Favorite sleeping bag for alpine climbing?

Hey everyone, in the market for a new sleeping bag for alpine climbing, and was curious what everyone's favorite is? Anyone got some good field testing notes on all the new hydrophobic-down bags? Looking for something extremely packable, around 15/20 degree warmth, and usable for bivvies climbing in the Sierras, Alps, Patagonia, etc. Used a few different bags in the past years and haven't really been happy with any (been on a budget just getting cheaper things) but now I have some dough and am willing to spend a bit.

Cheers!

It doesn't have hydrophobic down, but otherwise the WM UltraLite would fit your criteria exactly. Lightweight, 850+ down, excellent quality and rated for 20F (wear warm clothes and you can go a few degrees lower). WM's "850+" down is just as good as other manufacturers' "900+". I've used mine all over the place in Colorado, the Tetons and Canada.

Feathered Friends are also excellent and on paper the Swallow UL is very similar to the WM Ultralite (pricing is just about identical).

Feathered Friends VIREO is awesome

WM Alpinlite is another possibility. A bit more room than the Ultralite, 20 degree rating. Will stuff into a 10 liter compression sack-have had good luck in the alpine with mine.

Brooks Range makes some nice stuff in the 15 degree range thats pretty simple and light. have the alpine 15, with layers on its comfortable to about -5

I use a Feathered Friends Swift. Similar bag to the Swallow, just a bit roomier inside, which was a big plus for me as a big dude (6'4", 210). If you're less ogre-sized, the Swallow would be perfect. The nano shell is pretty water resistant, 850 fill down is the best you can get (I don't believe the hype about '1000-fill power', the testing methods seem a bit contrived). WM also makes fantastic down bags, the Ultralite or Alpinlite already mentioned are equivalent to FF's Swallow/Swift.

If I were buying again specifically for climbing, I'd be very tempted by the FF Vireo as well. The ability to pack your bag down to nothing and supplement with the belay jacket you're already bringing is pretty awesome. Climbed with a guy who used that same setup for all his three-season climbing in the Cascades, he just varied the jacket of choice based on expected temps.

My personal sleeping bag is a Feathered Friends Kestrel UL, 850 fill power. Very, very well made bag. I purchased it about 3-4 years ago, right before the hydrophobic technology was released.

I've never owned one, but I imagine Rab's line of Neutrino sleeping bags would fit the bill. They are all made with 8-850 fill power hydrophobic down. The Rab website lists several temperature ratings, including the European Standard along with actual Rab athlete feedback. Pretty cool.

All of my down belay coats are currently Rab jackets & they are phenomenal. I've yet to find a down jacket that surpasses anything I've owned from Rab. Can't imagine their sleeping bags don't compete with their jacket line ...

Rab Neutrino 600 Sleeping Bag

hi, I thought I'd mention mountain equipment from the UK. I used their bags for 20 years and can highly recommend them. mountain-equipment.co.uk/sl…
I have heard very good things about Rab and Western Mountaineering, too.

best beaki

I second the Montbell spiral stretch 30. It packs down really small and light for a 30 degree bag, plus with a bivi sack I don't worry about the moisture. Lately though I've switched to synthetic because "hydrophobic down" is a myth. The waterproofing lasts about 5-7 uses and then it's donezo. I think rab came out with a pretty solid hydrophobic treatment but for now I'll stick to synthetic.

I shelled out for a Western Mountaineering Versalite 10 for Sierra alpine traverses. It's a great bag.

Tobin Story wrote:If I were buying again specifically for climbing, I'd be very tempted by the FF Vireo as well. The ability to pack your bag down to nothing and supplement with the belay jacket you're already bringing is pretty awesome. Climbed with a guy who used that same setup for all his three-season climbing in the Cascades, he just varied the jacket of choice based on expected temps.

I have a vireo and really like it with temps in the 10-mid 40 range, but when it gets warm mid summer the legs are too warm with no zip to open up you bake. Keep in mind I use an xtherm pad so I have a lot of ground insulation. When it's really warm now I've taken to just draping it over me like a blanket.

Their new flicker would be worth a look, being able to open it up would be nice. I'm planning to pick one of those up for mid summer and having an overstuff done in the legs/feet of the viero to take it down to zero.