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View Full Version : Best summer-weight down bag?



rafe
12-14-2006, 10:07
I'm looking for first hand recommendations for a quality down bag for summertime conditions in the mid-AT states. I've been using an ancient Slumberjack down bag that has served me well. It weighs 32 oz. It lost some of its fill early in life (in a washing machine incident) and has lost some of its loft over the years. It will have a shortie Thermarest (Prolite 3) underneath.

Frankly, the only reason for replacing it would be to reduce weight.

I figured a 45 degree rating would be sufficient. But I slept last night in a brand-new Mountain Hardwear Phantom 45, in my basement, where the temperature was exactly 60 degrees -- and I was a bit disappointed. I haven't given up on it yet, but I'd love to hear what others are using and recommending for this very specific set of conditions.

Jim Adams
12-14-2006, 10:54
I have used a North Face Kilo (32*) for a few years now. I just use it unzipped as a blanket in the summer. It has worked very well.
Last year at trail days, I bought a Chinnook 50* and although I haven't pushed it temp wise, I love the bag. It is light, compacts very small and purchased new for $19.95.

Seeker
12-14-2006, 11:10
i've got a Western Mountaineering Caribou, and am very pleased with it. it's rated to 35* and weighs about 20/21 oz, depending on which stuff sack i use (stock vs silnylon). stuffs down to 6 x 12, but i never cram it that hard (made a slightly larger but lighter stuff sack from silnylon, about 8 x 12). i've had it down to 28* in a hammock with just a set of lightweight (duofold) longjohns and a fleece hat on, and was fine. would like to have been warmer, but considering i was 7* beyond its rated ability, i can't complain. most of the time i just leave it unzipped over me as a quilt. it's box-stitched, not baffled, and the hood is sort of shallow, but you don't need either in the summer. i've also tested its water-shedding ability. the stitching is obviously not waterproof, but i made a little pool in one of the box-stitched squares, poured in a half cup of water, and it sat for 3 hours without soaking through.

the highlite and summerlite are similar bags, but a bit lighter due to lighter shell material. WM bag specs can be found here:

http://www.westernmountaineering.com/index.cfm?section=Products&page=Sleeping%20Bags&viewpost=2&ContentId=27

Marmot and Feathered Friends might have something similar, but i don't have any first hand experience with their bags.

You might also look at a Jacks-R-Better or Nunatak quilt.

hopefulhiker
12-14-2006, 11:23
I used the Nunatak blanket and a silk liner.. very comfortable.. sometimes on real hot nights I just used the silk liner.. I knew a couple of people who dropped the sleeping bag all toghether during the hottest parts of the summer..

Footslogger
12-14-2006, 11:25
Pretty hard to beat this one ..plus it's on sale !!

http://www.rei.com/online/store/ProductDisplay?storeId=8000&catalogId=40000008000&productId=47985810&parent_category_rn=4500518&vcat=REI_SEARCH

'Slogger

floyd242
12-14-2006, 11:28
I got an REI travel down at a scratch and dent sale for like $20, it works fine in summer... I usually just put my feet in the footbox and lay it over me like a blanket. It's on sale now for like $50 at REI...

floyd242
12-14-2006, 11:29
heh

There's also a coupon for $25 off $100 WMFRAN6 expires tomorrow!

rafe
12-14-2006, 11:29
Pretty hard to beat this one ..plus it's on sale !!

http://www.rei.com/online/store/ProductDisplay?storeId=8000&catalogId=40000008000&productId=47985810&parent_category_rn=4500518&vcat=REI_SEARCH

'Slogger


Yeah, it looks like a very good deal. Offhand, not much different from the bag I slept in last night. But I'm looking for first hand experience.

floyd242
12-14-2006, 11:32
Yeah, it looks like a very good deal. Offhand, not much different from the bag I slept in last night. But I'm looking for first hand experience.

I own it but I'm not sure what you're looking for in a summer bag... it works fine for me. You can buy try and return stuff to REI, it's cool like that.

Almost There
12-14-2006, 11:37
Kelty 45 Down. About 1.5lbs and I got it for around $40 on Steep and Cheap. Slept in 50s degree rainy weather in Va this past summer and was perfectly fine, I also use a Coolmax bag liner. I'm a big guy but it kept me warm enough, I slept in shorts and tshirt.

rafe
12-14-2006, 11:38
Have you used/owned this bag? You didn't say. Yes, REI is a fine outfit. Of late, I've been returning a lot of gear to them ;).

Spec-wise, and from the looks of it, the REI bag seems nearly identical to the Mountain Hardwear Phantom 45. I tried to sleep in mine, last night, in my skivvies, in a 60 degree basement -- and it didn't really cut it.

Ewker
12-14-2006, 11:57
Kelty 45 Down. About 1.5lbs and I got it for around $40 on Steep and Cheap. Slept in 50s degree rainy weather in Va this past summer and was perfectly fine, I also use a Coolmax bag liner. I'm a big guy but it kept me warm enough, I slept in shorts and tshirt.


I'll 2nd the Kelty bag..it is a good one

Footslogger
12-14-2006, 12:00
Spec-wise, and from the looks of it, the REI bag seems nearly identical to the Mountain Hardwear Phantom 45. I tried to sleep in mine, last night, in my skivvies, in a 60 degree basement -- and it didn't really cut it.
==================================

Sounds like you might be a "cold" sleeper. Pretty hard to base your comfort on someone else's experience. I use the synthetic version of the REI Down Bag I referenced above and it works fine for me in the summer. The REI Down Bag is warmer so for me it would be like a toaster in summer.

'Slogger

rafe
12-14-2006, 12:12
[quote=Footslogger;285559Sounds like you might be a "cold" sleeper. Pretty hard to base your comfort on someone else's experience. I use the synthetic version of the REI Down Bag I referenced above and it works fine for me in the summer. The REI Down Bag is warmer so for me it would be like a toaster in summer.[/quote]

I might be a cold sleeper.. but that ancient Slumberjack has been enough, up to now. The new bag was plenty warm after I put on a pair of cotton flannels and tee shirt and socks. OTOH, I was using it at 60 degrees, and it's rated for 45. So I'm not sure what to think.

I'm just looking for ideas... I'm always nervous and anal when changing a major component of my camp gear.

Footslogger
12-14-2006, 12:33
I'm just looking for ideas... I'm always nervous and anal when changing a major component of my camp gear.

==============================

I hear that ...and totally agree. My luck is that once I find something, like it and buy it and then when it needs to be replaced they've discontinued it.

'Slogger

rafe
12-14-2006, 12:39
My luck is that once I find something, like it and buy it and then when it needs to be replaced they've discontinued it.

I hear ya. I'd kill for a pair of Fabiano Trionics in my size. ;)

mountain squid
12-14-2006, 13:26
Check out the WM Pod 30 (http://www.westernmountaineering.com/index.cfm?section=Products&page=Sleeping%20Bags&cat=Pod%20Series&viewpost=2&ContentId=31). Great bag, less than a pound. I use this with a silk liner.

See you on the trail,
mt squid

hobbit
12-14-2006, 16:16
yo guys use summer bags?
in maine and the white mountains i'd rather carry the less than an extra pound of my 20 degree (slumberjack baffin) and know that i'll be warm rather than (like I did last summer) take the chance and bring a 40 degree and suffer the consequences of random cold nights in the white mountains... ymmv though it just doesn't seem worth the extra 50 bucks to buy a new bag to save like 9 ounces... there are other things you could do to cut out your weight in the summer, for example switch to alchohal... etc

chemist
12-14-2006, 17:21
My summer (and fall and spring) bag is the Marmot Hydrogen. It's about 21 ounces in the stock stuff sack. I'd consider myself a cold sleeper also - so I like having more bag than others might since I get cold pretty easily.

I really like the construction of the Marmot bags and the Pertex fabric doesn't feel as sticky as some other fabrics in the hotter weather. YMMV, of course....

Almost There
12-14-2006, 17:39
yo guys use summer bags?
in maine and the white mountains i'd rather carry the less than an extra pound of my 20 degree (slumberjack baffin) and know that i'll be warm rather than (like I did last summer) take the chance and bring a 40 degree and suffer the consequences of random cold nights in the white mountains... ymmv though it just doesn't seem worth the extra 50 bucks to buy a new bag to save like 9 ounces... there are other things you could do to cut out your weight in the summer, for example switch to alchohal... etc

Hobbit, if I was hiking in Maine I would take my warmer bag with me, but as a section hiker I can plan accordingly, and so I take the summer bag.

Peaks
12-14-2006, 18:03
yo guys use summer bags?
in maine and the white mountains i'd rather carry the less than an extra pound of my 20 degree (slumberjack baffin) and know that i'll be warm rather than (like I did last summer) take the chance and bring a 40 degree and suffer the consequences of random cold nights in the white mountains... ymmv though it just doesn't seem worth the extra 50 bucks to buy a new bag to save like 9 ounces... there are other things you could do to cut out your weight in the summer, for example switch to alchohal... etc

You are right. Not much summer in the mountains of Maine and New Hampshire. I carry my 20 degree bag up there all summer long. However, elsewhere, I roast in a 20 degree bag in mid summer.

Maybe I'm cheap, but there isn't much fill in a 40 degree bag to begin with, so my summer bag is synthetic. The minimal weight savings isn't worth paying the premium for down.

Footslogger
12-14-2006, 18:07
Maybe I'm cheap, but there isn't much fill in a 40 degree bag to begin with, so my summer bag is synthetic. The minimal weight savings isn't worth paying the premium for down.

=======================================

That was my rationale for going with the REI Travel Sack (synthetic) rather than the Travel Down bag. If I hit a cool night I just sleep in an extra layer but for the most part it's been adequate in the summer months. I carried it from Pearisburg to Glencliff on my 2003 thru and it served me well.

'Slogger

Almost There
12-14-2006, 18:10
I also would say that I probably wouldn't have bought a summer bag if I hadn't gotten it for $40.

bigcranky
12-14-2006, 18:29
We own a Mountain Hardwear Phantom 32, the original bag (not the newer mens/womens version). My wife and I have both used it, summer and colder weather, and it's a very nice bag. I've used it draped over me as a quilt in warm weather, and wrapped up tight when it hit the mid-20s one April. (I sleep very warm.) It's 21 ounces, and has a half-zipper.

I had it for sale last summer when we got my wife a WM Ultralight. It didn't sell then, but PM me if you'd be interested. It's a size Regular, and it's a pretty slim cut mummy.

hobbit
12-14-2006, 20:21
yeah sorry I was a little vague with that last post I did mean for my area... i definitley would buy a "colder" bag (ie 40 or above) if i was hiking south of the vermont line... seems like a nice deal for down though...
:sun

eddiep61
12-15-2006, 14:07
I'll second Seeker's opinion on the WM Caribou. It is light and kept me warm down to the low 30's. I am not sure how cold your minimum temp is but I bought it because of the light weight and the rating should cover coldest night I will get in the summer and the majority of fall and spring. I got the longer version and am 6'0. Good bag but it is expensive. My feet did get cold one night but nothing some fleece socks or hot water bottle wouldn't cure.

Mocs123
12-16-2006, 14:25
WM Summerlite

rafe
12-16-2006, 15:10
It's been unseasonably warm here in eastern MA these last coupla days. So I did another test-run with my new Mountain Hardwear Phantom 45 bag. Low temp during the night in my tent in the back yard was just under 40 degrees. I wore polypro top and bottom, and I was snug.

I'm targeting a very specific hike with this sleeping bag. It'll be the central portion of the AT -- mid PA to mid VA -- and will be in August/ September 2007. I don't think I need a rating much lower than 45, but what do I know?

bigcranky
12-16-2006, 16:33
I'm targeting a very specific hike with this sleeping bag. It'll be the central portion of the AT -- mid PA to mid VA -- and will be in August/ September 2007. I don't think I need a rating much lower than 45, but what do I know?

TT--

Probably not. I expect that many nights you'll be draping the open bag over parts of your body, if anything. When we were in Shenandoah last June (2005) during an awful heat wave, the most comfortable hikers we saw were using silk liners and nothing else to sleep in.

My personal feeling is that a 30-F or 32-F rated bag is more versatile in the long run. There's not much difference between the 45 and the 30 in the heat of summer -- you're just using it as a quilt anyway. But you can use the 30-F bag much longer into spring and fall, and probably get away with having only two bags -- the 30-F and a winter bag. (That's what works for me, anyway.) If you have a true summer bag, then you might end up needing three bags -- the summer bag, a three-season bag rated to 20-F or so, and a winter bag.

So the 45 probably works fine for the specific trip you are doing, but maybe isn't as versatile overall. Just my thoughts, worth what you paid for them.

rafe
12-16-2006, 16:48
...So the 45 probably works fine for the specific trip you are doing, but maybe isn't as versatile overall. Just my thoughts, worth what you paid for them.

I agree with all that. I've had the bag for about 3 days, and am still debating if I ought to return it in exchange for the next warmer bag in the MH line (eg. Phantom 32) -- or take advantage of the extra few oz. weight savings. As it stands this will be the 4th down bag in my collection, but the first new one I've bought since Trail Daze in 1990. The bags I own are warm enough -- they're just kinda heavy.

ScottP
12-17-2006, 04:10
The REI travel down bag flat out doesn't cut it. I had a very bad experience with it (however, a great experience with REI's customer service).

I used the WM cloud 9, and loved it, for the majority of my AT thru. I'd rate it around 35 deg, and it weights 20 oz, costs $225

http://www.westernmountaineering.com/index.cfm?section=Products&page=Cloud%209%20Comforter