IDEAL WINTER BAG AND INSULATING GARMENTS

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Now that the down DWR "revolution" is upon us I have much more faith in down as an all-around insulator.

My "ideal" winter sleeping & in-camp insulation solution:

SLEEPING BAG:
-20 F. DWR down bag with a zippered expansion gore parallel to the main zipper (for making room for wearing insulated clothing to extend the bag's range W/O compressing the bag's insulation)

CAMP/SLEEPING CLOTHING:
Western Mountaineering-style Flash DWR down pants and jacket and down booties (Pants and jacket worn in camp and for sleeping if the bag's range needs to be extended)

This combo of bag and insulated clothes has been used by many so it's not "rocket surgery" but the new down DWR innovation has, IMHO, made it a much more viable alternative and may even put off the need for a VBL liner to much lower temps.

"Multiple use" is the byword for lightweigt backpacking and using insulated clothing to extend a winter bag's temperature range seems a no-brainer. I have used my Thermolite Ultra insulated jacket and pants in my 30 F. WM Megalite bag to go down to 15 F. and slept very cozily. DWR down seems the next logical step, that is until "UltraTherm" synthetic down comes along… ;o)

[Stephen M]

I would need warmer clothes than that Eric at minus 20f for around camp.

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Stephen,

Well, my -5 F. synthetic bag with Thermolite insulated jacket and pants and quilted socks has taken me to -12 F. with no problems but, yes, -20 F. would require my -20 F. MH bag and long johns.

But a good 0 F.down bag (with a zippered expansion gore or large enough girth) and my insulating clothes would be enough. My thick wool balaclava and Psolar breath warming face mask helps a lot at those temps. I hate a cold nose.

I HAVE tried fitting my size regular down WM Megalite bag inside my size long MH -20 F. bag (gore unzipped & expanded). The fit was great and the total loft was unbelieavable. That combo should be good to -40 F. in my opinion. Below temperature that I'll stay in a house. :o)

[USA Duane Hall]

Heck, it only gets to 30F in Vegas, what's with a -20F? :)
Duane

[Dustin Short]

DWR Down doesn't really work with water vapor so freezing condensation would still be an issue (as it is with synth, just synth is easier to dry out) necessitating VBL. Also is WM using hydrophobic down? Last I had heard they were investigating the merits of the tech over long term trials and had no plans to implement any time soon. So you basically just described a normal cold weather setup that uses down…

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Dustin,

I was describing my "ideal" setup with a WM LIKE DWR down suit and a WM DWR down bag, which don't yet exist, of course.

But when or if they ever do I'm going to get 'em – even if I have to (sob!) sell a gun to do it.

BTW, yeah, condensation still rears its ugly head with DWR down but at least the DWR down can (reportedly) dry faster. And in extreme cold I have a light nylon waterproof rain suit to wear as a VBL that will keep most of my perspiration out of the bag.

I wear my very light poly long johns beneath it for comfort. Drying them may be a real problem as from past experience they froze solid in -10 F. temps as soon as I took them outside. Beating the ice out of them worked partially. Putting them on the next night was NOT fun but they worked for two more nights with that routine.

Duane,
At 8,000 ft. in our Spring Mountains on the NW side of the 'Vegas valley it gets to -10 F. several times a year. And at 11,000 ft. there it often gets -20 F. without wind chill.

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