To Hoodlum or not to Hoodlum?

If you don't have a hooded puffy or something else to put over your head, I would get it. I slept down to 15 degrees with a hooded puffy and I was fine with the same quilt.

What temps? I have the Goosefeet hood from ZPacks, but don't bother with it above freezing.

My girlfriend and I use the same quilt and love it. We have the long 20*. She is 5'9" and I am 6'2". We have used it down to about 35*. My girlfriend likes to pull the quilt up over her head and I wrap my mountain hardwear ghost whisper(hoodless) around my head. I bring along a fleece beanie to wear while awake but do not like sleeping in it. The only problem with wrapping the jacket around your head is if it gets too cold for your quilt, you can't just put you jacket on because then you have no head cover. I have been thinking about getting us some bacalavas to wear in place of the beanies. I say buy the hoodlums.

If conditions don't drop too far below freezing, I always just wear a hat and a buff in balaclava mode. Why spend the extra money and weight on what is basically a single use item? Especially when you probably already have gear with you that fills the role.

when it's really cold, I wear a cap 4 hoody to sleep in. So…hat on, hoody over the hat, and if it's REALLY cold the hood of the puffy on top of that.

Toasty!

While obviously I am pro-Hoodlum (both because I work at EE, and as it's seen in my profile picture), I normally only use it when it's below freezing. While in very cold weather it's ok as an around-camp kind of hat/hood (I actually wear it while walking to and from work when it's cold and windy), when it's warmer a more normal hat tends to be more comfortable for me as they're just less obtrusive.

At 20F, I would normally be OK with the buff and fleece hat you already mentioned. YMMV

Ryan

There were definite time on the PCT last summer that were a bit chilly at night but I do not think you will need a hood (assuming you guys start the hike April-May and finish around Sept.)

I carried a ZPacks 20 degrees quilt (had zipper removed) and never once needed to sleep in anything other than my hiking shirt and pants. When my head got cold I would just throw my down jacket over my face in addition to my fleece hat and that worked great. If my feet were cold (for me, they get cold before my head) I would use my down jacket as extra insulation in the foot box of my quilt and then if my head got cold I would pull my buff over my face with my rain jacket draped over top of my head. This too worked but I didnt like it as much because with the buff over my face it felt like trying to breath/sleep while someone was stiff-arming me.

Long story short: hoodlums cause problems.