Need Quilt Head Insulation Recommendations

GooseFeet Gear

https://goosefeetgear.com/products/down-balaclava/

http://zpacks.com/accessories/goosehood.shtml

Also Black Rock Gear.

one thing good about Apex, is that if it gets wet from your breath it will continue to function, down may lose loft.  If it’s really really cold maybe down would be better.

I am leaning towards Apex for the condensation reason.

My wife and I have the Z-packs hoods, and love them. What a huge difference they make, Much better than a mummy bag. Note: We don’t use quilts, but our sleeping bags have no hoods (I have a Western Mountaineering Alder MF bag: no hood).

Goosefeet makes the hood for Z-packs (I believe).

If you camp in shoulder season, then consider getting both an EE Hoodlum synthetic balaclava and the Goosefeet(Zpacks) down hood. In summer the down hood is all you likely will need for sleeping or sitting around in camp. In shoulder season, you can wear the Hoodlum over the down hood for sleeping. You can also wear the Hoodlum while hiking if it’s chilly – it works great for this.

If you carry a puffy with a hood I’d wear that unless its really cold.

As Lorenzo said, if you carry a hooded puffy then there is your answer.  You can wrap any insulation piece you are not wearing around your head as well.

I have opted for a modular approach.  Since I always pack a beanie for around camp in cold weather, I use a combination of 1 or more of Cap4 beanie, windstopper fleece beanie and Cap4 balaclava, mixing and matching as the weather dictates.  Combined with my puffy’s hood, I’ve never felt the need for dedicated sleep headwear.

Maybe I should have gotten a 30 degree quilt and planned on wearing the puffy when a beanie isn’t warm enough.

Katabatic also makes a down one or two from memory

Maybe I should have gotten a 30 degree quilt and planned on wearing the puffy when a beanie isn’t warm enough.

I’m not saying that he is correct, but Glen Van Peski of Gossamer Gear is quoted as saying “If you aren’t wearing all of your clothes to bed, you packed too many clothes”.  There *is* some truth in that :)

For around 10 years my puffy had no hood.  I carried a polar buff and a down balaclava from downworks which is similar to the goosefeet mentioned above. This allowed me a variety of configurations at the cost of looked pretty funny.  My wife claims I look a bit like a character from teletubbies. When I switched to a hooded puffy, I typically left the balaclava at home and just wore the hoody to bed which has worked reasonably well, but is not as flexible as a separate balaclava.  Most any of the options above would work.

–mark

How do you like the Down Works balaclava? I am considering picking one up.

I found it well made.  It also seems to loft up really nicely.  There are some products I have use which seem to loft more than mere specs would suggest.  I have found this western mountaineering bags, and with my baclava.

other than looking funny :) it’s been very functional. I particularly like the extra length which stayed tucked in, even when I was using it with a fairly wide-necked vest.  nick and shelley are really nice folk who I like supporting.

Like Mark Verber I like flexibility of a separate hood and jacket.