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Reddit Reviews
Emotional_Feedback34I have a 2012 WM Versalite and even older Puma GWS (rated to -28C while the current one is -32C, can't remember the year off the top of my head). Both are phenomenal bags and I can recommend the brand. If you are a cold sleeper, I would get the WM bag because of the built-in hood for zero chance of drafts around the neck.
ZiKyoocWestern Mountaineering Puma GWS -32C They have others for colder, not mummy, a bit less... The gore has a windstopper membrane. They have other series with different outer fabric. Ain't cheap, but top quality.
Big-Method2955Neo air x therm nxt sleeping pad. R value of like 7-8. Western mountaineer -25 puma or -40 bison bag. For hot tent I’m not sure I use canvas with a stove. I went with snow trekkers tent.
max514Western Mountaineering Puma sleeping bag. When I die, I want to be buried in it so I can spend eternity in the most comfortable cocoon the universe has ever known.
MattOnAMountainI liked my quilt when I was doing shorter trips. Once I started doing months at a time I grabbed a western mountaineering bag and I have no regrets. Helps me extend a bit more into shoulder season
Western Mountaineering mummy bag. I do a lot in shoulder season and these are very warm for the weight
Aggressive-Foot4211Western Mountaineering, Feathered Friends or Marmot for bags. Enlightened Equipment, Hammock Gear or Katabatic for backpacking quilts. Not cheap but quality and comfortable.
Boletus_edulisThere 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.
brandoldmeGood pad. Stick with that. Edit: (I forgot about the Nemo eclipse. That's something to look at. I don't think they're ready to ship yet. I don't know that factually. I think they're officially going on sale in march. REI was doing pre-orders.) Someone mentioned Western Mountaineering. That's the best. But they're expensive. I don't know if I'd recommend it for a beginner. I have one and it's totally worth it. If you know you're going to be out there, then maybe eventually you want to make that investment. In general about sleeping bags look at the EN or ISO Comfort rating. If they don't have that, you probably don't want it. That's an incorrect statement. Because even some top brands don't necessarily publish that for certain bags. In which case you just really need to look deeper into that bag. To give you a specific example, Western Mountaineering has EN number is published on a chart under their faqs. But that only goes down to their bags that are about zero rated and above. That doesn't mean that they're cold weather bags are crap. The exact opposite actually. But a lot of budget brands are throwing a temperature rating on there that may be more related to the extreme limit number which is survivability and you'll just be cold. If you want to look at the difference between the comfort, limit, and extreme limit rating, you can. But just stick with comfort. Maybe build in an extra 10° from what you actually expect to sleep in. That's a heavy tent. You can save a lot of weight there. Let me offer a specific alternative. Durston Xmid 2. It's a trekking pole tent. If you wanted to try trekking poles, this is a great way to save weight. If you don't want to use trekking poles, Durston sells ZFlicks poles. You'll still be significantly lighter than the Half dome 2. R/durstongearheads Naturehike is a budget brand with tents you can look at to see if one would work for you. You'd save money. And probably can come out a fair amount lighter. Check out r/ultralight. I'm not saying you should go full ultralight. But if you're going to be backpacking, save weight where you can.
