Need some sleeping bag input

Happy to offer my experience,

I see sleeping bags in a gradient. Between $25 and $75, you get a pretty crappy bag. Anything in an early spring temperature range is going to be 5lbs. The military-style bags in particular are brutally heavy.

At $100-$125, there's a nice threshold. Kelty, The North Face, and EMS all make a wonderful 20º bag for around 3 lbs with reasonably good compressibility at this price point. They use synthetic insulation (Kelty even makes one here with down) and they are a fantastic value. I use an EMS Solstice 20º and I love it.

After that, there's not much for a bit. Mountain Hardwear makes some good synthetic and down bags for around $200-$250, including down bags, and there's the next step up in North Face and EMS bags as well. My friend has a $200 Marmot at 20º that he swears by, and it is good quality.

Right around $300, there are a couple of REALLY nice choices. The Western Mountaineering Highlite is about $300, comes in at exactly 1lb, and is rated to 35º. In my opinion, the temperature rating is closer to 30º, and I'd trust it to keep me alive just below freezing if I had some clothing on. It compresses very small. If I were you, I'd save up for just a bit more to get into the price range of bags like this one and go with it. Above $300, you're not getting much more for your money, maybe an ounce or two but it's hard to beat the Highlite.

Enlightened Equipment quilts are a fantastic buy, but you do need a decent pad with them. However, their pricing is reasonable, so with that REI gift card, you could probably afford a quilt and a thermarest. The EE Quilts don't take any getting used to to use. They're fairly simple, and there are lots of options to choose from.

The DriDown bags on REI are not the best deal. For the price, there are lots of other bags that weigh less or are more compressible, and other companies offer treated down in a more technical bag. I believe EE has it as an option, or katabatic.

You can compress your down bag the same way you compress your synthetic, but I would use a dry-sack of some kind. Down is usueless when wet. I love the Sea to Summit e-Vent sacks.

WM or Feathered Friends used bag on gear swap…throw up a WTB if there is nothing listed at the moment.

Marmot Pinnacle or Helium…again used…or can normally be had on sale for ~$270.

If you're looking for cheaper…there are Wenger 800 fill, 30 deg long bags on STP for ~ $110 with the right coupon…they also have the Columbia Moonstone 15 deg bag for ~ $170 (with a coupon, of course).

Good luck…

-Mark in St. Louis

Steep and Cheap has been putting Marmot sleeping bags up for the last couple of weeks; most of them are around 50% off. The Arroyo (30*) was just offered for $150, and it often sells for that (or more) used on gear swap. The Pinnacle came up last week a couple of times. If you look at gearscan's S&C tracker and go back ten days or so, you can see the bags that have been for sale recently. Might be worth keeping an eye on.

Hey Max, just to check – since you're 6'2, what size of WM bag do you use? (6'0 or 6'6)?

Thanks!

Scott,
If you're sleeping in cold conditions, make sure to get an adequate sleeping pad regardless if you have a bag or quilt. Even with a bag, the compressed insulation that you're sleeping on will do hardly anything to insulate you. It's all in the pad.

It's always a safe bet to put your down stuff in drybags, even if it is to protect it from yourself! What I mean by that is I had a bottle leak in my pack once. My down bag was fine because it was in a dry bag.

Shameless self promotion: I do have a bag up for sale on Gear Swap. It's a Montbell SS. #3 for $180. May or may not be what you're needing.

Thanks for all the info guys, it helps in making the purchase process. I think I am going to go the route of the EE quilt, I can use it with the hammock as and under quilt too if need be. So that is a bonus for multiuse gear. I have a couple CCF pads I can double up if the weather is too cold. I did that with my current bag, which I think is rated as a 45F, and a fleece liner. Coupled with some extra clothes, I managed at 12F. Not that I was entirely comfortable, but I lived.

What sort of R rating am I looking for in a bad for say 20s-50s range? I think after that I would probably need a different one. Or is there a best catch all type bad. Normally I am a back sleeper if that matters. According to my wife I am an all over sleeper and I steal blankets, but usually I fall asleep on my back. After that I am not responsible. [

Thanks again

Just tried to get an Arroyo on SAC, cheapest shipping was $36! For a sub two pound bag. No thanks.

I have looked at a few things at SaC and I passed due to shipping. some of these companies are a bit high on small items.

I'd definitely go with the Sierra Designs Dri Down bag. It's much lighter than a synthetic bag and because of the Dri Down technology it won't absorb much moisture. It also has a nice 27 F. temp rating that you WILL be glad for on some frosty nights.

My WM Megalite unfortunately was made in the days before Dri Down, et al, and was msde for 32 F. so I had it overfilled by WM and now it's likely good to at least 25 F. Two August nights at 28 F. and 24 F. on the PCT convinced me that the overfill was necessary.

P.S.Also, now I always carry my down sweater and long john bottoms when backpacking in the Sierras or Rockies in the summer. Those two items are going to make a cold night comfortable. Remember: "Mountains make their own weather."

Scott,

The Neo-Air All-season or X-therm mattresses will be plenty warm and will not disappoint.

Another vote for WM. They're expensive, but undeniably high quality. Keep in mind that a good sleeping bag will last a long time, assuming you treat it nicely and store it properly. It's worth the one time investment.

Scott (and Joe),

Hmm, I'm not sure why S&C shipping is so high for you. It's never been more than ten bucks for me, and I've had over half a dozen orders shipped. An order with TWO sleeping bags was less than ten bucks for shipping. Maybe you aren't choosing the cheapest option? Or maybe it depends on where it is sent. Most of my orders have been sent to Montana. (One way to keep shipping down is to 'hold' an order for a week after purchasing. Anything added to it in the next week ships for an additional 99 cents.)

Not to belabor the point, but a Marmot Couloir is up on S&C right now, and shipping is $10.14 for standard shipping to all the zip codes I entered. I tried SC, NY, CA, and MT.