Headwear for winter sleeping

[squeezebox]

I bought a quilt which means no hood. So what do you wear for headwear in cold weather in a quilt? The down hoods are expensive, A balaclava might not be enough. How do you keep the cold drafts off your shoulders. The bottom line is keeping the head and shoulders warm in cold weather.
Thanks!!

[Rmcpeak]

Mummy bag ;-)

[Just Bill]

Your top quilt should have a drawcord option at the top, which lets you tighten around your shoulders a bit... though a mummy does have an advantage there.

I have a collection of buffs and fleece (hats, balaclava's) that I use. The simpliest, easiest is a 200wt fleece balaclava with the cap 4 beanie I always have.
Much past freezing though I find that one of the expensive hoods (or a knock off I made I should say) is needed. But adding a second fleece hat works too, with a homemade buff to tie it all together.

As fer shoulder drafts... if you're otherwise warm- you can take your coat, shirts, windshell etc and wear them around your neck only. Picture putting on your jacket without your arms in it- then pushing the zipped up jacket up around your neck so it can't roll away but plugs any drafts like a draft collar on a mummy would do.

My cold weather quilt I ended up adding a draft collar to it eventually. Katabatic Gear may do something similar?
I'd call 20's about it IMO... after by the time you add too many hats, collars, and fuss to a quilt it's lighter and warmer just to have a mummy bag.

Quilts maybe cool, but they ain't for real cold.

[Venchka]

Western Mountaineering (or equal, if there are any equals) bags with hood & full 3-D collar. Antelope & Alpinlite (in my inventory), Ultralite, Versalite, & Apache in the 5 to 20 degree range come to mind. Feathered Friends 10 degree bags have a full collar.
Based on my very limited experience with 2 WM bags, the hood, collar, draft tube, snag less zipper & foot box are worth the price of admission.
Even with all of those features, I still use warm head gear. "If your feat are cold, put on a hat."
Colin Fletcher explained all of this in "The Complete Walker." Right before we got electricity.

Wayne

[FarmerChef]

I just use a wool knit-cap. Works fine for me. A fleece buff might be good around your neck if you can't cinch the quilt down there but I also use a quilt for ground-dwelling and the hat is all I need when temps get down around zero. Fwiw.

[LoneStranger]

What you need really depends on what you mean by winter. Mad Bomber with the quilted lining and rabbit fur around the edges over an army surplus, polypro balaclava that acts as a vapor barrier works for me deep into sub zero temps. When it gets really cold I'll unsnap the fur brim and fold it over my eyes to keep them from forming ice crystals in the corners. If your idea of winter isn't that cold this might be more than you need :)

[Venchka]

LoneStranger brings up good points missing in the original post.
Description of quilt and conditions you plan to use it in.

Wayne

[PAFranklin]

I prefer a thin poly balaclava and add a polarfleece hood if that's not enough. BTW I have separate headgear for sleeping as it tends to get damp overnight. Dark colors are best to hang out in the winter sun to dry.

[Another Kevin]

Your top quilt should have a drawcord option at the top, which lets you tighten around your shoulders a bit... though a mummy does have an advantage there.

I have a collection of buffs and fleece (hats, balaclava's) that I use. The simpliest, easiest is a 200wt fleece balaclava with the cap 4 beanie I always have.
Much past freezing though I find that one of the expensive hoods (or a knock off I made I should say) is needed. But adding a second fleece hat works too, with a homemade buff to tie it all together.

As fer shoulder drafts... if you're otherwise warm- you can take your coat, shirts, windshell etc and wear them around your neck only. Picture putting on your jacket without your arms in it- then pushing the zipped up jacket up around your neck so it can't roll away but plugs any drafts like a draft collar on a mummy would do.

My cold weather quilt I ended up adding a draft collar to it eventually. Katabatic Gear may do something similar?
I'd call 20's about it IMO... after by the time you add too many hats, collars, and fuss to a quilt it's lighter and warmer just to have a mummy bag.

Quilts maybe cool, but they ain't for real cold.

I didn't get to see what you were using in Harriman, but I know you weren't forced to go to ground, and it was starting to progress from 'cold' to 'damn cold' - surely subzero F I wore a fleece balaclava while sleeping, but I used a sleeping bag, not a quilt. (I stayed toasty.)

My problem is I always turn over in my sleep and bury my face in the bag hood, causing condensation issues. I still haven't found a good answer for that.

[Just Bill]

I had two sets of gear with me... but as we all set up in the dark...
Friday night I brought my "heavy" set- 3+ inch loft TQ and a 4+inch UQ. Including my tarp that wraps to form a near full windsock/air bivy... Other than that pretty traditional stuff.

3" of down is zero, 4" is -20... so shoulda been fine... but that was a mighty wind to say the least and in deference to my elders and betters- Laz got the slightly sheltered spot on the leeside of the peak and I took the high one. There were "plenty of geese" as Tipi likes to say- but in an UQ they seem to fly away fer the winter when things get too serious in a hammock, lol. I did fall asleep... but as you say it did cross into damn cold territory so I hit the ground.

I had a hunk of z-rest foam and my pack. I put my TQ on the bottom and fetal slept in my UQ. Nice thing about the ground is that your "exposure" reverses... Hammocks make 3/4 of your body rely on the UQ, but on the ground only a 1/4 of your body is down... so the -20 TQ and chilly bottom involved a roll over every hour or two but an otherwise decent sleep.

Since it "warmed up" on Saturday I took our car shuttling opportunity and brought a 15* POD style bag I built to work with the bridge (all in one) but I got so busy yakking with everyone and serving poison whiskey to Moose that I never set up my hammock... I slept on the pad scrap, my pack, and in the pod well enough... though with my snoring and all I'm guessing Malto and Coach Lou were not so lucky.

Anywho-
Seeing as I don't have a pic of it- http://www.enlightenedequipment.com/hoodlum/

look at the 4th pic- that shows the drawcord of the face closure flipped over the head to make a headband.
I do this with my rain cape hoods... also handy for keeping all my hats in place as they slide around on my long hair as sleep.
Point being... Maybe a hunk of 1/8" shock cord or a head lamp strap would work to headband your hood and make it easier to roll over?

[SkeeterPee]

If you are using a hat, do you have troubles with it falling off as you sleep. Maybe I need a tighter one, but my fleece on keeps sliding off all night.

[Just Bill]

If you are using a hat, do you have troubles with it falling off as you sleep. Maybe I need a tighter one, but my fleece on keeps sliding off all night.

I've added a "chin strap" to one of my heavier fleece hats for this reason. Like you'd have on a wide brimmed hat
A cap4 stays on mostly, but my long hair works against me most of time...
These are getting harder to find for adults... but this type of hat is still great- http://www.rei.com/product/856056/rei-frostland-hat-with-strap-toddler-girls

No issues with a balaclava in cooler weather- that keeps everything in place and handles neck, nose, face too.
Otherwise I found some long undie type material at JoAnn (like a cap 2) that I sewed into a long buff. It's thin enough to breath through and stretchy enough to roll into multiple layers like a buff. It also works to hold a regular cap in place or by itself.

[Coffee]

My Mountain Hardwear Dome Perignon has served me well in very cold temps. I recently purchased a zPacks fleece hat to save weight but have yet to test it in cold weather. I'm cautiously optimistic. But I'm not really a "winter" hiker - I won't go out if I'm expecting lows much below the mid 20s. I'm kind of a wimp that way ... that, and i don't want to buy a zero degree bag.

[Rocket Jones]

I carry various Buffs. A merino wool one most of the time, and this can double up with a regular one for layering. They stay put and can be adjusted into a face masks as well. If it's going to be really cold, I'll use the Polar Buff with the fleece sleeve at one end. Makes a nice neck gaiter at night and can be folded into a beanie during the day.

[gbolt]

Just Bill has done a good job answering the question. I just thought I would add my lightweight "hat list". Above 50º a Dew Rag. 35º - 50º a Mtn Hardware Microdome Bennie. 25º to 35º or to add face and neck protection I use a Schampa Silkweight Balaclava (wish I had messed with a buff and may in the future). Under 25º Black Rock Down Cap. Again, wind and moisture may make these temps vary by 5 - 10º.

Use the snap on the quilt to lock the quilt behind your neck as well and the cinch cord draw string to better "lock" the TQ under the shoulders. I am amazed that every time I have been awakened by cold foot or otherwise, simply adding or changing a hat will regulate the temp and send me back to a restful sleep.

[kayak karl]

Black Rock 32506

[Theosus]

I use a combination of layers. First is my fleece balaclava thing. I found it at WalMart I think, like 4 years ago for $10. Its like the hoodie part of a hoodie, with a long neck and round face hole. It has a string and cord lock to make the face hole smaller. My other choice (sometimes worn under the fleece thing and sometimes by itself) is my "radar hat", a small blue knit hat, I think it's polyester. Also a Walmart Find, for about $15.

32507

My last line of defense in the hammock is my down vest and kilt. When I am getting into the hammock, I take of my down vest and throw it over the ridge line. I throw my kilt over the ridge line, too, usually overlapping a little but not all the way. I push them back over above where my head is. When I lay in the hammock, normally I'm fine at first. If there's a breeze or I start to get cold, even with the headwear, I can reach up and pull the kilt and down vest "tent" over my head area. Its open enough in the front that I don't get a much condensation on it, but the sides help keep off the breeze.

[saltysack]

Microdome Beenie under cap 4 hoody under montbell ul down parka..w a buff over ears and face...


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[MuddyWaters]

fleece beanie, 100 wt hoody over it, sometimes a light synthetic puffy hood too takes me below freezing. My hoody closes around face like a balaclava.

I have a down hood, its really a furnace for my head. I often bring it when 50 or below, because if Im tired and chilled and sweat or rain soaked, it really helps my body warm up faster for 1.6 oz. But, trying to sleep in it above maybe ~25 has me pulling it off after a couple hrs because my head is sweating. Adds to my pillow usually.

If only I had a hood that could ventilate with a few zippers...

I find if my body is toasty warm, my head needs minimal insulation. Ive slept with my head uncovered with only a beanie at 25F.

[rocketsocks]

Don't over look the versatility of the age old scarf.

[Odd Man Out]

When I bought my 40 deg quilt from Underground Quilt it came with a free fleece beenie. However I got a 40 deg quilt for summer use mostly and haven't hat to use it. I did go our of an overnight 20 mile loop hike in MI Oct and it got down into the 30s overnight. I found my Buff (traditional nylon) does a good job of keeping my heat protected from drafts. But mostly I'm a side sleeper and I bend my legs into a fetal position so my toes are now 4.5 feet from the top of my head instead of 6 feet when stretched out. Then my quilt just comes over my head and I was quite toasty. Unfortunately my air mattress was not up to par, either with padding on my hips (critical for side sleepers) or insulation, but with the quilt pulled over my head I was plenty warm. However this was admittedly a 3 season solution. Not winter camping.

[Another Kevin]

Seeing as I don't have a pic of it- http://www.enlightenedequipment.com/hoodlum/ look at the 4th pic- that shows the drawcord of the face closure flipped over the head to make a headband. I do this with my rain cape hoods... also handy for keeping all my hats in place as they slide around on my long hair as sleep. Point being... Maybe a hunk of 1/8" shock cord or a head lamp strap would work to headband your hood and make it easier to roll over? That might work. I never thought of doing up the drawcord of the hood behind me like a headband.

[saltysack]

Black Rock 32506

Currently 20% off and free shipping.....


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[gbolt]

Currently 20% off and free shipping.....

That's a great deal for lightweight downy goodness! If anyone is on the edge about this purchase, now is the time to pull the trigger!