full shelter (lol. But did you try setting the poncho up in a lean-to configuration? I'd imagine you'd be able to sit up with 2 trekking poles fully extended. You could always swap to A-frame when it's bedtime for more protection during the night.
I've got this idea in my head that I'll use 1 set of gear for the whole PCT, with the exception of a bearcan and an iceaxe. I'm sure, though, that I'd come back here afterwards and admit you were right (after months of lusting after spacious shelters and more comfortable rain gear). If I were to go with a rain jacket and pants, I'd want something in eVent. It looks like ID doesn't sell their jacket anymore. When I did my research on it a year ago, that was the "best" available.

Cesar – I can tell by all those robust trees in your avatar that they're probably abundant in your neck of the woods. Unfortunately, trees (and even sticks at times) are hard to come by here in SoCal. Does the baththub flooring on the Hexanet serve its purpose with just the 1 trekking pole (without corners guy'd out)?

"Does the baththub flooring on the Hexanet serve its purpose with just the 1 trekking pole (without corners guy'd out)?"

I'm not sure. I never used it with a trekking pole, though I would imagine that you could work it out somehow, even if it is as crude (crude can be effective, of course) as putting rocks or gear in the corners to anchor it down. Both times I used it was clipped to a rope.

Good point about the geography you are in. Should have asked. I was born in LA, never went backpacking there though.

Not sure if I missed it, but what are your plans with your shelter choices? Thru hiking or weekend adventures? I am confined to short trips for now, but if and when I do a thru hike, and if that thru hike were here in Sweden, and it was the summer time, I'd probably take the Hexnet and a 2 x 2.5m tarp.

"Why'd you choose the Grace Solo tarp over a poncho tarp? Part of the reason I'm into ponchos is because I don't feel like there are any good lightweight and breathable raingear options available right now."
Well, having hiked in SoCal with 30+mph winds, panchos aren't as good in the wind so I didn't even consider using one for the PCT. In fact ~30miles north of the border, the winds were so strong that they flattened any tent not a 4 season one night in late April. Most of the time, your rain gear is used as an insulating layer so a jacket tends to be warmer. That said, people have used pancho tarpss successfully on a PCT thru-hike. But my tarp survived being used on a test hike in November in the San Gorgonio Wilderness on an exposed ridge at 10,500ft with 30-50mph gusts blowing snow upslope at me so I was pretty confident it could handle any conditions thrown at me on the PCT (conditions weren't intentional when I went out). I was pretty happy with using my 2006 vintage OR Zealot gortex paclite jacket (7.8oz for L) though its no longer made. Hiking with the front zipper open and using the pack straps to hold it sort of closed work well enough to vent sweat when I hiked in 2 days of rain in Northern Oregon so I never felt like I overwhelmed the material and stayed dry. But yeah, I still haven't found any raingear that is newer that I want yet except maybe that really expensive ZPacks breathable cuben fiber jacket.