A very powerful attributes of a sleeping bag for winter tenting and backpacking are heat insulation, compressibility, low weight, and ample inside area to retailer gear and water so it doesn’t freeze in a single day. Price can also be an element, though a very good winter sleeping bag will final fifteen years or extra if maintained and saved correctly. For winter backpacking and different cell pursuits similar to backcountry snowboarding and ski mountaineering, we suggest you get a down-insulated winter sleeping bag as a result of it packs up a lot smaller and is far lighter weight.
We expect the very best bang to your buck is a 0-degree sleeping bag since you’ll be able to enhance its heat with a low-cost sleeping bag liner just like the Sea-to-Summit Reactor if you must sleep in colder temperatures than that. However a -20 or -40 bag can also be a very good wager for those who’re a chilly sleeper or decided to sleep in additional excessive situations.
Listed below are our high 10 really useful down-filled winter sleeping luggage for cold-weather backpacking. For extra info and reply to frequent questions, see our analysis standards and shopping for recommendation under.
1. Marmot Lithium Sleeping Bag
2. The North Face Inferno 0 Sleeping Bag
3. NEMO Sonic 0 Down Sleeping Bag
4. Sea-to-Summit Spark 0 Down Sleeping Bag
5. Western Mountaineering Kodiak 0 Down Sleeping Bag
6. Feathered Pals Snowbunting ES 0 Sleeping Bag
7. Mountain Hardwear Phantom 0 Down Sleeping Bag
8. Therm-a-Relaxation Polar Ranger -20
9. Western Mountaineering Puma MF -25
10. Feather Pals Snow Goose ES -40
Winter Sleeping Bag FAQs
Mummy Sleeping Bag or Quilt?
A mummy sleeping bag is hotter and extra snug than an ultralight down quilt underneath 20 levels Fahrenheit. Whereas quilts are well-liked for heat climate use, mummy luggage are far much less drafty when the mercury drops under 20 levels. Additionally they present a heat in a single day area the place you’ll be able to maintain water, filters, and footwear in a single day to forestall them from freezing. That is tougher to do with an ultralight quilt, which is normally shorter and sized slim to save lots of weight. Sleeping in temperatures under freezing positively modifications your habits and requires a distinct skillset and kit listing than common three-season tenting or backpacking in hotter climate.
Down vs. Artificial Insulation
Down insulation is extra compressible and hotter by weight than artificial insulation. How a lot hotter? The very best artificial insulation is barely equal to 600 fill energy down. What about moisture accumulation contained in the bag? If you happen to’re simply going out for one evening or a number of nights in zero-degree climate, it’s unlikely that you just’ll perspire sufficient to considerably scale back the insulation worth of a down bag. It’s a really totally different story for those who’re on an expedition the place you’re sleeping out in -40 diploma climate each evening for weeks on finish. Even then, most mountaineering guides and explorers nonetheless go for down-filled sleeping luggage over artificial ones as a result of they’re hotter, pack up a lot smaller, and are a lot lighter weight to hold. You too can dry out a sleeping bag throughout a visit within the solar to rid of it any further moisture. Folks do it on a regular basis.
Waterproof Down vs Non-Waterproof Down
There’s no such factor as waterproof down. Whereas so-called down waterproofing remedies enable right down to dry sooner if it will get damp from perspiration, most premium sleeping bag makers gained’t use it as a result of it reduces the perceived insulation worth of 800, 850, 900, advert 950 fill energy goose down.
Temperature Score
What’s the greatest sleeping bag temperature ranking to get for winter backpacking? Whereas there are certain to be regional variations, a zero-degree sleeping bag is normally a very good baseline temperature to goal for as a result of you’ll be able to simply make it hotter by 20 levels by sporting insulated garments or through the use of a sleeping bag liner, which may prevent a piece of cash. A zero-degree bag will also be utilized in hotter temps as much as about 20-30 levels by cracking open the zipper or loosening up the hood and venting it for those who’re too heat. The load and packability of a zero-degree sleeping bag can also be fairly cheap in comparison with a minus 20-degree bag or minus 40-degree bag and normally doesn’t require the acquisition of a bigger backpack to hold.
Finest Sort of Insulation
If you happen to plan to do any winter backpacking, you’re going to desire a down-insulated sleeping bag as a result of it’s the warmest insulation obtainable by weight. It compresses very properly, making it very packable. Goal for down fill powers of 800, 850, or 900: the upper the higher. Increased fill energy down traps extra heat by weight than decrease fill energy down. Folks typically ponder whether goose down is best than duck down. All down is graded the identical manner, in a species-independent method. In different phrases 800 fill energy goose down is nearly as good as 800 fill energy duck down, solely dearer as a result of there’s a smaller provide.
Sleeping Bag Dimensions
It’s common to sleep with boot liners or boots, water bottles, and different gadgets, like water filters, that ought to not freeze in a single day. This implies you’ll need some further area in a cold-weather sleeping bag to retailer the gear whereas nonetheless sustaining your private consolation. Along with added shoulder, hip, and foot width, some individuals get an extended sleeping bag to allow them to retailer gear under their toes. Winter nights are lengthy and it pays to be snug, particularly if you need to sleep with chilly, damp boots and water bottles.
Gender
Most zero-degree winter sleeping luggage are unisex. The one exception to that is Featured Pals which makes seven ladies’s particular sleeping luggage by our final rely together with 0, -10, and -25 diploma winter sleeping luggage.
Should-have Options
Winter sleeping luggage ought to have a draft collar, zipper draft tubes, and snag-free zippers at a minimal. Partial size zippers, steady baffles, vents, and even waterproof down are all nice-to-haves, however you will get by with out them to save lots of on price or as a result of they’re not strictly mandatory.
Draft Collar
Most winter sleeping luggage have draft collars and I take into account it a cold-weather important. A draft collar is a tube of insulation that drapes over your chest and neck and seals within the bag’s heat. With out it, the nice and cozy air contained in the bag will rush out round your neck whenever you transfer round inside. The only draft collar is a down tube that covers the entrance of your chest. Increased-end luggage add a second draft collar across the again of your shoulders and neck and supply extra controls, so you’ll be able to tighten or loosen it.
Zipper Draft Tubes
Draft tubes are down-filled tubes of material that cowl up the facet zipper so your legs don’t are available in contact with it (as a result of it’s chilly). Additionally they forestall chilly air from leaking into the bag by means of the needle holes which are created when stitching the zipper to the bag. Most winter luggage have at the least one zipper draft tube, though some have two, each high and backside, that fall into place whenever you zip up your bag.
Snag Free Zipper
Snag-free zippers forestall the facet zipper’s tooth from tearing the shell cloth of your bag and spilling its insulation. The zipper is normally bordered by stiff cloth tape, to maintain it away from the down baffles and stop it from getting snagged on the bag’s outer shell.
Good-to-have options
Water-Resistant Down
Water resistant down is a pleasant to have, not vital in a winter sleeping bag. The reality is most individuals can maintain their sleeping luggage dry. If you happen to discover moisture on the surface of your sleeping bag within the morning, it doesn’t imply that the down inside is moist. Merely drape it over your tent within the solar when you eat breakfast and it’ll dry very quickly.
Steady baffles
Steady baffles normally run horizontally throughout a bag. They let you shake the down within the baffles and transfer it to a distinct location. For instance, for those who’re too heat, you might shake the down so it fell down the edges of the bag, relatively than maintain it in your chest. Whereas steady baffles allow you to customise the distribution of down for various wants, many individuals desire baffles that maintain the down in a single place reliably and completely. It’s one much less factor to fret about.
Partial size zippers
Partial size zippers are sometimes used as a weight-saving characteristic, nevertheless, they’ll scale back use throughout a wider temperature vary by limiting your venting choices.
Vents
Vents like NEMO’s Thermogills can improve the temperature vary of a sleeping bag, however they’re only one manner of engaging in this aim.
Which is best in winter, a mummy sleeping bag, or an oblong sleeping bag?
Mummy luggage are usually lighter weight as a result of they’re form-fitting, making them higher for winter backpacking whenever you desire a light-weight, compressible sleeping bag. Rectangular sleeping luggage will be simply as heat, however they’re extra applicable for winter tenting, not backpacking, as a result of they’re not as form-fitting, they’re heavier, and have much less environment friendly hoods to maintain your head heat.
Can you utilize a quilt as a substitute of a sleeping bag in winter?
It actually relies on how chilly you need to go. Most individuals swap from quilts to mummy sleeping luggage at about 20 levels Fahrenheit as a result of sleeping luggage are a lot better at blocking chilly drafts than quilt-pad attachment straps. A quilt can definitely work right down to 0 levels for those who increase it with a down hood (successfully replicating a mummy bag hood and draft collar) to maintain your head, neck, and higher chest heat. Beneath zero, you’ll be able to attempt stacking quilts however I extremely suggest testing out this technique at residence earlier than attempting it someplace the place it counts.
What’s the very best insulation, down or artificial?
If you happen to’re focused on winter backpacking, your greatest wager is to get a down sleeping bag with the best down fill energy (see under) you’ll be able to afford as a result of it’s ounce-for-ounce lighter weight and extra compressible than a winter sleeping bag stuffed with artificial insulation. Winter backpacking gear may be very heavy whenever you add up the load of insulated boots, a high-capacity backpack, a four-season tent, winter sleeping pad(s), a liquid gas range, gas, snowshoes, crampons, and so on. so it actually does pay to save lots of as a lot weight and pack area as you’ll be able to through the use of the lightest and smallest winter sleeping bag that can maintain you heat.
Which is best, waterproof down, or common untreated down?
So-called waterproof down isn’t truly waterproof, however waterproof. If you happen to dunk it in water, it can fail to insulate, though it can dry sooner than untreated down. Subsequently, for those who plan on sleeping in snow caves or out within the open in a bivy sack, waterproof down might be a greater choice because the down will dry sooner if the material shell of your bag will get moist. If you happen to’re sleeping in a comfy tent with a water-proof ground, it most likely doesn’t matter that a lot, besides for those who’re on a multi-day journey the place the buildup of perspiration passing by means of your insulation and out the breathable shell of your sleeping bag can accumulate within the down, degrading its loft and skill to retain heat. Waterproof down could be higher in these circumstances.
What’s down fill-power?
Down consists of fluffy filaments which are rather a lot like human hair. A single ounce of common high quality down incorporates about 2 million of those filaments which interlock to maintain heat air in and chilly air out. This layer may be very springy so you’ll be able to scrunch it up by compressing it, however it can spring again into form virtually instantly. Fill energy measures the lofting energy of goose down which is its capacity to lure air. To measure fill energy, one ounce of down is compressed in a small glass cylinder. When the load is eliminated, the down’s capacity to spring again will be measured. Down with a better fill energy ranking is extra resilient to compression, lofts higher, and may lure extra air. Moreover being hotter, this additionally signifies that sleeping luggage or parkas with increased fill rankings require much less insulation by weight to offer the identical stage of heat than an merchandise made with decrease high quality down.
Is there a heat distinction between goose down and duck down?
No. Fill energy is measured the identical manner throughout totally different animals and species. In different phrases 750 fill energy goose down supplies the identical stage of insulation as 750 fill energy duck down.
Is there a value distinction between totally different down fill-powers?
Sure. The upper the fill energy, the dearer it is going to be. Costs have dropped lately nevertheless since there’s a worldwide surplus of down, the upper fill powers stay the most costly.
What’s the very best down fill-power for a winter sleeping bag?
The lightest weight, most compressible winter sleeping luggage are insulated with 800, 850, 900, or 950 fill energy down. A 950 fill-power down bag is high of the road.
How reliable are winter sleeping bag temperature rankings?
Whereas heat climate sleeping bag rankings have turn out to be far more goal lately with the adoption of worldwide temperature ranking requirements and third-party testing, the identical can’t be mentioned about winter sleeping bag temperature rankings. Whereas the EN and ISO temperature rankings revealed for heat climate sleeping luggage rated to 10 levels and better have confirmed to be dependable, research have proven that it isn’t a statistically dependable technique to charge the temperature ranking of sleeping luggage rated under 10 levels, together with all winter sleeping luggage.
As an alternative, sleeping producers charge their very own sleeping luggage by having individuals sleep in chilly rooms, mainly walk-in freezers, to see in the event that they keep heat at totally different temperature settings. This will generate very subjective outcomes relying on who does the testing, whether or not they’re male or feminine, what their physique weight is, how properly a sleeping bag suits them, the heat of the lengthy underwear they’re sporting, whether or not they’re sporting a hat or not, what sleeping pad they’re utilizing, once they final ate, and so forth.
So who are you able to belief? Your greatest wager is to purchase a winter sleeping bag mannequin that’s been available on the market for some time and has a loyal following of people that will attest to the accuracy of its temperature ranking.
Feathered Pals and Western Mountaineering have constructed their enterprise round word-of-mouth testimonials, which is why individuals desire their winter sleeping luggage over all others. Nobody else supplies the vary of choice or technical options offered by these two producers.
Can you utilize a 0-degree winter sleeping bag as a substitute of a -20 diploma winter sleeping bag?
There are every kind of tips to increase the vary of a 0-degree sleeping bag for colder climate, particularly if gear weight or bulk is an enormous concern:
- by sporting insulated clothes inside your sleeping bag as a way to enhance its efficient temperature ranking
- sleeping with sizzling water bottles
- sleeping with chemical hand heaters
- utilizing a sleeping bag liner
- stuff your entire spare clothes inside so your physique has to warmth much less open area
- eat a heavy dinner with numerous fats and protein earlier than going to mattress
- and so forth…
It’s best to experiment with these in your yard or inside strolling distance of your automobile earlier than you must rely on them in a wilderness survival scenario.
If you’re on a significant expedition and your information requires a -20 diploma or -40 diploma bag for sustained frigid climate, it is best to seek the advice of with them about utilizing a winter sleeping bag rated for hotter temperatures. Many guides lease cold-weather luggage, which may prevent the expense of shopping for one for one-time use.
Another choice is to cancel journeys the place you already know the climate will probably be too chilly to your sleeping bag. As a winter backpacking journey information, my companions and I routinely cancel journeys the place the climate forecast requires -20 nighttime temperatures because it’s actually no enjoyable to sit down exterior and soften consuming water in climate like that. There’s no disgrace in bailing on a visit when it’s too chilly exterior to get pleasure from your self.
Do ladies want hotter winter sleeping luggage than males?
Ladies are likely to sleep colder than males, so it’s really useful that they get a sleeping bag that’s 10 levels hotter when shopping for a unisex or males’s sleeping bag. For instance, ladies should purchase a -10 diploma winter sleeping bag as a way to keep as heat as a person in a 0-degree winter sleeping bag. Nonetheless, that’s not the case, for those who purchase a winter sleeping bag designed for a lady. A ladies’s 0-degree winter sleeping bag ought to maintain you as heat as a males’s 0-degree sleeping bag.
What’s the distinction between males’s and girls’s sleeping luggage?
Ladies’s sleeping luggage are sometimes shorter in size, narrower within the shoulders, and wider within the hips. They might even have further insulation over the chest, within the hood, and within the footbox, since ladies have a tougher time holding their heads, arms, and toes heat.
How do you measurement a winter sleeping bag?
Sleeping in a winter sleeping bag is totally different from sleeping in a three-season or summer time sleeping bag as a result of you must sleep with a few of your gear from freezing in a single day (boots, water bottles, electronics) or as a result of you must put on extra insulated garments in your sleeping bag like a down parka and down-filled pants.
To measurement up, individuals sometimes get a longer-sized sleeping bag or one which has a wider shoulder girth. Shoulder girth measures the circumference of the sleeping bag at shoulder peak. When becoming a winter sleeping bag, you need to decrease the quantity of additional inside free-space that your physique has to warmth up whereas not compressing the loft of your insulation by getting a bag that’s too tight.
For instance, a 5′ 10″ tall man would possibly decide to get a 6′ 6″ lengthy bag as a substitute of a 6′ lengthy sleeping bag as a way to retailer a few of his gear within the sleeping bag foot field. Alternatively, you’ll be able to decide to get a bag with wider shoulders or chest measurements so you’ll be able to hug your further gear at evening to maintain it heat or tuck it behind your again (for those who’re a facet sleeper.) That’s at all times been my desire, as a substitute of getting a longer-length sleeping bag.
How do you identify your wants and preferences? Strive on numerous sleeping luggage whereas sporting your in a single day gear, even when it means shopping for luggage and returning them to retailers in the event that they don’t match.
What are an important options to search for on winter sleeping luggage?
After match, an important options are having a draft collar, draft tubes, zipper guards, and a well-fitting hood. It’s additionally essential to get a sleeping bag with a breathable exterior shell that may vent perspiration however is waterproof. Sleeping luggage with waterproof/breathable shells are sometimes much less breathable than these with no waterproof/breathable exterior cloth.
What’s a draft collar?
A draft colour is an insulated tube of insulation that covers the highest of your chest and again and seals in the entire heat under it in your bag so it will possibly’t escape. It prevents what’s known as the “bellows impact”, the place the nice and cozy air round your legs and core is pressured out by means of the highest of your sleeping bag whenever you transfer round at evening. You’ll be able to obtain an analogous impact by wrapping a climate or down jacket round your higher chest or neck as properly.
What’s a draft tube?
A draft tube is an insulated tube of insulation that runs alongside the zipper and prevents chilly air from leaking in your sleeping bag or heat air from leaking out. Some sleeping luggage just like the Western Mountaineering Puma -25 have two interlocking draft tubes, one above and one under the zipper.
What’s a zipper guard?
A zipper guard is a chunk of material or stiffened cloth tape that runs alongside a zipper and prevents it from snagging on the within lining of your sleeping bag. It’s an essential characteristic of a sleeping bag because it eliminates snags that may forestall you from closing the zipper in frigid climate.
What’s a sleeping bag baffle?
A baffle is a material tube containing down or artificial insulation. They’re normally oriented horizontally or vertically in sleeping luggage.
What are steady baffles?
Steady baffles are cloth tubes stuffed with down insulation that normally run horizontally round a sleeping bag. They allow you to shake the down inside them to maneuver it the place you need it, normally to the highest of a sleeping bag, or down the edges. Present in high-end quilts and sleeping luggage like these from Feathered Pals or Western Mountaineering, steady baffles are a extremely fascinating characteristic for some individuals that allows you to transfer the insulation to the elements of you which are chilly. For others, it’s a curse, as a result of the down insulation can shift the place you don’t need it to go, creating chilly spots.
What are block baffles?
Blocking baffles, additionally known as facet block baffles or V-block baffles are utilized in excessive loft, winter expedition sleeping luggage to forestall down from shifting from the highest of a sleeping bag to its sides.
What are the professionals and cons of sleeping luggage which have waterproof breathable exterior shells like Gore-tex?
Sadly, they’re largely cons. The concept of overlaying a sleeping bag with a water-proof/breathable shell cloth is interesting as a result of it could imply that you just don’t want to hold a bivy sack to sleep in a snow shelter or fear about getting inside condensation on the surface of your sleeping bag whenever you contact your tent’s partitions at evening. However expertise has proven that overlaying the outside of a sleeping bag with a water-proof breathable shell tends to lure extra perspiration contained in the insulation of a sleeping bag than one with a a lot lighter shell cloth.
Opposite to what you’d anticipate, waterproof/breathable materials are literally far much less breathable than many of the non-waterproof shell materials used on the outside of sleeping luggage at this time. You may get the identical waterproof profit by spraying a DWR coating on the surface of those lighter-weight, extra breathable materials, which can repel water droplets that fall onto the surface of the bag, inflicting them to bead and roll off, similar to a rain jacket. Most sleeping producers already do that on the manufacturing unit. But when the DWR coating wears off, you’ll be able to apply it at residence utilizing Nikwax TX Direct or related merchandise.
As well as, most sleeping bag producers don’t tape or seam seal the entire seams of their luggage, which is admittedly required for true waterproofing. Take into consideration the entire tiny needle holes within the baffling of a down bag. Taping or seam sealing all of them could be very pricey. In distinction, most bivy luggage made with waterproof/breathable materials have taped seams or will be simply sealed with a seam sealer. You actually can’t do the identical with a sleeping bag.
What’s the greatest exterior cloth for a winter sleeping bag?
You need an exterior shell cloth that’s robust sufficient to be sturdy and has good breathability, with a decent sufficient weave and/or a DWR coating that can make water roll off its floor. Pertex Defend and microfiber calendared nylon are good examples of materials with these properties.
How ought to a winter sleeping bag hood match?
That is an space of private desire, however you desire a hood that can match round your head with none air gaps that leak heat. It needs to be simple to regulate (many aren’t), transfer with you for those who roll onto your facet, and never turn out to be saturated with water vapor whenever you exhale at evening by means of your mouth. The easiest way to find out hood match is to get inside a sleeping bag and take a look at it out. It’s essential to get a hood that you would be able to spend 12 hours or extra in comfortably since winter nights are so lengthy.
How essential is a excessive R-value sleeping pad?
A winter sleeping bag with no excessive R-value sleeping pad is sort of a sheep with out wool. With out one, your physique warmth will probably be sucked into the chilly floor. We suggest utilizing a sleeping dangerous with an R-value of 5 or higher. R-values are additive, so you can even use two sleeping pads, one stacked on high of the opposite to attain a better composite R-value. Many winter backpackers will carry a foam pad, which can be utilized as a seat when cooking or snow melting, along with an inflatable sleeping pad for consolation. When selecting winter pads, we suggest utilizing ones which have been rated utilizing the brand new sleeping bag customary, such because the Therm-a-Relaxation XTherm, which has an R-value of 6.9
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