Down sleeping bag for fall/winter early spring then synthetic for summer?

[Earl Grey]

Of the "big 4" the only thing I havent got yet is the sleeping bag because im doing as much research as possible into what to get. It seems like if you get a 15 degree bag it will be way too hot in the summer months. Should you get some synthetic bag for the summer months?

[peter_pan]

Try a down bag for winter and a lighter down bag or quilt for summer.

Pan

[Earl Grey]

Try a down bag for winter and a lighter down bag or quilt for summer.

Pan

This is what im going to do. The problem is difficulty in choosing the right one. The Marmots ive looked at have been good. Im just trying to get the most for my money.

[fiddlehead]

lots of forums on this subject. i think you'd be better off to read thru a bunch of them. just search them out.

[nano]

He's right

[Earl Grey]

lots of forums on this subject. i think you'd be better off to read thru a bunch of them. just search them out.

Lol thats what ive been doing, except the more I read the more questions there are and the less confident I am in what to get. I should probaly get a Marmot, Western, Featherd Freinds or Mountain Hardwear. Ill choose one day.

[fiddlehead]

yeah, i think you get what you pay for in a sleeping bag. I went with feathered friends and have used the bag for 4 thru's already plus other trips. I don't think a cheap bag would've ever held up this long. (and it's warm and lightweight) (but expensive at $300+)

[vaporjourney]

I'm having the same trouble picking out a good winter/spring bag, but it will most certainly be down. Currently looking at the Western Mountaineering Ultralite which most people drool over. May look at Feathered Friends too. I definitely want a quality winter bag because being warm in extreme cold is oh so important.

For summer, I've already gotten a Shenandoah quilt from Jacks R Better. I'm pretty happy with it, although I've gotten fairly cold early early in the morning up in the smokies the past few weeks. I wind up having to wear some of my rain gear to stay warm. Still, at 15 oz, its tough to beat. Defintiely look into a quilt for summer, especially if you are a warm sleeper. I'm currently looking for a silk liner to add a bit more warmth under the quilt.

[hammock engineer]

I do not like most mummy bags. Too confining for me. I ended up with a Mont-Bell Super Strech bag. They are designed to give and strech a little. It makes the mummy bag feel roomier.

[Just Jeff]

I second the recommendation to look at quilts, at least for the summer.

Also, consider everything in your pack as a sleep system. If you're carrying a down jacket, or a Montbel thermawrap or similar, you can sleep in that to add several degrees while saving a few ounces from your bag or quilt. Works well in the shoulder seasons.