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  1. #1
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    Default Degree Sleeping Bag for SOBO hike??

    I was just wanting to know what degree sleeping bag I should use for my SOBO hike starting June 1. I've looked at the avg. temps for June, but does anyone have any input. I now have a 3.6 lb, 0 degree, but my pack weight is getting out of hand 45lbs, with 10 days of food, and I really need to cut back somewhere. Help...

  2. #2

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    I haven't hiked southbound but you shouldn't need any more than a 20-30* bag for the start. I'd hold off on carrying the 0* bag until southern Virginia.

  3. #3

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    I have a 30 degree down bag that weighs 1 pound and 3 ounces. Instead of carrying a bag with a rating that matches the temperatures that you will see, why don't you read this awesome quote by Andrew Skurka:

    "Forget about sleeping bag ratings for a second. Instead, think about everything you carry with you in order to stay warm. This includes, but is not limited to: your clothing (including your rain jacket, gloves, hat, extra socks, etc.), sleeping bag, sleeping pad, shelter, and (maybe) bivy sack. If you think about it this way, you notice that already you are carrying lots of "insulation" besides your sleeping bag.
    So, then, it is not necessary to bring a sleeping bag with a temperature rating that matches perfectly the nighttime low you expect to encounter. Instead, the combination of all of your insulting gear needs to match that nighttime low. This is why I take just my 40-degree GoLite Feather-lite bag even when I expect temperatures to be almost zero degrees. Between the bag, my clothing, my sleeping pad, my shelter, and my bivy sack I am able to stay comfortable. "

  4. #4
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    Default Thanks

    Sly and OntheRoad
    Thanks for the insight.
    OntheRoad, I actually haven't thought of it that way. I guess things all work out. Thanks again...Later...

  5. #5

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    Forget about sleeping bag ratings for a second. Instead, think about everything you carry with you in order to stay warm. This includes, but is not limited to: your clothing (including your rain jacket, gloves, hat, extra socks, etc.), sleeping bag, sleeping pad, shelter, and (maybe) bivy sack. If you think about it this way, you notice that already you are carrying lots of "insulation" besides your sleeping bag.
    I don't know. There's something about sleeping in the clothes you've been hiking in all day and/or putting all your clothes on before sleep that gets old. For the 1 lb penalty, I'll just carry a warmer bag.

    As always, YMMV

  6. #6
    Registered User Fly By Mike's Avatar
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    For the Maine part of your journey in June you won't need a 0 degree bag. 30 degree should be fine. More important for me would be a bug proof tent big enough to sit in to get a little relief from the black flies just before sunset. And a head net along with some strong bug repellent.

  7. #7
    Registered User Tortuga's Avatar
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    I am in the same boat! I don't know if I can get away with a 40 degree bag or should I go with a 20 degree bag. I wouldn't go with a zero degree bag though, that is over-kill. I looked at the archived data for Millinoket from NOA's data base to get some idea. The record high and low along with the average for both didn't look that bad. Last June however was the wettest June on record for the state. See you up there in June!

    Tortuga

  8. #8
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    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Sly View Post
    I don't know. There's something about sleeping in the clothes you've been hiking in all day and/or putting all your clothes on before sleep that gets old. For the 1 lb penalty, I'll just carry a warmer bag.
    Alternatively, a set of light clothing that's reserved for wearing at camp and for sleeping.

  9. #9

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    Exactly. Bring a set of thermals for sleeping in only.

  10. #10
    Registered User Tortuga's Avatar
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    This sounds like the plan. I will pack the 40 degree bag an extra pair of socks and a set of thermals. The thermals may become handy when I get to the Whites. The only things left to settle is bug protection and the necessity of maps. Can I get away with the Data Book or maybe the ATC Mapdanas? For bug protection I am considering a bug net for my head, Avon Skin-So-Soft for the skin, and a Deet pump spray for the clothes.

  11. #11

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    Quote Originally Posted by Tortuga View Post
    I will pack the 40 degree bag an extra pair of socks and a set of thermals.
    And a hat. A nice soft fleece hat pulled down over your ears really helps keep you warm at night, softens your pillow, and muffles out noises. Rockdancer made me a wicked nice polar-tec one a few years back, and I always carry it backpacking.
    Teej

    "[ATers] represent three percent of our use and about twenty percent of our effort," retired Baxter Park Director Jensen Bissell.

  12. #12
    Registered User Mr. Clean's Avatar
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    I'd plan to rely on Deet instead of any other brands; the bugs in June just might drive you insane. But Deet and the right attitude will get you through. They do taste great with mac n cheese, though.
    Greg P.

  13. #13
    Laces Lemur's Avatar
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    Default sleeping bags and DEET

    A 40 degree bag should see you through most of the hike. I started with my old 600 fill 20 degreee rated Mountain Hardware bag, but bought a Western Mountaineering Highlite 35 degree bag as soon as I left the Hundred Mile. I needed something I could zip up to protect myself from the bugs and the 20 was way too warm for July. The 35 degree bag saw me through to Pearisburg where I switched it back for my 20 with one exception, a cold, sit-up filled night at Fullhardt Knob shelter above Troutville/Daleville. The 20 degree bag, coupled with my hiking clothing and my warmer layers kept me comfortable, again with one exception- a frigid night at Standing Indian shelter in December. That being said, a warmer bag, if you already have one or really want to be able to boast to your hiking buddies could also be aprropriate. My hiking buddy acquired a Western Mountaineering 5 degree bag around the time I switched to my 20 and loved to brag about how warm and cozy he was while i waited for my bag to warm up. He enjoyed it so much that he named it after a tropical Caribbean island, announcing that he was "off to Tobogo" while I wiggled my toes and rubbed my hands together to stimulate circulation. His bag weighed slightly less than mine, but took up more space in his pack. He liked to sleep really warm and still didn't zip the bag half the time. it was ridiculous overkill most nights.
    Re bugs: I'd carry 100% DEET and a head net for Maine. After that, you should be in the clear but might still meet a few mosquitoes in Vermont. After surviving the swarms of them that make you miserably slap yourself silly every time you stop such that you hike on well past exhaustion and nearly through delirium in an effort to escape their blood thirsty probosces, you won't be fazed by whatever pests the rest of the trail brings you.
    But make sure you have some of the strong stuff for Maine.

    -Laces

  14. #14
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    My wife and I started from Katahdin on June, 3 2005. I had a Marmot Pounder (40F? ~ but weight was A lb regardless) and my wife had a 20F. There were a couple of nights in the beginning where I wished I'd had a 20...but that quickly changed. She switched to a EMS 35F in VT. We got our coldweather bags back in Southern VA.

    I'm sure you aware of the Whitehouse Landings in the 100 mile...so carrying 10 days worth of food from the start isn't absolutely neccessary. That may help lighten your load particualry if your a big eater:-)

    Good luck on your hike. Maine is an awesome state!

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