Good day all-
I have been buying some new gear here and there and have been looking for a new sleeping bag for trips from May through August. I currently have an old Coleman Peak 1 Quetico bag with synthetic fill rated to 32. I'm not sure how old it is but it has worked well for many trips. I am thinking about a Marmot Never Winter 30 degree bag or a Western Mountaineering Caribou 35. The WM is out of my price range most likely with a son in college.

Last year in the third week of August it was getting uncomfortable on a couple nights. Anybody used one of these? I sleep fairly warm and use a pad. Just looking for your input.

Have a good one,

Plaidwool

If you sleep warm and are ready to upgrade you might consider a down quilt. You can either get a sewn foot box or one with zipper/snaps so you can open completely. More freedom to move around and adjust to temps, and when combined with an insulated pad can be toasty warm.

Lots of options from budget to cottage quality. I have products from UGQ, Jacks r Better, and Little Shop of Hammocks and all are top notch quality.

How cold were the nights when you getting uncomfortable? It could also be a pad with an inadequate r-value. Here is a link to a review of that issue. There is also lot of good information there about bag ratings, quilts, etc.

I'm on my third attempt at the perfect bag for my tastes this year, but certainly went through depths to decide. Started out with a standard mummy bag but also tend to get hot and am also a side sleeper. So I would end up twisted up or completely outside of it with hot feet. Then moved to the Sierra Designs Cloud bag. This really check the boxes for me: No zippers, just a quilt tuck type that works great, foot slot to kick feet out if hot, pad sleeve to hold it all together, and DWR treated. Only problem was with the quilt is affixed on one side which makes it hard to sleep on your side facing that way. So now I've moved to the step up from there with the Sierra Designs Backcountry Bed. All the same specs, just with a two sided quilt.

I like that it still has a mummy hood to hold my inflated able pillow in place and get more into the bag if needed when cold. But the foot box works good for maintaining temp. All are 20deg bags.

Seems to be something wrong with add a link . . . ? Check sectionhiker.com.

Another site for you to check is adventurealan.com He lists some good budget options < $300.

fadersup: "If you sleep warm and are ready to upgrade you might consider a down quilt. You can either get a sewn foot box or one with zipper/snaps so you can open completely. More freedom to move around and adjust to temps, and when combined with an insulated pad can be toasty warm.


Lots of options from budget to cottage quality. I have products from UGQ, Jacks r Better, and Little Shop of Hammocks and all are top notch quality. "

Interesting! I didn't realize they were good on the ground as well.

I've had the Never Winter for about 20 years. I'm generally a cold, side/back sleeper and it has worked well for me. Mostly late May to late September trips. Now that we take our young kids (and carry most of their stuff in addition to ours) I'm thinking of seeing if there's something that is a bit lighter and packs smaller. If I was just carrying my own gear, I'd still be perfectly content with the Never Winter.

I’ve been using a Kelty Cosmic 20 DriDown bag for about 12 yrs. I use this bag for all seasons except for winter. It’s been a really good, reliably warm bag for anything 30°F and above. Having said that, there are a lot of similar bags out there and some may be better. I’m happy enough with the Cosmic that I haven’t bothered to try anything else. FWIW, when hammocking I use it like a quilt, just leave it unzipped and drape it over me.

They are available from a variety of vendors. A quick search shows Amazon has them on sale for $126.

It’s just my opinion but I think the pad (or for hammocks, underquilts) is just as if not a more important factor in sleeping warm.

Good luck

I have a twenty year old Never Summer and a newer Never Winter and newer never summer. They are great bags and the newer ones have a few extra improvements on an already great bag. I think their measurements are accurate and if your tall you’ll need a tall.

Marmot also runs a terrific end of the year sale, which they are currently promoting. So far this year there aren’t many bags, but they are still adding items and some of the coats are super.

I also think May requires the warmer bag, but heck, last October even a bedsheet was to warm.

I have the WM Caribou. It's a great bag, I've had it down to 30 degrees no issues. WM is right on with their weights and temp rankings. Unlike most manufacturers.

I do have a great sleeping pad. That makes a difference. I use an exped downmat I believe with an R value of 8?

T

Just noticed that Steep & Cheap has the Kelty Cosmic 20 DriDown bag for $108 right now.

Traveler: "Just noticed that Steep & Cheap has the Kelty Cosmic 20 DriDown bag for $108 right now."

I also use the Kelty Cosmic down 20 degree bag, I own 2 of them and have been using them for several years backpacking & canoe camping.

Great value for the money! I have used them in the Boundary Waters on several May trips and have never been cold when sleeping in my thermal underwear.

One bit of advice I'll toss out there is if possible try laying down in both of them in a store.

While I don't know the two specific bags being evaluated, I was in the market for a winter bag a few years ago and was considering both the Marmot and the WM cold weather bags. I knew from experience with my Marmot 20ºF bag that my elbows were where I got cold (laying on my back with my hands on my chest my elbows tend to flair out making a cold spot). So I went to Midwest Mountaineering and tried laying in both. The WM bag specs said it had a wider measurement at the shoulder than the Marmot by about 1/2 or 1 inch, but I got in both bags several times on different days and I could swear the Marmot had more room for the upper body despite what the specs said. Perhaps they have different techniques for measuring? I was leaning toward the WM based on reputation, but I went with the Marmot based on fit and have been very happy with it since.

Jaywalker: "One bit of advice I'll toss out there is if possible try laying down in both of them in a store. "

That's a good piece of advice!

I appreciate everyone's advice, I am definitely going to purchase a down bag. This will giving me some starting points, I did use a different pad last year, a Klymit Static deluxe. In the past I have used a Exped Downmat. I like the Exped, I was trying to shed some weight and bulk. Lack of R-value made a big difference I'm sure.
Have a good one,

PW

I have a Feathered Friends Flicker UL 20 which has served me well even in Summer heat. It's a quilt and a bag (no hood), with a cinching footbox and a draft collar.

I’m a marmot fan as well. I think mine is a 40* always summer. They put on great sales. I think I nabbed mine for $79 several years ago right after the new year. I actually taken it down to 40* in the hammock(w/underquilt) and tent. Just fine with merino bases.

In terms of quality of construction, materials, and design I don’t think you can beat Western Mountaineering for down sleeping bags. They’re in a league of their own.