Katabatic Gear - Grenadier 5°F Quilt

There isn’t really an absolute best, but I like Katabatic for a quilt and western mountaineering or feathered friends for a bag. I prefer quilts down to around the low 20s, bags below that. Having a pocket in your quilt for a sleeping pad seems silly to me.

I love my Katabatic quilt!

Numeri 1 - Western mountaineering - Feathered friends Li tocchi con mano e capisci subito di che pasta son fatti. Subito dopo metterei Katabatic, pieno di accessori e features utili. Poi ce ne sono tanti altri sotto molto buoni. In EU trovi piu facilmente Cumulus, fatti veramente bene. E poi ci alcuni piu piccoli che fanno roba custom made molto buoni. Ma c'è un abisso tra tutti questi e i classici commerciali e costano giusto qualche euro in piu o a volte in meno. 100-150€ per una roba che ti deve tenere caldo, essere leggero, compatto e deve durarti anni e anni, mi sembra un investimento molto piccolo. Ci prendi giusto qualche taroccata decathlon o ferrino. Io mi farei regalare lo zaino, il sacco a pelo è molto personale. Se poi dormi a pancia in giù o laterale devi prendere un quilt, col sacco non dormi.

Yup. Quilts were a miracle for my sleep when I discovered them. I'm 6'2" / 220 lbs. and turn all night, every night. Probably settle on a "figure four" type position for an hour or two at a time. Just get a long/wide Enlightened Equipment or Katabatic. And quilts are particularly good for above-freezing temps.

I think 20-30° is the right range for PnW Cascade backpacking in shoulder season. And for me, also summer as I am a cold sleeper. And June is still shoulder season in the PnW. I’ve ran into a lot of snow drifts in June. Hammock Gear makes great quilts that are pretty reasonable. I also have a Katabatic, though that’s a bit more money (though not a ton).

At $500 you have a world of options. Western Mountaineering is by far the most expensive bag I have seen. Whether it is worth it, I don’t know. I’m a hammocker and don’t use bags. I have a Katabatic and it is great. I also have a Hammock Gear UL and it is also great. I have a Superior Gear, guess what, also great. If I had to pick one… Probably the HG because it is very light. But perhaps not great for durability for ground dwellers. I think it is like 8D or something stupid low. After that, the Katabatic. Edit - my bad. Just looked. 7D And main difference in warmth with Katabatic is you get the differential cut (top layer is bigger than inner layer). This helps it not pull tight and compress the down. For a hammocker this is not a big deal. For mouth breathing ground dwellers this is probably more important :)

I have a Katabatic and a Hammock Gear Burrow UL (which does not appear of their site anymore). Both are great. The main complaint that I understand about EE is they are generous with their rated temp. Not that they are bad quilts. But any quilt with less than 20D fabric is going to be a bit fragile. So don’t wear it like a poncho and go off to pee and let it get hung up in brush.

Katabatic or EE quilt and straight stuff it in whatever (pannier, tail bag, handlebar bag) - no stuff sack

I have exactly the same combination and one is great in the mountains in the summer and the other is great during shoulder season when it is colder and tends to be windier.

Can’t go wrong with Katabatic. I have six of their quilts in my gear closet (to outfit my family of four) and I’m 100% satisfied with them.

My Katabatic quilts. After freezing my butt off too many times in the REI 30-degree bag that somehow never felt warm I no longer worry about being cold at night. Saving a bunch of weight didn’t hurt either.

Sea to summit spark or katabatic and buy their hood. I’ve tried both and prefer katabatic (quilt)