Black diamond bivy sacs.

I am purchasing a black diamond bivy soon and need to know which one to get! I am debating between the bipod and the twilight. The bipod look pretty bomber but the twilight is cheaper. Post up reviews please!! I'd be useing it for backpacking and base camp type stuff. ( I have a tent so that isn't a recommendation. I just want something lighter and simpler.)

Had a Twilight for one trip before i returned it to backcountry... loved the weight/size/idea, but I ended up hating the chest-height opening and its not-so-waterproofness otherwise. After one sleepless night (in admittedly super-nasty conditions), I was done with it. Moved on to the TNF Simple Bivy and have had much better experiences - though I haven't taken it into the gnar like I did with the BD.

I've got the tripod, and girlfriend has the bipod. The nice thing about the tripod is if your not concerned about weight, you can bring the poles which make the bivy MUCH more comfortable. If going light leave the poles at home. Either way, the tripod is much bigger which I like(I'm 6' 160lbs). The bipod is nice but in my expierence the wire in it doesn't really work to keep it up. It is lighter, but like always at a cost of room/features. Ask yourself how much you will use it, and if the features are really that important.

saltlick wrote:Had a Twilight for one trip before i returned it to backcountry... loved the weight/size/idea, but I ended up hating the chest-height opening and its not-so-waterproofness otherwise. After one sleepless night (in admittedly super-nasty conditions), I was done with it. Moved on to the TNF Simple Bivy and have had much better experiences - though I haven't taken it into the gnar like I did with the BD.

Seems to be an issue with non ToddTex models, less expensive and work well in most conditions but not as water resistant as the ToddTex versions.

how about a bivy versus a pyramid?

Peter Hurtgen wrote:how about a bivy versus a pyramid?

Bit of a different animal isn't it? The BD mids are terrific shelters but not really something I would use instead of a bivy sack in most situations. Mid takes a fairly large footprint, at least 4 stakes, a pole and in un-sheltered areas is subject to being blown down if not entirely off the edge of cliff, leaving you with no shelter. Does give you lots of room and with the insert (Mega Bug) makes a nice all season shelter in wind protected areas, can still pull a little moisture through the fabric if something presses against it but it's plenty roomy enough to stay away from the walls.

The non-toddtex models are not waterproof, nor are they marketed as such. So it's not an "issue" per se. The Twilight, spotlight, etc... are made of the same stuff that the hilight, firstlight, etc.. tents are made of - highly water resistant, very breathable, super lightweight fabrics. The bottoms are all silicon impregnated nylon that is waterproof but not very tough.

I've got a twilight bivy that I think is awesome - when used as designed - cold climbs where there won't be much liquid water, keeping the snow off me at a bivy site.