NEMO - Forte Endless Promise

I have the Nemo Forte 35° bag which I currently use for car camping and outdoor needs. I recently purchased the Hang Tight Special Edition HeatSeeker 20° as a more compact sleep setup. Nemo: 1234g Hang tight: 930g Both fit in the bar bag (dry bag with straps). After seeing these next to each other, would you opt for the additional ~$200 sleeping bag in the smaller form factor or would you continue to use the larger Nemo me you already own. Thanks

If it's going to be super cold the Nemo with a warm liner can work. Add a Nalgene hot water in a sock each night also.

Just ordered the nemo forte. Thanks

My nemo forte just came in the mail today. Thanks!

Ouch, you are in a tough situation. You need a small sleeping bag, but have a low budget. Basically anything you buy is going to take up half your backpack. Your tent and sleeping pad will most definitely need to be strapped to the outside of your pack. 35L pack is really a limiting factor. Sure - the Nemo Disco is a fine sleeping bag. Better than the Forte for sure. The Kelty Cosmic is popular because it's cheap. If you can afford more, like the Nemo - go with that. I'd skip the 'zip together' feature. Don't limit yourself in that way. It sounds cute - but in practice joining 2 bags is not comfortable / warm. At least over the 18 years I've been with my GF. Hard to say more without knowing what brands you have a pro deal with and what temperatures you'll need to use the sleeping bag in (temp rating 15/20/30/40F?)

I’ve got a Nemo Forte mummy bag that’s lasted me several years. It’s been heavily abused and other than a spot where my husky decided to attack my feet on our first camping trip, it’s still in great shape. I probably paid around $80 to $100 at an REI garage sale and still love it because it has vents to help regulate the temp, has a little extra room to adjust my knees and elbows because I’m a side sleeper and the hood/top section holds a pillow or extra clothing to turn into a pillow. Only downside is that it’s geared towards more petite people as I think the max height recommended is around 5’5”, anyone else is going to be sleeping outside of the bag.

best sleeping bag i’ve ever used. totally obsessed. esp as a side sleeper

The nemo spoon shape is very comfy IMO and because of that, as you said, is likely to be a bit heavier and bulkier. I love my nemo bag and put up with the bit of weight and space.

I have the Nemo forte and it's pretty good, definitely miles better than any other sleeping bag I've tried. It's not perfect though. It's fairly heavy and quite a large pack size as it's synthetic and doesn't compress very well. I have an alpkit quilt for summer and I prefer to use that whenever the weather permits.

I have the Nemo and it’s great, the spoon shape and thermo gills are really nice. I do a lot of bikepacking and always strap the bag to the top of the rear pannier rack. It is a bit bulky but no problem.

I sleep like you and it’s been the bane of my backpacking experience for the last 40 or so years. A few years ago, my husband bought me a Nemo side sleeper sleeping bag for Christmas. I was a little skeptical, but it actually helps a lot. I can’t remember what it’s rated to. It’s definitely not for extremely cold nights, but I don’t know if there are options in that. For car camping one of the main things I do is carry a wider pad. That way when I pull my knee up into the side, it at least stays on the pad and isn’t on the cold hard ground. As someone else mentioned, I also keep some extra gear in a stuff sack, and use that underneath my knee, which helps for warmth and back comfort.