Bed in a bag-Choosing your sleeping bag

By:  Lou Catalano

Nothing can make or break a camping trip like your comfort at night after a long day on the trail.  You want to look forward to slipping into your sleeping bag and not dread it.  For that reason, your choice of sleeping bag is probably the single most important purchase you're going to make as an outdoors person.   Your decision will be based-on the requirements of your specific activity and personal preference.

Sleeping bags are temperature rated and this rating is the most important way to compare products.  There are cold weather, 3-season and summer bags that all perform differently and have insulating characteristics specific to their design.  You'll have to factor when and where you'll be using the bag and you must even decide whether you are a person that typically gets cold during the night or one that maintains your body temperature well.  The filler material and the 'loft' of the sleeping bag is primarily what determines its insulating capability. After all these years, down is still the material that has the best insulating properties although is a high maintenance material, costs on average 50% more than a synthetic and if it gets wet you get cold.  Synthetic materials are approaching down in their insulating ability, are much easier to maintain and if they get wet tend to act more like a scuba diver's wet suit to retain body heat.  Loft numbers are a way to enumerate how a material maintains its 'fluffiness'.  All other factors considered equal, the higher the loft number the warmer the bag. 

Sleeping bags are basically three different shapes.  A mummy, a barrel and the old familiar rectangle.   Mummy bags are designed as they are named, large at the head and shoulders with a taper to the feet.  The warmest and most lightweight of all bags, they may be considered tight and restrictive by many.  A mummy sleeping bag's design is to maximize heat retention by this close fit so that the body doesn't spend excess energy trying to heat an unnecessary amount of space.  The barrel bag is a derivative of the mummy.  The barrel bag has more room, with the trade-off being it's heavier and is less temperature efficient.   The rectangular bag is quite simply a zippered blanket and is not the best choice for hiking or backpacking.  Don't discount a rectangular sleeping bag if you do nothing but tent camping and don't have to worry about how heavy are.  A camping cot and a rectangular sleeping bag can mimic home like no other.

The construction of all sleeping bags have a few things in common.  When completely zipped, the opening for your head should be designed to minimize heat loss with a collar or even a hood.  This protects against the 30-50% of heat that is lost from your neck and head.  The box of the sleeping bag should have zippers that are internal and covered so that heat is not lost through them.  The foot area should be built so as not to allow the filler material to be excessively compressed.  The material can be sewn in a variety of methods also.  The typical sewn-through quilted bag is the least efficient, with a down bag's individual baffles being the best.