Zero degree bag reccomendations

Sergio Colombo wrote: Brice, our body loses 1 qt. of water every night due to perspiration. Down bags made of nylon (non breathable), can get wet, not soaked, just from your body perspiration. Down bags with DryLoft Gore/Conduit/Pertex/Event fabric help eliminate the problem by allowing what we lose through perspiration to leave the bag and keeping it drier. They do cost a lot more but I think in the long run they are worth the money. Another thing that gets down bags wet is the condensation inside the tent. In humid winter climates, it can be considerable and could spell trouble if you're far away on an expedition. A wet down bag will freeze and there is no way to thaw it if you're up on the mountains. I still prefer down bags to synthetic, but there are pros and cons to go either way.

To me theres a lot of other things you can do to manage moisture, a silk liner, or for frozen bivy's where your bag will freeze due to just the differential temps between your bag and the surrounding air, there are vapor barriers for bag that you can cover the bag with. No solution is perfect, and you're right a bag with Event et al will go a long way to preventing moisture problems, but a down bag is still, in my opinion, the far superior due to weight/warmth ratios and packability.

I've woken up from exposed bivy's with a bag covered in dew, I've gone to sleep still sweating from night approaches in 25 degree temps, and I've been snowed on in the middle of the night with open bivy's. All of which I've been able to reasonably comfortably sleep through.

I'm not saying that this strategy works for K2, but it does for 90% of all other situations in the mountains. To me a good pad and a good down bag are rarely beat.

In the long run, a 600$ sleeping bag is cheap if you spend hundreds of nights in it instead of hotels. That's pretty damn cheap rent.

I second the earlier mention of the MH Phantom 0 degree. I have had mine for some time now and it is holding up well, I have yet to have a cold night in it. Super lightweight, compressible, and warm...not much more I could think of to want really.

I've used bags from Rab, North Face, Western Mountaineering, Marmot, LaFuma, and others.

Western Mountaineering is a step above. Feathered Friends seems to be just as good. They are lifetime investments in good sleep and warm digits you will never regret.

Rab, Valandre, Mont-Bell, high-end Marmot, and others are close behind. Never quite as good, but very nice bags. Retail prices are right in line with WM and FF, but unlike the former, you might actually find these on sale. I use a Rab Quantum 400 Endurance right now, and it's OK... but just OK. The loft pales in comparison to the WM bags I've had, it's just as heavy, and the craftsmanship doesn't compare. I really wish I had a ~20 degree WM or FF bag, but can't justify buying one now that I own the Rab, which honestly is adequate for my needs.

North Face, cheaper Marmot bags, LaFuma, and similar brands are all a very big step back. I use some today for casual camping, but never on alpine climbing trips where weight, compressibility, and warmth are highly valuable.

Sergio Colombo wrote: I agree with you, down bags are still my first choice but you still do need to take some precautions like you said above. Syn bags (Primaloft One only) can also be a good choice under the right conditions but they are no match compared to good down bags. Both of my bags are breathable and I never had major issues with condensation/wetness, even when I bivvied on snow. I am glad I invested the money. I think I have had my MH Banshee for at least 10-12 years and is still as good as they day I bought it.

+1 on the 10-12 year old Banshee being timeless. I have been highly impressed with how functional my MH Banshee is this many years later. With that said, my next bag will be a Western Mountaineering, probably Apache (15f) even for winter- my lady got an Antelope, is a cold sleeper, and it's hard to imagine how cold it would have to get for her to not be toasty- WM is WAY conservative with their temps, unlike most.

Best of luck!

Hi

Has anyone consider a Wiggys bag ??
the 4 lbs Superlight does the job very well for 0 F!

Brice Harris wrote: ...there are vapor barriers for bag that you can cover the bag with.

A vapor barrier should be used inside the bag, not outside.