What sleeping bags/quilts do you own and which do you take when?

[Chris K]

Curious to know what bags/quilts you have in your lineup with the whole year in mind. Quilt in summer, bag in winter? Quilt/bag in summer, over quilt in winter? One to rule them all? What are the temperature breakpoints?

Here is what I have:

Gossamer Gear Sleeplight (purchased in 2007) – made by Nunatak. Originally 18 ounces. This started out as a zipperless top bag with an uninsulated piece of Pertex Quantum on the bottom. I used it like this for a decade of summer trips. In 2018 I asked Jan to replace the bottom panel with insulated baffles to match the rest of the bag, and add 3 ounces of overfill evenly. So now it’s a 28-ounce zipperless bag like a Vireo/Tanager but with a drawstring hood. It has about 2.5 inches of loft and I’m somewhat comfortable in the mid-to-high 20’s wearing layers.

MYOG synthetic blanket (made in 2008) – 20-something ounces, 2.5-ounce Climashield XP and Momentum MR. (Climashield APEX wasn’t available yet.) It’s a generous rectangle with a drawstring at one end. This is a 60- or 50-degree layer at best, it’s been washed and packed so many times. I use it to layer over my bag when the temperature is below freezing but that’s about it. The bag-quilt combo takes me comfortably to ~20 degrees wearing all my layers, maybe the high teens if I push it with other strategies.

That’s my system. It feels pretty UL now that I’ve typed it up like this, I need an upgrade to get me into winter, which is something I’m embracing this year.

Tell me about your system and what’s in your closet!

[Ryan Jordan]

My summer quilt is a Katabatic Chisos (14 oz).

When it’s rainy/snow/wet (e.g., glacier mountaineering, early season, Canadian Rockies), I add a 50 *F EE Prodigy (10 oz) as an outer quilt.

My 3-season workhorses are the Feathered Friends Tanager (19 oz) and an EE Enigma 20 (22 oz).

As temps drop, I switch to the Feathered Friends Lark (31 oz).

For extreme cold, I add the 50 *F EE Prodigy as an outer quilt around the Lark (combined 41 oz). This, with a down parka and down pants, takes me as cold as I want to go in the winter, well below zero F.

In very cold, my wife uses a Nunatak Alpinist with a water-resistant shell that weighs about 36 oz. and has a little more loft and girth than the Lark, so may be an alternative to the quilt/Lark setup for shorter winter trips.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I have a Golite Ultra 20 and a Jacks R Better 45 degree wearable quilt. I also have a homemade torso-length quilt made from a costco down blanket.

• The desert in July when it’s 100+ degrees at night: just a splash bivy
• Tropical: JRB
• Late June in the Los Padres: JRB + torso
• A normal mid-summer trip in the Sierras: Golite + torso
• Fall/Winter/Spring in the Los Padres, edge of summer in the Sierras: Golite + JRB
• Gonna be super freezing? Maybe all three. I have yet to try that.

I’m thinking about buying myself a zero degree bag someday to cut down on having to stack bags to keep warm.

[W I S N E R !]

WM Summerlite (35 degree) the go-to for majority of trips. Used open like a quilt down to about 40, zipped up at freezing.

WM Ultralight (20 degree): early/late season Sierra, Mojave desert spring/fall…

WM Antelope (5 degree): winter

Apparently it takes a few thousand dollars worth of sleeping bags to enjoy the simplicity of backpacking these days. ;)

[Anthony H]

My Work horse for all my 3 season backpacking needs is my ZPacks 20 degree classic sleeping bag. I Love that it combines the best aspects of a down quilt and a down sleeping bag and is very Light .  When the temps drops below freezing I have a North face “The One” sleeping bag that i can pull apart and layer with my Zpacks bag.  I also have my Marmot Avant synthetic puffy with hood and a pair of EE Torrid Apex pants i can layer also.  I also jump up to my 250 Smart Wool base Layer.

[Brad Rogers]

I have four:

An old BPL Pro 90 Quilt for temps above 50*F

A Golite Ultra 20 for temps to 30*F

A Javan Dempsey quilt to 20* (I think it’s Momentum 90 and 12oz of 850 fill down, but I can’t remember)  This is my workhorse quilt.

A Mountain Hardwear Phantom 0 for temps down to 0*F.   I’ve gotten soft and don’t go in cold temps much anymore so it hasn’t been used the past two seasons.

[JCH]

30* EE Revelation 750 Duck Down – Use it about 20% of the time…when I’m confident the temps won’t drop below mid 40’s

10* EE Enigma 800 Goose Down – Use this 80% of the time. Absolutely love everything about it.

30* Western Mountaineering MegaLite – Never use this anymore after moving to quilts but loved it so dearly that I am keeping it.  Used it mostly with all down shifted to the top when cold, and open like a quilt when warmer.

[Claiborne B]

I use a layered system for 3 season use which is my primary hiking season. Most of my hiking is in the southern Appalachians or travel elsewhere (before Covid) during warmer months.

• A Diy-ed 40*F  Quilt with 900fp is my preferred choice,
• A Diy-ed 50*F  Quilt with Primaloft is my high humidity/ summer option,
• A 10*F  UGQ Bandit Quilt with enclosed foot box for winter,
• I sometimes will use one of two slightly modified liners, either a Sea to Summit Coolmax or a Reactor liner.

I’ll layer the two quilts 40 & 50 for colder temps down to mid 20-ish. Below the 30’s, the 10*F UGQ Bandit and the Sea to Summit Reactor Liner do just fine. Very rarely am I out below 0*F due to location and desire at this point.

Got to use a pad with a quilt, so I carry a higher R Value (3.5) Sea to Summit Women’s Large Ether Light Insulated. I’m a guy, but the length/width are good for me. Sometimes I carry a Gossamer Gear 1/8″ Closed Cell Foam Pad to pair with the S2S.

As far as the Sea to Summit Liner modifications go.. I removed the head “Halo”, added a drawsting to the top and a 3/4 length zipper down the side.

 

[John Vance]

I have a Katabatic Flex 22 with 2oz overfill (24.3oz) that keeps me warm into the teens atop an xtherm and is the bag I take when temps are expected to be below freezing.

I also have a Western Mountaineer Astralite (17.3oz) that I take for trips down to freezing and up to 50f for nighttime temps.  It’s warm to the low 20’s but if the forecast is for mostly around freezing, I roll with it.

Finally, I have a MYOG quilt (17.8oz) that was a proof of concept when I was thinking about making the move to a quilt that’s 20+ years old.  Its warm to 40f or so with 9.5oz of 800 fill down but a bit small on dimensions.  It’s for summer, car camping, and general use around the house and for traveling.  I also use it with the Flex for single digits and below.

[Scott Smith]

I’ve slept comfortably in my Summerlite, down to low 20s , in my tent

For colder temperatures I use my Versalite

 

LOVE both of these bags 😁

[Eric Blumensaadt]

3 SEASON-> Western Mountaineering Megalite (factory overstuffed to 20 F.)

WINTER-> LL Bean 750 fill -20 F. size Long (has best features I’ve seen in a winter bag)

EXTENDING TEMP RATINGS; I wear either a heavy polyester base layer or that layer with a light down jacket and down side-zip pants. The WM Megalite bag has enough girth to permit me to wear the down jacket as it is designed with that extra girth, hence the”Mega” in the name.

 

[Paul Leavitt]

Down to 32 F degrees Hammock Gear 30 deg F quilt and Xlite Womens pad,  20-32F JRB Sniveler and Xtherm MAX wide , Less than 20F  Both quilts and Xtherm Max wide and 3/8 inch blue pad.  Less than 0F I stay home if possible. If caught in it put on all the extenders below and all clothes I have with.

Cold temps <20F  polyester base layer, fleece pants, hooded down jacket, beany, Down booties, fleece top,  gloves, heat water and sleep with it.   I have not invested in down pants.  (yet)

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

Weird. I am not the only person that layers their quilts. I’ve never considered that particularly ultralight, but both my spare quilts are wearable and so far I haven’t been on a trip where I was sorry I had no down jacket to wear.

[Jenny A]

I am really liking my REI Magma 30 quilt for 3-season backpacking when temps will be 40’s or higher.   What’s not to like about a weight of only 15 ounces!

If there’s weather in the forecast, I’ll take a 20-degree REI SubKilo.

If colder than that, I’m probably car camping in a winter tent – not backpacking – and the bag of choice is a Marmot Xenon rated to 15 degrees but works at least down to mid-aughts when paired with my DownMat.   While the difference between the Xenon and SubKilo is only 5 degrees on paper, it has higher-lofting down and more of it and is substantially warmer.  It is snuggy.

[Philip Tschersich]

High summer in coastal Alaska sees me in a Katabatic Chisos 40F on a ‘large’ TR Uberlight.

Early/late AK summer I use a Katabatic Palisade 30F on the TR Uberlight or large NeoAir SL.

Spring (archaeology) or fall (elk hunting) I use ether a Katabatic Alsek 22F or Sawatch 15F with a large TR X Therm.

Yes, I own a lot of Katabatic bags, lol. I love those things.

I don’t winter camp if I can avoid it.

[Chris K]

Thanks for all the replies and info. Interesting to see how you folks switch out one bag or quilt for another, and all of your layering systems.

I think my next step is to get a dedicated winter bag.

 

[Ian]

Montbell UL super spiral #3.   I believe that’s what they were calling it when I bought it.   It’s good to freezing, comfortable, and the stretchy feature works great.

Our family has a few Kelty Cosmic Down sleeping bags.   I’ve haven’t slept in it yet but as a pleasantly plump camper I fit in the 20*f long one fine.   My kiddo has slept in her 20*f one down to sub freezing temperatures and stayed warm although we didn’t hit 20*f so I can’t say if it’s good that low.

They’ve worked well enough that I just bought the Kelty Cosmic Down 0*f bag for myself.   If it keeps me comfortable down to 15*f and warm enough so I don’t die if it actually reaches 0*f (I wouldn’t go out in those temps on purpose, because, wimp) then I’ll consider it $189 well spent.

[Kevin Babione]

As someone who sleeps in a hammock the combination of top quilts (TQ) and under quilts (UQ) becomes a little overwhelming, but here are my usual setups:

• 10-30 F – Speer Peapod as UQ and BPL UL240 TQ
• 30-50 F – JRB Shenandoah L UQ and JRB Shenandoah L TQ
• 50-80 F – EE 3/4 UQ and BPL UL60 TQ

If it’s going to be below 50F then I usually pack my Montbell Ex Light down jacket and if I get cold I drape it over me in the hammock while sleeping.  If that’s not enough I put it on backwards in the hammock.  I also always have a merino buff and, if it’s 40F or less I’ll throw in my Black Rock Gear down hat and maybe some possumdown gloves.

[Iago Vazquez]

TENTING:

–Above 40F: EE Revelation 40F

–25-40F: Montbell UL Super Spiral #3

–10-25F: Montbell UL Super Spiral #1

–Below 10F: Montbell UL Super Spiral #1 layering the EE Revelation 40F (which was oversized for length & width).

HAMMOCKING:

–Above 30F: EE Revelation 40F + HG Phoenix 30F

–10-25F: EE Enigma 20F+ HG Incubator 20F

–Below 10F: EE Enigma 20F layering the EE Revelation 40F (which was oversized for length & width) + the HG Incubator 20 and over  it the HG Phoenix 30F

Below 40F I use a Argon 90 full enclosure winter sock which helps push the quilts a bit below their rating perhaps.

Often I also have with me a thin 1/4″ torso pad that I use as sit pad and to supplement insulation.

[David Hartley]

>40F cheap mountain hardwear bag (ratio 32) with 12 oz 600-fill down (thinking about changing to a synthetic quilt for that)

20F-40F Mountain Equipment FireLite (the UK company not the Canadian MEC) – spring and fall hikes in the ADKs

10F-25F Mountain Equipment FireFlash

If the forecast includes less than mid-teens – that’s too cold for me

I’ve thought long about quilts – seriously considering for warmer temps. At 30 and lower I like the closer fitting mummy bags for the lack of drafts.

[Scott S]

Feathered Friends Flicker 40 UL. Works down in the low 40s and high 30s, if I supplement with a light down jacket over a merino shirt, and long johns (and sometimes a cap). But if I were to buy again I’d buy the 30 version.

[Axel J]

My oldest,  still active bag is a WM Iroquois. I bought it used early 2000s on my first bid to get lighter but was always not quite warm enough.. I convinced WM to add more down,  so now it’s  my go to summer bag.

WM Versalite. Shoulder season and summer Sierra trips if the trend is cold with showers. Bought it used as well and promised myself this would be the last and best bag purchased. Hah.

Valandre Lafayette. Old style, not warm enough below 50 degrees and the zipper has a chronic snagging  problem, PITA. My son has it now. When we camp together and I hear him cursing in the middle of the night, I know why. Looks like the new Lafayette has the zipper on top now, like the Patagonia bags.

EE quilt, rated to 10 degrees. Got it to replace the Veralite. Not even in the same league so it stays in the car most of the time now as an emergency blanket.

So now its just the WM bags getting all the use now but who knows, I really want to try out the FF Tanager now.

 

[Mark Verber]

Nunatak Ghost Blanket (16oz) + MLD Superlite Bivy + Downworks Baklava. If it’s a solo trip, it’s what I take. Have happily used it 14-80F. below 25F wear my puffy jacket under the quilt rather than using it to make my pillow extra soft.

EE Accomplice (36oz). Used it whenever I am backpacking with my wife. Have used it 10-75F.

Done.

We own a Montbell SuperStretch #3. I have never used it. Loaner / used by my daughter when she comes with us on a trip.

Used to switch to vapor barrier + Western Mountaineering Versalite when expecting <=10F, but wife doesn’t like backpacking in snow, and doing these trips solo no fun. Gave vapor barrier to friend and sold the Versalite.

[Ryan Jordan]

Used to switch to vapor barrier + Western Mountaineering Versalite when expecting <=10F, but wife doesn’t like backpacking in snow, and doing these trips solo no fun.

NO! Mark, don’t leave us! It’s not about the fun is it?

I guess it is about the fun now.

I had to get a heavier sleeping bag and huge puffy mittens for these temps too.

Sigh.

[Rex Sanders]

One Bag To Rule Them All since 2003:
– Western Mountaineering Megalite, 775 g / 27.3 oz on my scale
paired with:
– Nemo Tensor Insulated pad long/wide, 663 g / 23.4 oz on my scale

Wearing all clothes including puffy, this setup barely works to low 20s F. Winter temps where & when I usually backpack very rarely dip below 20 F. Wildfires of 2020 might change that :-(

Loft on my well-loved Megalite is declining after almost two decades. The Tensor is not quite warm enough, despite being the warmest and most comfortable pad I’ve owned.

On my wish list – warmth upgrades while saving a couple ounces:
– Feathered Friends Tanager, 558 g / 19.7 oz on FF scale
– Nemo Tensor Alpine pad, 770 g / 27 oz on Nemo scale

My BPW is low enough at around 13 pounds. I won’t compromise on a good nights sleep anymore.

YMMV. I need the large size in most things.

— Rex

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