Post by neneboricua on Dec 14, 2015 17:58:15 GMT -8
Hi everyone,
I'm a new backpacker and am interested in making the switch from a mummy bag to a quilt. I didn't even know this was a possibility until a few months ago when I started looking up ways to reduce the weight of the packs my wife and I carry.
I don't toss and turn a whole lot, but my wife does. Also, we're both side sleepers to the point that neither of us is very comfortable sleeping on our backs at all. Up until now, we've used these inexpensive bags from Amazon.
Teton Sports Trailhead 20
Teton Sports Leef 0 - just under 4lbs with compression sack on my kitchen scale.
They're pretty warm and large enough for us to sleep on our sides more or less comfortably, but they're pretty heavy and bulky for backpacking.
I've been looking at the Enlightened Equipment Revelation as a good quilt for the money. I've mentioned it to my wife but she's afraid of drafts with a quilt because she sleeps very cold.
As an idea of how cold she sleeps, we went car camping in temperatures that dropped to the low 30's or maybe high 20's overnight (it snowed and the snow stuck - maybe 3 inches on the ground in the morning). She used the Leef 0 above, had on a beanie, thin glove liners, synthetic base layer, light fleece, 650-fill down jacket, thermal tights, softshell pants, both wool and waterproof/thermal socks, and was still cold in a double wall tent with a footprint. I don't think our sleeping pads are insulated (Big Agnes Air Core SL), though. She said her back felt a little colder than her front but not by much. She suspects she might have bad circulation because it was mainly her feet and hands that felt cold, along with any exposed skin, like her nose. She doesn't want to feel the cold AT ALL, so sometimes I'll find that she's pulled the sleeping bag over her head, but then she has trouble breathing and complains about a sore throat the next morning. Once I suggested cinching the mummy hood over her head so she didn't have to hide her head below the top of the bag, but she says that her nose is then cold. Maybe I just won't be able to take trips in temperatures below 60 degrees then??
I don't like having to make these decisions for her, but she's specifically told me she doesn't like doing research on gear. It's not interesting to her. She just wants to pick something and go. If it doesn't work, she'll suffer the whole time, hate it, though she'll never complain, and then never do it again. So I kind of have to do the research for her. She's willing to try things and I just want her to be as comfortable as possible. If that means her gear costs twice as much and is half the weight of mine, then so be it.
What attracts me to a quilt like the Revelation is how people say it is good for side sleepers, it cuts weight from behind you, where insulation isn't really giving you a benefit, and does away with the hood, which I've never found all that useful. Here are some of the questions I have.
- How warm will the quilt really be considering that it doesn't wrap around you and maybe let in air through the night as you move around?
- If you cinch and tuck the quilt all around you to keep air out, wouldn't you end up like a stuffed burrito with no room to move around and be forced to sleep on your back?
- Wouldn't cold air come in through the head area unless you tie the quilt around your neck, which wouldn't be comfortable?
- Would a quilt be a good option for my wife and I given that we're both side sleepers and she tosses and turns and sleeps pretty cold?
I'm a new backpacker and am interested in making the switch from a mummy bag to a quilt. I didn't even know this was a possibility until a few months ago when I started looking up ways to reduce the weight of the packs my wife and I carry.
I don't toss and turn a whole lot, but my wife does. Also, we're both side sleepers to the point that neither of us is very comfortable sleeping on our backs at all. Up until now, we've used these inexpensive bags from Amazon.
Teton Sports Trailhead 20
Teton Sports Leef 0 - just under 4lbs with compression sack on my kitchen scale.
They're pretty warm and large enough for us to sleep on our sides more or less comfortably, but they're pretty heavy and bulky for backpacking.
I've been looking at the Enlightened Equipment Revelation as a good quilt for the money. I've mentioned it to my wife but she's afraid of drafts with a quilt because she sleeps very cold.
As an idea of how cold she sleeps, we went car camping in temperatures that dropped to the low 30's or maybe high 20's overnight (it snowed and the snow stuck - maybe 3 inches on the ground in the morning). She used the Leef 0 above, had on a beanie, thin glove liners, synthetic base layer, light fleece, 650-fill down jacket, thermal tights, softshell pants, both wool and waterproof/thermal socks, and was still cold in a double wall tent with a footprint. I don't think our sleeping pads are insulated (Big Agnes Air Core SL), though. She said her back felt a little colder than her front but not by much. She suspects she might have bad circulation because it was mainly her feet and hands that felt cold, along with any exposed skin, like her nose. She doesn't want to feel the cold AT ALL, so sometimes I'll find that she's pulled the sleeping bag over her head, but then she has trouble breathing and complains about a sore throat the next morning. Once I suggested cinching the mummy hood over her head so she didn't have to hide her head below the top of the bag, but she says that her nose is then cold. Maybe I just won't be able to take trips in temperatures below 60 degrees then??
I don't like having to make these decisions for her, but she's specifically told me she doesn't like doing research on gear. It's not interesting to her. She just wants to pick something and go. If it doesn't work, she'll suffer the whole time, hate it, though she'll never complain, and then never do it again. So I kind of have to do the research for her. She's willing to try things and I just want her to be as comfortable as possible. If that means her gear costs twice as much and is half the weight of mine, then so be it.
What attracts me to a quilt like the Revelation is how people say it is good for side sleepers, it cuts weight from behind you, where insulation isn't really giving you a benefit, and does away with the hood, which I've never found all that useful. Here are some of the questions I have.
- How warm will the quilt really be considering that it doesn't wrap around you and maybe let in air through the night as you move around?
- If you cinch and tuck the quilt all around you to keep air out, wouldn't you end up like a stuffed burrito with no room to move around and be forced to sleep on your back?
- Wouldn't cold air come in through the head area unless you tie the quilt around your neck, which wouldn't be comfortable?
- Would a quilt be a good option for my wife and I given that we're both side sleepers and she tosses and turns and sleeps pretty cold?
Enlightened Equipment allows refunds within 60 days and perhaps other manufacturers do as well. So if I pull the trigger, I'll just have to be diligent about planning at least an overnight soon after getting them to try them out and see if they'll work for us.
