Tag: gear

Choosing a backpack can be tricky, especially for someone who is just starting out.  You need to know what you are carrying  to choose the right pack, but if you are just starting out you don’t know what you are going to be carrying.  I suggest start with trips you expect to take (duration & conditions), and what backpacking style you will use (ultra-light, light weight, hut2hut / hosteling, medium/heavy weight). I would encourage taking a light to ultralight approach

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Conventional wisdom is that people should carry a backpack that’s <25% of their body weight. This is reasonable for moderate distances but will be fatiguing on a longer hike. There were several experiments evaluating how pack weight impacted soldiers physical performance. A key finding was that on all day exercises, fit/trained soldiers had a measurable increase of fatigue and a drop in agility when they carries more than 10-12% of their lean body weight. This matches my personal experience: I feel no more tired at the end of a 20 miles carrying 17lb as compared to carrying no pack. My one caveat that when over 8 lbs I need to shift some weight to my hips or shoulder pain will be fatiguing through the day. My wife found her sweet spot is <7lb.

What you are carrying effects how much volume you will need, and how substantial the suspension system needs to be. I typically tell people don’t get a pack that’s larger “just in case you need more room”, this will only encourage you to bring too much stuff, will be heavier, and  more ungainly.  If anything, you want a pack which is slightly smaller than you need.  It is likely that over time you will find the weight and volume of your gear will go down, and the slightly too small pack becomes just right.  In the mean time, use a stuff sack which you attach to the outside of your pack with straps or under the top lid to hold the items that don’t fit inside the pack.  As your food gets consumer, move the items into your pack.

Beside the backpack being able to hold everything you need it to, the most important thing is to find the pack which is comfortable when holding the load you plan on carrying. The first issue is that the pack needs to fit you well. A great pack which is poorly fit can be more uncomfortable that a cheap pack which fits you. There is a nice video made by REI and ULA about adjusting backpack fit and and an article by hill people which will give you a good idea of what to look for. One caviet, if you are looking at packs without load lifters, or where the load lifted doesn’t attach to the frame, you want the shoulder strap anchors to be slight above the shoulder top rather than slightly below.

Ideally, you should go to a outdoor outfitter that employs experienced backpackers or climbers who can help you get a good fit.  Note: many of the larger outdoor stores employee people who do not have significant experience backpacking and climbing.

It’s best to try backpacks before purchasing. You should place weight in the pack to simulate the sort of load you expect to carry and give it a try.  For experienced packers, I would suggest bring all your gear in a duffel bag and try packs using your stuff rather than simulated weights.

Check with local stores to find out if it is possible to rent the pack you like for a weekend or has a good return policy.  This could save you from buying a pack which seemed good in the showroom but isn’t comfortable after a hard day of use.

I can’t stress enough how important getting a comfortable backpack can be.  Other than your footwear, no other piece of gear is as likely to ruin a fun trip than a backpack which isn’t comfortable.  My experience is that a well fitting backpack carries 20 lbs so well that I can actually forget that I am carrying a pack, and that I can carry 30 lbs for days without any shoulders or hip soreness or pain.  Do not scrimp on your pack.  Get a pack which is comfortable for you.

If you are looking for a pack for european backpacking / trekking, where you are going from hut to hut, or hostel to hostel, you might want to look at my notes about packing light for travel. and my list of trekking packs. I also have a separate post about backpacks for kids.

My Choice

In 2025 I started using a Zpacks Arc Hauler 50l. I can comfortably carry a bear canister and a total pack weight of 22+lb and my size medium qualifies as a carry-on bag.

Between 2000-2009 I put at least 150 miles on 15 different packs and tried a number of others as I searched for the perfect pack for me. These packs spanned the range from the 4 oz Gossamer Gear Whisper frameless through 6 lb external frame packs. During this time I experimented with SUL (base weight of ~5lb) but eventually settled into a base of 8-11 lb, carrying between 15-26lbs on most trips. I eventually settled on the Gossamer Gear Gorilla 40L backpack. My first Gorilla was purchased in 2009. I used the original for several years, and then in 2012 switched to the 2nd generation. I believe that the Gorilla currently being sold is the 6th generation… every version has been an improvement.

Between 2022-2024 I used a Hanchor Tufa which is an ultralight pack with a foam pad which provides some torso stiffness. It’s carry-on friendly, and is as comfortable as most other pack I have used up to 17lbs, and adequately comfortable up to 22lbs. (A few notes from someone who says they are the designer).

In 2025 I picked up a Durston Gear Wapta 30 give frameless packs one more try. I loved the pack and found it perfect for me with low weight, but when I carried more than 12lbs I would be sore after a hike of more than 6 miles. This isn’t a criticism of the Wapta, it’s actually one of the most comfortable ultralight packs I’ve used, I am just not built for frameless packs. The only frameless packs I’ve been able to comfortably carry my normal load (8lb base, 15-20lb total weight) had closed pad pockets: SMD StarLite and the Hanchor Tufa.

If I had to purchase a new pack today, I would consider:

• Zpacks Arc Hauler which is working well for me
• KS Ultralight with external stays which could be broken down so it could quality as a personal sized item when flying,
• SWD or Seek Outdoors flight 3 based on several people I trust strong recommendation for their ability to comfortably carry heavier loads.

Internal -vs- External Frame Packs

There has been a debate running since at least the 1970s as to whether internal or external frame packs are better.  I doubt this debate will ever end. My observations are as follows:

Internal Frame Packs

These days most people seem to use internal frame packs.  An internal frame pack uses foam, plastic, metal, and/or carbon fiber which is  located inside the pack to give the pack structure and effectively transfer weight to the hip strap.  Advantages are that internal frame packs tend to be easier to balance since they are closer to your body and are less likely to get snared on things if you are climbing or going cross country.  The downside is that your back doesn’t get much ventilation.

External Frame Packs

External frame packs typically have a ridged  metal or plastic frame which has shoulder and waist straps on one side to allow you to carry the pack, and some sort of bag on the other side to hold your stuff. These packs are good for hauling large amounts of gear.  They also tend to be better in hot weather because they can provide better ventilation for your back, provide lots of pockets to make organizing your gear easier, and allow you to secure gear against the frame to minimize shifting of your heavier gear.  External frame packs also tend to be more adjustable so they are good for people who are growing of as packs which get used by a number of people of variable size.

Over the years I have had a number of external frame packs including the original Kelty Tioga and a JanSport D2, but I never managed to find one which was really comfortable for more than 10 miles.  On the other hand, there are many people who absolutely love their external frame pack.

Don’t “upgrade” you old external frame pack if it is working well for you. I have met a number of people who were convinced to get rid of their external frame packs and get a “modern” internal frame pack only to find that they liked their old pack better and then were unable to find a comparable external frame pack on the market.  They ended up hunting on ebay for a pack just like the one they gave away a few months earlier.  Most external frame packs are quite heavy, but there are a few that are quite light.   Some people save weight by replacing the heavy fabric pack bag with light weight stuff sacks. This is described on Brawny’s The Packless Pack System webpage.

Durability & Materials

I have seen many people (including myself) obsess on pack durability. We have all heard about, or seen packs fail in the back country and we don’t want this to happen to us. All the catastrophic failures I have seem stem from poorly constructed packs made from mediocre materials. Often these packs came from big box discount stores. Most often, I have seen their seams rip out. For people doing trail hiking, a well constructed pack made from even light weight materials like sil-nylon will be sufficiently durable.  If your pack does run into something, it can typically be repaired with some tape (duct, gorilla, etc). I know several people who have thousands on miles on ultralight sil-nylon backpacks that weight less than 1lb. Light weight packs use mesh pockets which are fairly prone to damage. If you are concerned about long term durability, especially if you go off trail sometimes, I would recommend fabric pockets. Climbers and people who spend the majority of their time bushwacking are justified in concerns about durability. They face a lot more wear and tear than a trail hiker.

If durability is your top issue, then 100% spectra is likely the way to go, but you pay a 2-3x premium for this. Most of the companies that make 100% spectra packs are oriented to climbers like McHale Packs and WildThings. Ultra 200 is becoming popular, but there have been reports of it delaminating. I am a fan on Dyneema, Robic, etc which mix of nylon and spectra threads which seem to provide a good durability : weight and seems to last for years. Finally there is the old standby Cordora, which tends to be heavier, but also cheaper than the other materials listed here. I recommend avoiding packs made from DCF. While light weight and strong, it’s expen$e and doesn’t stand up to abrasion/cuts. There was a nice post by Montmolar about lessons make fastpacks which drills into fabrics a bit.

Frameless (Ultralight)

I would not recommend novice to start out using an ultra-light style unless you are going some place with mild conditions.  There are skills which need to be developed to be safe and it takes some practice to figure out what you should take and what you can leave behind.

Ultra-light packing is minimizing absolutely everything and relies on effective use of technique to keep you comfortable and safe.  Ultra-light backpacks are frameless rucksacks (think high volume book bag) made out of a light-weight fabric.  The philosophy is that if you aren’t carrying too much weight, you don’t need a frame or super heavy fabric… make the backpack as light as possible and save up to 5 lb as compared to heavy weight backpacks.

Some people swear frameless backpacks are the most comfortable way to carry <30lb of weight. The general run of thumb is frameless packs are good up to 20lbs, +/-5lb given individual preferences. I personally think the number is more like 15lb +/-5lb. Dan Durston wrote “With a frameless pack I think about it like most people are okay with 10-15 lbs on their shoulders. 10 lbs is nice, 15 lbs should be okay. If you get to 20 lbs that pushing it”, and Ryan Jordan of BPL typically notes that frameless is good up to around 15lb.

Ultra-light backpacks typically use the combination of a sleeping pad and tight packing to provide a suspension.  Most ultralight packs aren’t able to provide an effective suspension for more than 15lbs. For more information about how this works, check out  Frameless Backpacks Engineering Analysis which looks at how much the pack collapses as weight is added to it.

Some useful resources

• BPL frameless pack best practices
• BPL How to Pack Frameless Packs

There are several different approaches to hipbelt on ultralight packs. Many have none and just use shoulder traditional shoulder straps. Some using a “vest” rather than shoulder straps which keeps the pack more stable when you are moving and spreads the weight more than traditional straps. Some have thin webbing hip straps which don’t transfer weight but can help to stabilize the pad. A few ultralight packs have hipbelts which can actually transfer weight provide packing has been done in a way to resist compression.

Ultralight packers tend to carry packs weighting 10-15 lbs and will likely be ~1800cu/in for weekend trips.  Week long without resupply you want a pack which has ~2600cu/in and can carry 20-25 lbs.  If you are in locations without good water supplies, you will need to carry significantly more weight and volume and should seriously consider a light weight pack. My experience is that ultra-light packs aren’t for everyone.

For many years frameless packs didn’t make a lot of sense to me. Due to scoliosis I found that if I carry more than 8lbs on my shoulders I would experience pain after just 30 minutes and be really fatigued at the end of a day. Even with a SUL base weight, the combination of food and water would push me over 8lbs for quick weekend trips. My longer trips would often be 7-9 days which exceeded the comfortable of nearly all frameless packs, even those that shifted some of the weight to the hips. As a result I have been focus on packs with light frames discussed below. The most effective packs I have experienced transferring weight to my hips were the Durston Wapta 30, Hanchor Tufa, and the long discontinued Six Moon Designs Starlite.

There are a number of companies which make high quality ultra light packs. I am generally not going to list any specific models, because most of the frameless packs I have experience will are no longer made and there are a number of new companies. Noteworthy / commonly recommended ultralight packs. Keep in mind that the built to order packs often have a 8-16 week lead time and often are not returnable.

• Atom Packs (UK): Built to order (semi-custom), multiple size with light frame and belts which can be optionally added.
• Dandee Packs: custom made: select shoulder straps, materials, torso length, volume, accessories.
• Durston Gear Wapta: a very well designed ultralight pack using innovative materials and construction. I have found this pack to be more comfortable to carry than any frameless pack I have tried except the long discontinued StarLite pack made by SMD.
• Gossamer Gear: One of the earliest companies making ultralight gear. Good range of products, several of which can be configured with frames. Factory made and easily ordered. Typically very good performance / cost ratio.
• Granite Gear: Virga 2 not lightest but durable, reasonably priced and I found it more comfortable than most of the frameless packs I tried in 2010.
• KS Ultralight Gear: Built to order (semi-custom) with many options. Have a couple of light frame options and an effective hip belt.
• LifeAF Packs: Built to order (semi-custom)
• MountainSmith Scream and Zerk: Mass produced (no waiting). Harness style shoulder straps
• MLD: one of the grandfathers of ultralight packs
• Palante: Handmade frameless packs with minimal customization
• Nashville Cutaway Pack: Built to order (semi-custom) with harness style attachment
• Six Moon Designs: One of the early makers of ultralight packs that can be configured a number of ways. Factory made and easily ordered. Many people love their packs. The discontinued StarLight pack was the most comfortable ultralight packs I used. The last pack I tried didn’t work for me, but I am not sure why.
• SWD: Built to order (semi-custom)
• Japanese companies
• Zimmerbuilt: custom made backpacks

It’s worth noting that several of the light weight style backpacks have removal stays, and can be configured as frameless, ultralight packs.

Light Weight Style

Light weight packers carefully select light weight gear, and don’t take a lot of luxury items… the luxury is carrying a light pack that isn’t fatiguing.  I would recommend anyone starting out to follow a light weight style.  As a light weight packer you optimizes for carry comfort like an ultra-light packer, but you bring a little extra gear to give larger safety margins and more comfort in camp. Weekend pack should carry 15-25 lbs and have ~2600cu/in.  Week long trips without resupply you want a pack which has ~3600cu/in and can carry 25-40 lbs.  Light weight packs are also great for people who are otherwise ultra-light packers who want to have a bit more carry comfort or need to carry a fair amount of food or water in addition to their ultra-light gear (this is me). Light-weight packs typically weight between 1.5-3 lbs.  While somewhat dated, I concur with much of what Ryan wrote in his position paper about Heavy Loads in Light Packs. Packs I would recommend looking at:

• Decathlon 50l mt900-UL: Haven’t see it, but specs look pretty good. Some ventilation, 50l, less than 2lbs, reasonable frame.
• Durston Kakwa 40: A good price for a really well designed pack. Shoulder straps are great (big improvement over the DD40). Excellent material and workmanship. Nice design. I found the hipbelt on my Gorilla more comfortable, but many seem to love it. Well worth considering. The pack is 23″ long, some airlines limit carry-on to 22″. Also available in 55L.
• Elemental Horizons: No personal experience. I have seen a number of reviews such as the search for the perfect pack which leads me to believe it would be worth giving a try.
• Hyper Mountain Gear: Some people love their packs, but I also see a lot of people who start with this pack who later switch to something more comfortable. I tried the SW2400 for a couple of days. I found it less comfortable than my Gorilla for weights 19-24lb.
• Gossamer Gear Gorilla: $215, 29oz, 2800ci pack. The pack can be used like a typical frameless pack, but was designed to use the combination of a foam sleep or sit pad attached to the outside of the pack in combination with a removable U shaped aluminum double stay. The stay is easily reshaped for a custom fit which could be an issue with heavier loads, but I didn’t have any problems with the stay deforming with <25lb loads. Old versions of the Gorilla didn’t have the frame seated into the hip strap system which ultimately limits it’s weight carrying capacity. The current version addressed this. The Gorilla has a removable wrap around waist strap and extra wide shoulder straps which I have found quite comfortable. The material is more durable than the typical sil-nylon ultralight pack. The side pockets are easy to reach while wearing the pack with a large mesh pocket on the back of the pack. I found with loads less than 25lb this is one of the more comfortable pack I have used. If you need more volume, there is the Mariposa.
• Granite Gear makes well designed light weight packs. I am fond of the Crown2 38L which I found to be slightly larger than my GG Gorilla 40L though it weights around 8 ounces more. Overall carry comfort was good, but I was surprised to find the Gorilla hipbelt to be a bit more comfortable. For many years I used the now discounted Granite Gear Vapor Trail which I found more comfortable that the Gorilla for loads up to 25lb. GG Crown2 is one of the best values, especially if you pick up one the the drop.com versions.
• McHale Packs custom makes some of the best packs. The only packs I hear people rave about in the same way are Seek Outdoors when people are carrying heavy loads, and SWD.
• NeoTrekk StackPack is an external frame back which uses a number of “barrel” bags to hold your gear. Used to be known as LuxuryLite. Didn’t work for me, but I have yet to find an external frame pack that I have liked using.
• Osprey Exos/Eja, Levity/Lumina are light weight packs with a mesh back panel for better ventilation. Light weight given their features. I found the first version of the hip belt was not comfortable. The current generation (on the Levity) was good up to around 22lbs at which point I found it to be uncomfortable. A downside for me is that the smaller packs don’t fit a full size bear canister, and the larger models are just too big for me.
• Outdoor Vitals CS40: Looks promising. 25oz, carbon fiber stays with load lifter
• Seek Outdoors Flight Series: Light weight but reported by a number of people I trust to be one of the most comfortable packs, especially in the 30-50lb range.
• Six Moon Designs Swift X: On paper looks like a great pack with all the features I would want. My experience with the super wide shoulder straps on the Gossamer Gear Gorilla and a brief test trail running using the harness on the Six Moon Designs Flight pack years ago made me think this could be a worthy update to my Gorilla. Alas, I just couldn’t get it adjusted to provide me with a comfortable fit.
• ULA-Equipment: Makes a range of light weight of packs which have been popular with thru-hikers and light weight enthusiasts looking for long lasting packs. There website explains what volume and weight carrying capabilities each of their packs has. Mostly mail order, there are several stores such as Downworks in Santa Cruz which carry them.
• SWD: No personal experience, but loved by a number of friends.
• ZPacks Arc line of packs is a modern take on external frame packs. Milyiple yordo sizes with micro adjustment with the specified range. Amazingly light for a pack with a frame and comfortably carries to 25lb. Sometimes reported to have durability and squeaking issues.

Several the the semi-custom ultralight pack makers do a version of their pack with some sort of frame and a hip belt which is capable of load transfer.

Mid-weight Style

Mid-weight packers are the most common / main-stream.  You select standard backpacking equipment and take enough gear to feel that you will be safe in comfortable in a wide range of conditions.  Weekend pack should carry 30-40 lbs and have ~3500 cu/in worth of space.  Week long trips without resupply means that you want a pack which carries holds 40-50 lbs and ~4800cu/in.  Mid-weight packs tend to be 3-5lbs.  Boy Scouts tend to have a mid-weight approach.

Mid-weight style packers can use light-weight style packs for shorter trips, but if you are going for a week+ a larger and more structurally sound pack should be used.  For 40lb+ plus loads I have tried packs by Granite Gear, Seek Outdoors, Gregory, Osprey and ArcTeryx. I have liked most of the Osprey packs I have tried, Gregory where generally ok, and there is something about most of the ArcTeryx that just doesn’t work for me, though many people see to love them. I know a number of people who really like the external frame packs made by JanSport and Kelty (they also made a number of internal frame packs… none of which stand out as particulary remarkable). I have not looked at this class of pack in great detail in a number of years, though I have tried several packs recently.

Heavy-weight

Heavy weight style is when you bring whatever you are going an for an extended period of time without resupply or foraging, or if you are looking for maximum comfort for the camping or activity part of the trip (at the expense of the hiking being comfortable).  Serious camera gear, comfy camp chairs, lots of climbing gear for an extremely technical assault, wine in glass bottles, etc.  For a heavy weight, weekend pack should be able to carry 40-50 lbs and has ~5000cu/in.  Week long without resupply you want a pack which has at least 7000cu/in and can carry 70-80 lbs.  Heavy weight packs often weight more than 6lbs!

I know a number of people who carry very heavy load who swear by Seek Outside, McHale Packs,  Kuiu (especially Pro Suspension + dry bag),  Dana Design Packs, and Mystery Ranch packs, but I have no personal experience carrying huge weights in any of these packs.  I used to carry these sorts of weights in external frame packs.  I am glad I don’t do this anymore.

What I Look for In a Backpack

There is no right or wrong preferences when it comes to selecting a backpack. You will likely prioritize and value things differently than I. I am particuarly sensitive (and difficult to fit properly) because I have a moderately severe case of scoliosis. Here is what I want in a pack (in rough priority order):in a pack, so my recommendations might point you in the wrong direction. Here is what I want in a pack (in my priority order):

• Appropriate Volume: Overnight I am typically carrying around 2000ci.  Week long three season trips with bear canister I am carrying 2600ci.  Snow trips (which are pretty rare these days) normally run 2800-3200ci. A perfect pack would handle this range of volumes well.
• Light-weight Frame: I use an air mattress as my sleeping pad, and I normally carry loads which are more than 16lb, but typically less than 25lb, always less than 35lbs. I have found that with this weight, and without the stiffness of a closed cell foam mat, that I need sometime the provides structure in the pack, be it stays or a plastic frame sheet.
• Curving Back: I have found that I like a pack which “leans” into me. I believe that my thoracic curvature is a bit more aggressive than some people and I have scoliosis. I want a solid connection at my waist, and I want the pack to curve gently to my shoulders.  I have found that packs that are too strait bounce too much or feel like they are pulling away from my body.
• Well padded, encircling, grippy waist straps. Wing hip belts typically don’t work well for me. My hips aren;t very pronounced which means I am tempted to over tighten the hipbelt to keep it from sliding down. Hipebelts with double buckets which can be independently adjust are often better. 
• Minimal or no lumbar pad: I seem to have much less sacral and lumbar curvature than some people. As a result most lumbar pads feel like they dig into my back. Because of this, I typically carry my packs slightly lower around my hips than what is considered “correct”.  I have found that when I carry a pack in the “correct” location, I either have to tighten down too much on the waist strap, put more weight on my shoulders which I don’t like, or need to periodically reposition the pack as it slowly inches down my back until it hit the widest section of my hips.
• Grippy back material: I like the pack to stay fixed on my back. I have found that if the material against my back is somewhat grippy that the pack stays put better. The opposite of this are packs that put sil-nylon against my back. Particularly good have been the the rubberized mesh of the VauDe Seina 45 and the slightly textured foam on the Granite Gear Vapor Trail, and the mesh over foam of the GG Gorilla pack.
• Load Lifter: With the pack leaning into me I like being able to pull on load lifts to take even more pressure off the tops of my shoulders. Actually, load lifters aren’t an absolute requirement, but the shoulder strap top anchors need to be slightly above the top of my shoulders.
• Pocket which is reachable while walking: I want a place to store snacks which can be easily reached while wearing the backpack. This could be side pockets which aren’t too tall, maybe even angled forward like the Ospret Aether 60. I have recently discovered I like small pockets on my shoulder straps. I typically don’t like or pockets on the hip belts because when I take my pack off these pockets end up in the dirt.
• Appropriately Durable Materials:  These days I most hike trails or am in fairly open terrain when going cross country. For me is 210 Denier uncoated nylon (or Sil-Nylon) with Dyneema (UHMWPE) ripstop for trail hiking and light bushwacking. Serious off trail / climbing I would want 100% spectra. My experience is that laminated materials is that delaminate after a hard year of use, say a few thousand miles. PU coated nylon ends up becoming a nasty mess in a few years due to hydrolysis. I am intrigued by the 100D Nylon PC that Hachor is using but not experience with it.
• Hydration Tube Access: Some convenient way to get a hydration hose a out of the pack, but I don’t require a hydration sleeve.
• Narrow enough that the pack doesn’t stick out much beyond the sides of my body.  Short enough that I can wear a wide brim hat without the hat rubbing against the pack.
• Back ventilation:  I loved my VauDe Siena Biking Daypack. The mesh allows my back to breath.  Alas, I have yet to find a pack that has this feature which carries 25lb comfortably and also has enough room for my bear canister while not being too big.

Other Random Things

For amusement, you might want to take a look at tje lightningpacks which generates electricity as you hike. One issue that people are divided on is the optimal placement of a hip strap.

My recommendations on the following pages originated with backpacking, but most of the observations are applicable to a variety of outdoor activities.  Related: Packing for the Camino (or other other hostel-2-hostel pilgramages) plus notes about packing light for travel. I also keep a list of my “gear for life“. I have pages covering:

• Clothing
• Backpacks, Trekking Packs
• Sleep System / Shelters
• Kitchen Gear: Stoves, Cookwares, Water, Food Storage
• Other Items: Knives, Lights

Ultralight Approach

Around 2000 I read Mark Twight’s Extreme Alpinism and came across materials by Ray Jardine and realized that I didn’t have to pack like a Boy Scout. I joined the backpackinglight Yahoo! mailing list that was moderated by Don Ladigin who later wrote the marvelous book Lightening Up… and started on a journey to drop my pack weight. I benefitted greatly from correspondence with Glen Van Peski, Ryan Jordan and the BPL community. While I don’t always go as light as some of these folks, I have found that my approach (3 season gear list) keeps me as safe and comfortable as my heavy-weight friends in camp, and is significantly more comfortable when I am moving.

Historically “ultralight backpacking” was defined as <10lbs base weight. I don’t think this is a particularly useful definition these days. First, if you have enough money, it’s possible to purchase gear that gets you to an ultralight base weight (<10lb), even though you are approaching an activity like a classic “heavy-weight” practitioner carrying many items which aren’t actually needed. Second, conditions and trip duration might require more weight given the conditions that will be faced / the duration between resupply. The main reason I am not fond of using merely the a weight to define an ultralight approach is that it misses the spirit of ultralight:

The key to ultralight is to use your head… having enough experience to know how to deal with various situations, and to carefully think about what is needed (or more likely not needed).

An effective ultralight approach uses experience and skills to develop a system of gear and practices which allow you to face a wide variety of circumstances with less gear than most people. In its optimal form you are carrying and simpler, smaller, lighter load and camp life has a number of simple rhythms allowing you to focus on your experience.

Warning… don’t let your quest for the right gear to lead to gearaholism. I have notes about keeping costs down.

Other People’s Recommendations

I am not following outdoor gear as closely as I used to. As a result, some of my recommendations might become dated. There are several sites that I use when I want to see a list of current products that are likely to have category leading performance:

• Ryan Jordan’s personal selection deep experience, thoughtful analysis, engineers / scientists approach. I rarely disagree with Ryan’s recommendations. If I need to purchase something my first stop is to see what Ryan is using these days
• Adventure Alan does a good job covering ultralight equipment. I  appreciated Alan’s articles in the early days of backpackinglight.com.
• Frank Revelo has a pragmatic, moderate cost, often DIY approach to gear which is refreshing
• Cleverhiker Most aware of current market than me, and seems to come pretty close to my personal taste in equipment. While I don’t stack rank items exactly the same as they do, I never find myself saying “Why did they include XYZ in their listing?”
• Greenbelly Backpacking Guide has a recommended gear section (need to scroll down) which I find is very readable. I tend to agree with Cleverhiker in actual picks, but Greenbelly’s pages are often more complete. 
• Outdoor Gearlab covers a wide variety of gear types, but I never agree with their stack ranking. Sometimes items are in their list which I find myself saying “Really? You liked it?”. Most of the time items I think are the best appear in their lists, just not top rated by them. Fail to include the smaller, class leading cottage companies. I often wonder are they a shill for big name outdoor gear companies, but people who know them say they are not in the pockets of the big gear manufacturers.
• Gear Junkie for outdoor industry news and reviews.
• roadtrailrun.com – running focus
• dcrainmaker site for any gear which is related to triathlons, especially technology / instruments. I no longer will purchase any technology for these sports if Ray hasn’t given it a positive review. If he hasn’t reviewed it, it’s like junk.
  

Additional Notes

Other information you might find useful include:

My Notes

• Backpacking for Cheap
• history of Mark’s Goto Gear
• Interesting Gear Lists (dated)
• Reviews by Mark (dated)

Surveys

• Hiking Life’s Gear Used by Experienced Thru Hikers
• halfwayanywhere surveys of the long trails
• most commonly mention on /r/ultralight

History

• Informal History Of Backpacking Equipment in the 60-70s (the golden years)
• old gear: a fun article and thread on BPL
• Utah State University Outdoor Catalog Archive
• Lynne’s Lightweight Secrets Video from the 1990s
• Profile of Ray Jardine

Buying Stuff

Manufacturers

• Packs: Gossamer Gear / ULA-Equipment / Osprey
• Shelters: Tarptent / Durston / Slingfin
• Clothing: Patagonia / Montbell / Arcteryx. All have excellent designs, and produce high quality items. Patagonia and Montbell are extremely socially responsible! I like giving them business.
• List of Cottage Companies
• Japanese ultralight cottage gear
• indonesian cottage gear
• Edible Gear by EAT (Eastern Active Technologies) was a funny parody site. Try ordering something.. the error message is great

Stores

The following stores have a good online presence and typically a lot of physical stores as well

• REI: A goto retailer in the US. I remember when they had a store in Seattle, and were mostly mail order. They have stores may place. Cover a wide range of products and a good return policy (used to be amazing but people abused it). Mostly main stream manufacturers, so don’t typically have the very best in class products. There in-house brand used to be “ok” and now seems pretty good.
• Decathlon: Different website in every country, and physical stores across the world (but a poor presence in US). I think of them as the Ikea of outdoor gear. Decent gear that is inexpensive. There best items are never class leading in materials, design, or manufacture quality. The lower end tends to be made with lower quality materials and manufacturing than typical main stream products. On the other hand their products tend to be very good values because they tend to be significantly cheaper.
• MEI: Canadian, similar to REI

The following are amazing stores which have a great selection of gear.

• no/W: Taipei, TW. Really great curation… I could re-buy most of my current kit at the store. Has nearly all Gossamer Gear products (several not sold in the US), Durston Gear, Cumulus, Rab, Montbell products, minimalist sandals, XoSkin toe socks, Trail Designs stove, and NiteCore headlamps / USB battery packs.
• Garage Grown Gear: Saint Paul, MN: Mostly online, but you can schedule a visit. Stock a lot of cottage gear products.
• Hiker’s Depot, Tokyo, JP. Great selection of mainstream in cottage gear. Knowledgeable proprietor.
• Pod 7 kilo, Prague, CZ. Well curated collect of ultralight gear including some cottage manufacturers.
• samplus: Taipei, TW. A number of cottage gear: SMD, HMG, Enlightened Gear, Yamatomichi, and several other companies from US, Japan, and TW.
• BackpackingLight: UK. Great selection of a wide range of gear. Have to schedule a visit
• Mountain Shop: Portland, OR. Gossamer Gear, Six Moon Designs, Rab, Montbell, and a number of others. Have gear for backpacking, skiing, and climbing.
• Outdoor Gear Retailers (dated): sf bay area, select locations, web

Useful References / Tidbits

• Crowdsource Gear Weight Spreadsheet

Sleeping pads provide comfort which can enable a good night of sleep.  Waking up in the morning feeling worse than when you went to bed is no fun. Some people can sleep on the bare ground or maybe 1/8″ foam pads for some insulation. Glen suggests that a minimalist pad works great when you make a small LNT divot. I wish I could do that for the weight and volumes savings, but I can’t.  When I have tried more minimalist padding, not only have I not slept well, but in some cases I woke up with new aches which continues for several days (my hips in particular).  I have heard people assert that after a few days on the trail you will be able to sleep without a lot of padding because you have worn yourself out. This has not been my experience.

There is an even more important reason to consider taking some sort of pad… and that’s to stay warm. Sleeping bags insulation is compressed by your body weight which means that it provides almost no insulation.  If you don’t have a pad, your body will try to warm what’s below you.  If the air temperature is high but the ground is cool, this might be nice.. but in most conditions you want insulation below you. The amount of insulation you need will vary depending on the air temperature, ground temperature, and what sort of “ground” you are sleeping on. For example, if you are in the mountains, sleeping on a large chunk of granite, you will find that the rock is a very effective heat sink, while if you are in a pine forest with lots of needles and soft earth below you, you need little or no insulation because the needles are taking care of you. Also note that sleeping on your side means that there is less surface area to insulate from below, side sleepers need less under insulation. Since different people require different amounts of insulation, I think it is most useful to talk about the “R” values of pads rather than what temperature a pad is good down to. Below are a list of full size pads sorted by warmth / weight:  My antidotal experience is that R2.5 is good down to around 30F, R4 is good down to around 20F, and R6.5 has been good down to around 0F as a slide sleeper. This page used to have a table of mats and their R values, but it is out of date.  It seem that the sectionhiker website has a much more up-to-date sleeping pad r-value table.

There is a very comprehensive list of sleeping pads, a nice looking sleeping pad comparisons page and a spreadsheet of pads, and another list of pads.

No matter what type of pad you select you need to decide the shape and length of the pad.  Personally I like pads which are mummy shaped, but full length.  Except in the cold weather, when you need maximum insulation, many people like 3/4 length pad.  Most people don’t put a lot of weight on their lower legs when they sleep so there is no need for the extra weight of a long pad.  Some people use torso sized pads to save even more weight.

NOTE: If you use a pad which has air in it (air mattress or self-inflating) remember to lets some air out if the pad will be spending the day in a hot tent. Air expands as it gets warmer. I know several people who have damaged their pads by leaving them sealed and fully inflated at the beginning of a hot day.

My Choice

I have been using a UberLite for three season trips but it’s had two leaks so will likely get replaced by a Nemo Tensor Pad which is a bit heavier but more comfortable and less noisy. Both pads are rated for 30F and have been good down to 10F for me when combined with the torso length pad from my backpack.  I was able to sleep on my side down to 15F with just the NeoAir, but if I laid on my back or stomach it was clear the pad was not quite warm enough for most people because I could feel chill through the pad (which I like). At home I sleep with a chillipad set to “lowest” (<55F). I like a little heat leak from below. In colder conditions I combine my UberLite or my daughters “XTherm” NeoAir with a full length foam pad. If I did a lot more snow camping I would pick up a down insulated air mattress.

Air Mattresses

Good quality backpacking air mattresses are lighter and more compact than self inflating pads for equivalent comfort / thickness.  Of course if your air mattress is punctured, you have no padding, where a self inflating pad has at least a bit of padding. On the other hand, you can use them as rafts when crossing rivers.

In warmer conditions un-insulated air mattresses can work well. On top of dirt or natural materials plan air mattresses can be used down to 35-40F with reasonable comfort… some people might be able to push them down to 30F.  I have found that un-insulated air mattresses aren’t sufficiently insulated on top of rock or snow when the air temperature is below around 50F.

The Therm-a-Rest NeoAir have have been one of the benchmark pads. They are light, compact, true to the “R” rating. Downside is they can be a bit noisy when you move. I find my wife’s Big Agnes Q-Core SLX and Nemo Tensor Sleeping Pads more comfortable than any of our NeoAirs.

In colder weather a down or synthetic filled air mattresses are ideal, providing comfort and nearly unbeatable warmth/weight ratio insulation. For most people I recommend synthetic filled air mattresses.  They weight slightly more than self inflating pads, but they are warmer, pack smaller, and I think are more comfortable. The lightest way get get an air mattress is to use balloons such as the the commercial balloonbed (my review) or make your own cheer-stick pad or a ultra-light poly-tube air mattress. 

Foam Pads

These days, most foam pads are closed-cell foam because they don’t soak up water, low cost, durability, and provide decent insulation.  Ultralight backpackers often like to use foam pads because they can become part of the suspension system for frameless backpacks and they can be trimmed down to save weight. In the winter, foam pads are often used during the day: as standing pads to help keep feet warm, or sitting pads which help keep the user warm and dry. They are also great in the winter because there is no risk of them failing. The cheapest form are the “blue pads” which you can find almost anywhere (from WalMart to REI) which cost less than $10.  Ultra-light packers often trim this pads down to so that it is only as large as their torso or purchase torso size pads.  Slightly more comfortable is Cascade Designs’ RidgeRest.  Cascade Design also makes the convenient folding Z-rest which has the unfortunate tendency to wear out with just moderate use.  I think the best foam pad are made from Evazote such as those sold by Gossamer Gear.

Self Inflating Pads

When I first starting backpacking in the 1970s self inflating pads from therm-a-rest were the most comfortable pad other than the Warmlite DAM which were extremely uncommon. These days I generally recommend spending the extra money to get one of the better air mattresses, or go with the significantly cheaper and more durable close cell foam pad.

Hammocks

Many people find hammocks, especially asymmetrical designs that provide an almost flat sleeping surface to be very comfortable. [I am not one of these people… I don’t like sleeping in hammocks.]  When you are worried about ground water, what could be better than being suspended several feet above what concerns you. See my hammocks post for more information. 

Cots

Typically large and heavy.  The original LuxuryLite cot was 30oz and packed up smaller than many pads. The now discontinued Cascade Designs version of the LuxuryLite Low Rise Cot was almost 3lbs.

Pillows

One of the most common approaches is to place extra clothing (which is pretty soft) into your sleeping bag stuff sack. The downside of this is that the stuff sacks might not be the most comfortable thing against your face. Therm-a-rest, REI, and Sea to Summit makes stuff sacks which have a light fleece sewn into them which can be more comfortable than a nylon only stuff sack. Some people bring inflatable pillows.

Low Cost

A cheap closed cell foam pad.  The “blue” pads can be found many places for less than $10.

Sleeping bags and quilts can provide light-weight and compact insulation for a good nights sleep. I have found that you get what you pay for when it comes to sleeping bags and quilts. It’s also important to have insulation and comfortable surface to sleep on top of (pads for most, hammock – with an under-quilt in colder weather).

My Choice

I use a Ghost Blanket made in 2001 by Nunatak, one of the first companies to make a backpacking oriented down quilt. This quilt weights a mere 16 oz and is rated for use to 32F. In warm weather I lay the quilt loosely over my body.  As the temperature drops I tighten the straps on the quilt to block drafts, and add clothing as needed. I am comfortable using this quilt down to 30F when wearing a fleece hat, a light weight base layer, and wool socks.  In colder weather I have been comfortable by adding a down balaclava, insulated clothing, insulated socks, and enclosing the quilt in a MLD SuperLite bivy which has me comfortable to 10F. When I have all my clothing on and am still chilled I make myself as small as I can and pull my head under the quilt with only my mouth sticking out. In the past I would switch to a Western Mountaineering Versalite when I expected expected cold temperatures below 15F. My wife and I share an Enlightened Equipment Accomplice Quilt when backpacking together. If you are sleeping in conditions that are warmer than when you are active outside (like hiking between hostels) a modern version of a poncho liner might be a good option.

Amount of Insulation

There are a variety of factors which should be considered when selecting a how much insulation you want.  First you need to figure out what the lowest temperature you expect to face is.  Next you should consider if you are a “warm” sleeper or a “cold” sleeper.  For example, a WM VersaLite was very comfort at 0F when I was wearing Cap4 base layer while my wife though was perfect at 35F wearing fleece, a down vest, and warm hat!  Beside clothing, there are a number of things which will effect the comfort range of a sleep systems. Shelters that limit air movement such as solid tents or a bivy can add between 5-10F degrees of comfort,  liners can add 4-10F (most overstate how much they help). For other factors (and tricks) to stay warm, check out my getting a good night of sleep post.

Dry, insulating clothing will boast the warmth of your sleeping system. Damp clothing can sap your warmth, which is why some people say sleep naked. Just remember that you need a lot more insulation than when sleeping (2X when standing around, 8X compared to when you are actively hiking). See my notes on insulating clothing for more information including a few strategies for matching your clothing and sleeping bag / quilt to your backpacking style.

Around 2006 most companies started using the European rating system EN 13537 to describe the temperature comfort range of their sleeping bags. This includes a higher “comfort” number, and a “lowest” or “limit” rating which is how low to go where the average person won’t freeze to death but where your night will likely cycle between sleep, waking up cold, warming up a bit, and back to poor sleep. While this standard is an improvement over no standard at all, there have been a number of studies which have demonstrated there can be significant testing variance. I had hoped that this would get resolves by now, but it still seems to be an issue.

There are several high quality companies such as Western Mountaineering use their own standards for temperature rating based on real world testing by the manufacturer and by customer reports. In most cases, the company’s “rating” is more conservative than EN 13537 testing results. For example EN 13537 testing result might be 0F, Western Mountaineering might list the bag as appropriate for 20F.

According to testing done by the US army, the average person needs the listed loft to sleeping well. I have added an additional column which is the amount of loft on the top side of a Western Mountaineering bag for the specified temperature rating.  Nearly everyone agrees that Western Mountaineering bags are accurate (for people who sleep cold) and conservatively (for people who sleep warm).

Effective Temp	Army	Western Mountaineering
+40F	1.5″	1.5″ (3″ total)
+20F	2.0″	2.5″(5″ total)
0F	2.5″	3.5″ (7″ total)
-20F	3.0″	4.25″ (8.5″ total)
-40F	3.5″	5″ (10″ total)

Bottom line, no standard can tell you exactly how much insulation you will need. Use ratings as a starting point, take a thermometer on trips to record your experience. As time goes on you can figure out the amount of offset you need compared to the warmth rating.

Type of Insulation

I believe goose down is in most cases the best insulation material for sleeping bags and quilts. When sleeping in temperatures below 50F, down will be lighter weight and more compactly packed than any other insulation. If properly cared for, down can last five times longer than synthetic insulation which tends to break down as it is compressed. So while synthetic is cheaper at the time of acquisition, down can be cheaper over the long term. I recommend looking for ethically sourced down which is at least 700 fill power.

If you need insulation over 50F and use a quilt, synthetic insulation will typically be lighter weight than down because the construction can be simpler. I found the combination of a piece of Alpha Direct inside a bag liner to be highly effective when it was more than 55F. My experience was written up on my poncho+liner page.

The biggest concern with down is how moisture effects performance. I was very concerned about this when I started backpacking, and selected sleeping bags which used synthetic insulation. In 2001 I decided that I was being driven by fear and switch to down insulation. I came to recognized moisture came from two sources. The first is my perspiration. In warm conditions this isn’t a big deal. When facing consistent, sub-freezing conditions this can result in your perspiration getting frozen in the insulation before it escapes. The simple solution for this is to use a vapor barrier. The second is the insulation getting wet from external sources. This can be addressed by carrying your sleep gear in some sort of waterproof bag, and only taking it out of the bag when in a space which is dry. Since I switch to using a down quilt I have very rarely gotten the quilt wet. When I have (using a tarp which was too small) the down didn’t get sufficiently wet to impact performance, and I was able to dry it a day later when the sun briefly came out.

When you can’t protect the bag / quilt from moisture it would be smart to use synthetic insulation. The big advantage of synthetic insulation isn’t so much “it’s warm while wet” but that it absorbed less water and is much easier to dry in the field. It is difficult to keep an insulating item dry when it is used as a garment while active and as insulation for sleeping such as the classic poncho liner, sometimes referred to as a woobie. The good news is that if you only need modest amounts of insulation, that synthetic ended up being about the same weight as an item made from down because more fabric is required in the down garment.

For more details, I have a post about insulation materials.

Styles

Insulation filled blankets and specially design quilts with foot pockets have become increasingly popular with backpackers. Many have noted that quilts are cheaper and warmer / weight than more traditional sleeping bags. A quilt doesn’t need a zipper. A quilt is variable girth so you can wear all your clothing for added insulation under the quilt without compressing your insulation.  If you shift around at night, having your head insulation separated from the quilt removes any sense of being constrained or breathing into your hood. Downsides compared to a sleeping bag is that drafts, especially if you move a lot can be a problem, and that it will not be as constrained as a sleeping bag which means you will need a slightly larger groundcloth. In 2002 quilt had a significant warmth / weight advantage over most commercially made sleeping bags. Today quilts still have an advantage, but the gap is much smaller than it used to be due to improved designs and materials used by many manufacturers.

Sleeping bags are the most common way people stay warm in the back country.  Sleeping bags come in a variety of shapes and styles.  Most common among backpackers is the so call mummy bag.  Mummy style bags are popular because the they minimize weight by having little wasted material and by providing a good seal around the head and shoulders to prevent heat from leaking out.  Mummy bags typically list the shoulder girth which varies from 55″-70″.  I have found that 62″ feels roomy as a 160lb 5’10” male, and 59” is adequate. Ideally there should be enough room to allow you to move as much as you need to be comfortable, but no more than necessary to minimize how much space you need to heat up and to minimize convection.

Top-bags are a cross between a quilt and a traditional sleeping bag.  They have a sleep bag design combined with a fabric bottoms relying on the sleeping pad for insulation.  The theory is that you are going to crush any insulation which is under you, so why carry it around with you. An advantage of the top bag over quilts is they cut out any chance of drafts coming in through the sides. Top bags without zippers might be superior to a quilt’s warmth / weight, but I find them too confining.

Rectangular bags are popular with some because they can be converted to a blanket or rectangular quilt and they provide a lot of room to move around.

Half bags, sometimes called elephant foot bags such as the Nunatak Akula were popularized by climbers.  These looking like sleeping bags, but only cover the legs and are used in conjunction with an ultra warm jacket and hood to keep their upper body warm. Most backpacking find this system requires an insulating jacket which is too warm for normal use. Another “innovation” which hasn’t seemed to survive were sleeping bags with integrated arms which could be “worn”. Example of this were the now discontinued Lippiselk Bag, Exped Wallcreeper, and Nunatak Raku.

Recently the company Zenbivy has developed a sleep system which they claim provides to be superior to both quilts and and sleeping bags. It seems the is a slight weight penalty compared to a sleeping bag with the potential benefit of a more comfortable sleep.

Two or Three Season?

As noted above there are a variety factors which can effect what sort of sleeping bag you might select. In most cases I would recommend against getting the warmest sleeping bag you can find since in most conditions you will be carrying unnecessary weight and you run the risk of overheating at night.

I believe most people will be best served by getting a light-weight mummy bag or quilt which will keep them warm enough down to 20-30 F.  This will keep you comfortable in the conditions most people face on “3 season” outings and can be boasted with clothing or a liner. If you are regularly facing conditions below 10F, I would recommend having a winter bag or using an over-bag. Another approach for people are sleep outdoors in all four seasons is to use a summer weight bag which is appropriate for temperatures down to say 40F, and then use a warmer bag for the rest of the year.

Recommended Bags and Quilts

While I track general trends in the sleeping bag and quilt market, I haven’t been keeping close track of all the various models. , Cleverhiker’a  best sleeping bags matches my sensibilities and is more up-to-date than a page I might maintain.

There are a few things I would either emphasis or add to their observations. First, Western Mountaineering makes amazingly high quality bags which are really “dialed in”. Feathered Friends continues to make excellent bags. Some of the best quilts made by Nunatakusa and Katabatic Gear. Cumulus makes good products at value prices. Enlightened Equipment are reasonable quality and easy to acquire. Hammock Gear is one of the best values. There is an extensive spreadsheet of quilts. BPL did a quilt survey in 2025. There top picks for performance were EE Enigma 20F Custom and HMG 20F. For value Gryphon Aries 20 and Hyberg Loner Lite 350 & 450. The also recommended the Katabatic Gear Palisade Quilt, Nemo Pulse, Outdoor Vitals Stormloft, REI Magma Trail Quilt 30, and Zenbivy Ultralight Quilt.

I m recommend selecting a quilt that can lay fully flat by the feet. Some quilts have a foot pocket which is sewn close. While this can save weight while insuring good performance in colder conditions, it makes the quilt much less comfortable in warmer conditions when you might want some cooling drafts.

Hints for Quilt Users

When using a quilt it’s important to have a warm hat since typically your head will be outside the quilt. In colder conditions, I would recommend a high loft balaclava. It may be possible to drape a quilt over your head. On several shorter trips when it was surprisingly cold I pulled my head under the quilt which gave a boast in how warm I felt. On a longer trip I would have worried about the moisture from my breath condensing in the insulation… but so far this hasn’t been a problem I have experienced.

Some people think quilts are inappropriate in colder conditions because movement can cause drafts and the colder it gets, the more the drafts will impact comfort. First, let me say that psychologically, there is something really nice about snuggling down into a warm, puffy sleeping bag which a quilt just doesn’t match… but I have found quilts work fine in colder conditions. First, a shelter system which blocks the wind (double walled tent, bivy, etc) can provide protection from winds. Additionally, quilt users are typically wearing high loft clothing as part of their sleep system which provides a second barrier against drafts. Furthermore, a quilt + clothing strategy typically results in an easier transition because you are already in warm clothing.  Finally, quilts are simple, so they use less material, are less likely to fail.

There are some downsides of a quilt. First, they are more prone to drafts than a typical sleeping bag. So a sleeping bag will be warmer for weight when used by an extremely restless sleeper, especially if using a tarp in wind.

A possible downside with using a quilt is that you will be sleeping directly on a pad, which typically isn’t breathable. Some people find this unpleasant. Some people say you can’t be a side sleeper with a quilt. I haven’t had a significant problem.  If you are doing this without a bivy you might sometimes run into insect problems. On one trip I was mobbed by ants. I could have mostly sealed a sleeping bag off, but there was not protection with the quilt. Confused yet? If not, you can look at a long thread arguing about quilts -vs- sleeping bags.

Couples

Couples often want to be able to sleep together. If a couple sleep close together, say spooned,  they should be comfortable in temperatures which are 10-15F colder than they would be comfortable in under the same insulation without someone else. I think the best solution is a down or high loft synthetic quilt which is large enough to drape well over two people such as the original Nunatak backcountry blanket or the current Enlightened Equipment Accomplice double quilt.  Thermarest Couple, Zpacks down and Sea2Summit Ember are other commercially made double quilts. Zenbivy Doublebed looks like an interesting system. You can also use a rectangular sleeping bag zipped open like Western Mountaineering’s MityLite. WM Coupler is a 1lb bottom sheet and pad holder than turns a single into a double sleeping bag. [There are lighter versions of this if you look around or willing to DIY. The most common approach is to have two sleeping bags which use the same zipper, with one bag having a left zip, and the other bag having a right zip. Personally, I have been less than happy with the sleeping bags zipped together. Zipping sleeping bags together often does not give this warmth advantage because the combination of the two bags has a tendency to billow a bit pushing warm air out. Additionally, they didn’t seal very well around the face and neck. If you place a high loft jacket around the opening that it can help the sealing problem but this has never been satisfactory for me.

Suggestions of Winter Insulation

In extreme cold,  it is almost a given that the dew point for your night-time perspiration will be somewhere inside your sleeping bag since there is a large temperature gradient being warm on the inside and below freeze at the shell.  As a result your insulation will accumulate moisture. Down bags are fine  for many  days but then you will find their performance dropping as they lose loft. Synthetics bags are better a maintaining loft as the accumulate moisture from condensation, but they to will also lose loft over time. Typically the most effective solution to this problem is to use a vapor barrier.  A vapor barrier is a waterproof layer which is placed between your body and your insulation which prevents you perspiration from entering your insulation and helps keep your skin moist. Your skin wants to be in approx 78% humidity and will perspiration to try and retain this.  You can use specially designed liner bags, wear vapor barrier clothing, or use a sleeping bag such as those from WarmLite which has  an integrated vapor barrier. Since you are protecting your bag from internal moisture, I would recommend using a highly protective external shell made from eVENT or DryLoft because you want maximum protection for your insulation and the vapor barrier will protect the insulation from condensation. You could also consider using an overbag, or an insulated liner combined with whatever you use in milder conditions. There have been several threads at BPL about combining sleeping bags and/or quilts for colder conditions. I would also note there are a number of winter techniques which will help you be safe and comfortable.

Kids

I don’t have young kids anymore so I am not on top of the best options. Most kids bags weren’t particularly great. Several companies will make custom length quilts, but these will be expensive and the kids will outgrow them.  We tried several kids bags and eventually settled on a Montbell Super Stretch bags which had a drawstring that let you shorten the bag in the field.  When my son was young he used the shortened bag, and now it’s used in it’s full length configuration. Alas, this feature no longer seem to be present.

Low Cost

I have completely lost track of the best budget sleeping bags. Years ago the Kelty Cosmic line of Down Mummy bags have been the recent price champs. These bags were optimistic in their ratings, but were well work the money. There was a thread about quilts/bags for >=40F which included some low-cost options. I have read several reports about bags and quilts from Aegismax such as the wearable, 30oz, 32F Windheard Wearable Quilt are a good value.

Historically the three best choices are Down, Polarguard (especially 3D and Delta), and Primaloft, though Climashield sounds pretty good and will likely replace Polarguard as the most commonly use synthetic in the next few years. Each of these materials has different performance characteristics.  You will need to decide the relative weighting of these characteristics to determine what insulation material will be the best for you. My preference is high fill power down in most situations. When >50F synthetic insulation can reach (if not beat) down for both weight and compression due to simpler constriction.

Down is “rated” in terms of “fill power”, that is the number of cubic inches one pound  will fill.  High fill power down has more down and less quills. There is a master’s thesis about a model of how down compresses. I would recommend staying away from any synthetics materials which are not Polarguard, Climashield or Primaloft since they will tend to be heavier for the same warmth and will will be less compressible.  You might be interested in a message explaining why the Cocoon jacket switched from Primaloft to Polarguard Delta though there I tend to prefer primaloft because my experience matches Richard’s report on BPL (link broken) that primaloft retains more insulation that polarguard after use. The following table gives you a sense of what 30F bags would be like using different insulation:

Factor	Polarguard	Primaloft PL1	500-600 Fill Down	>800 Fill Down
Purchase Cost	<$80 (low cost) $120-180 (high quality)	$140-200	$140-200	>$250
Long Term Durability	4-7 years	3-6 years	10-15+ years	10-15+ years
~Comparative Stuff Size	2.2x	1.8x	1.4x	1x
Typical “30F” weight	2.7-3.5lb	3lb	2.2lb	1-1.5lb
Warm When Wet	Fair+ (dries faster)	Fair (absorbs less)	Poor	Poor

The are many factors that should be considered besides warmth / weight including durability, drape, and what techniques need to be used to stability the insulation. There is an interesting thread on BPL about the interplay of warmth, weight, and loft and R values and loft, and  EN 13537 and “clo” measurements.. The following is the best number I have found about the clo/oz numbers for a number of synthetics fills.  

• Polarguard 3D, .63 clo/oz
• Polarguard Delta, .68 clo/oz.
• Climashield HL, .68 clo/oz.
• Primaloft Sport, .74 clo/oz.
• Climashield Combat, .79 clo/oz.
• Climashield XP .82 clo/oz.
• Primaloft One as .84 clo/oz

There is a fair amount of controversy about how important of “warm when wet” is for a sleeping bag.  In truth… nothing is warm when wet.  The advantage of the synthetics are they don’t absorb a lot of water so you can squeeze most of the water out of the air gaps and be back on the way to a dry sleeping experience. If down gets wet, it’s going to take time to dry (hints drying down), and you are going to be cold. The key is not to let you down bag get wet. There are new treatments which nano-coats down so that it doesn’t absorb water. This “waterproof” down isn’t waterproof, but it should behave a lot like a synthetic insulation which would be a huge improvement in wet conditions.

I recommend carrying sleeping bags / quilts in a drybag. Don’t take the bag out of the dry bag until you are somewhere where the bag won’t get wet. I used to think the getting down wet from splashing, rain, etc was an issue, but then I realized that in 30 years of camping, my sleeping bag or quilt hasn’t gotten wet enough to significantly impact the performance once. There have been several times when the shell has gotten damp, but I was able to dry it out enough in the field that it wasn’t a significant issue. I have had issues on extended trips in extreme cold… but this would effect all options. The solution is using  a vapor barrier.

My dad had been using the same down sleeping bag for almost 25 years.  It’s not quite as lofty as it was originally, but it’s still usable. I switched to using a down bag in 2000, and am very happy for the change.

There are some situations when I would consider a synthetic insulation: an extended trip in a location that has continuous, very damp conditions and the temperature was around freezing. If I was spending most of my time in locations in week+ long trips which were cool-cold and damp (say western Washington state) I would consider switching back to synthetic insulation.

Review Item: BalloonBed Original Sleeping Pad
Manufacturer URL: http://www.balloonbed.com/
Manufacture Year: 2005
Listed weight: 100g (3.5 oz)
Weight as delivered: 85 g (3oz) + .7g  (.2 oz) for a night of balloons
MSRP: £18.95 GBP (~US$38 depending on exchange rate)

Description

Brownish green fabric holster to hold balloons, small sack made from the same light material to hold all the items, balloons, and a small hand pump.  While the fabric might be 60cm x 120cm (24″ x 48″) when laid flat, with the balloons inserted the pad is 40 cm x 120 cm (16″ x 48″) which is significantly narrower than most other pads.  Hand pump has a cute picture of a clown.

Field Conditions

40-11K ft.  Sleeping under a Nunatak Ghost down blanket.  Night time low temp between 45-55F using just the balloonbed, and between 30-50F with a combination of the balloonbed and the Gossamer Gear Thinlight Pad 1/8″ foam pad.

Performance

Ten  minutes to assemble.  The hand pump is surprisingly effective, though when I finished pumping the seventh balloon I was glad to be done. Inserting the balloons into the pad was strait forward

I found that the balloonbed was more cushioning than a therm-a-rest ultralight pad or closed cell foam pad, but less cushioning than insulated air mattresses such as the Big Anges Insulated AirCore.  If I stayed in a single position I found the pad wide enough, but I found when I switched sleeping positions (from say on my back to on my side) I often rolled off the pad and then need to reposition the pad and myself.

Plenty warm for 55F sleeping with a quilt.  Below 55F the lack of insulation is evident and I started to get chilled. I found that I had a very hard time sleeping when using just the balloonbed when the temperature got down to 45F. When combined with a 1/8″ foam pad I found that I was comfortable down to around 35F before I noticed a chill reaching me through the two pads.

My experience with the balloonbed staying inflated has been very mixed. I have had a number of trips when the balloonbed made it through the whole night or when just one of the balloons popped. I found that a 20F drop in temp didn’t cause the balloons to shrink noticeably.  On the nights that one of the balloons popped,  I had a raging debate with myself: live with the missing tube and just go back to sleep, or climb out of bed, dig out another balloon, blow it up, and then go back to bed now that I was fully awake.  The first time this happened I pulled out my max-thermo (this was a test trip) when the temperature dropped to 50F and I was starting to get cold in addition to having a missing tube.  On later trips I tried sleeping with a popped balloon. I found that if I pushed the pad together the missing space I could go back to sleep and the pad worked moderately well. I found that is was easy to replace the popped balloon, and would recommend that options. Alas, I have had a few nights when nearly all the balloons popped or leaked so much air that the balloonbed was pretty useless for padding or insulation. Why the near total failures on those trips? I can’t identify any root causes. At the present time I would say that using a balloonbed is a risky proposition.

Durability

Only used it for a 21 of nights so far.  12 of the nights I made it all the way through the night. On 5 on the nights, 1 balloon popped. 4 of the nights I lost nearly all the balloons.  I don’t reuse ballons between nights.

Summary

If you are trying to go super-ultra-light, and can’t hack sleeping on a foam pad, the balloonbed might be just the ticket to drop a pound or so from your kit weight.

Things that I liked:

• Super-light weight
• Extremely compact
• More comfortable than a therm-a-rest ultralight or closed cell foam pad

Things I don’t like:

• Unreliable
• Too narrow
• Not as comfortable as the Pacific Outdoors Insul thermo-max inflatable pad.
• The disposable nature of the balloons
• Kind of expensive for what you get.  You could make this yourself for less than $10 such as Bill’s CheerStic Air Pad.