Bivie tents for winter use (1 Viewer)

[fj404life]

REI Half dome tent, REI lightweight sleeping bag with Gortex bivy sac, REI ground mat.

Not a lot of snow, but it got down into the single digits in the mountains resulting in a cold mornings and a hard starting KLR!

Good luck!

FYI...REI is a major supporter of the Sierra Club. http://www.sierraclub.org/benefactors/ Who would just LOVE to keep you from riding your KLR anywhere!!! Not to mention your Land Cruiser!!! They sell Mt Bikes, but give $$ to Environmental Groups who fight to keep mt bikes out of the woods!!! They will take your money then pay someone to stab you in the back...I say screw REI.

Just something to think about when your deciding where to buy the latest camping gadget!!! Not trying to bash you at all just telling the real story. I really hate the Sierra Club.

 

[Corbet]

Smallest 4 season double wall tent will be the warmest AND control moisture. Closed cell pad and a bag with a good breathable outer shell. I've spent plenty of nights out with temps below -20 in comfort. I big dog helps out too

 

[Chuy]

If your looking for something small and compact look into a camping hammock or a Hennessey hammock. They are excellent, way more comfortable than a bivy and pad. They also keep you off the ground and come with a rain fly.

HENNESSY HAMMOCKS.com: ultra-light line of jungle hammocks, ultra-comfortable camping hammock /chair/ tent combo

 

[VanGo]

C-

Great source for winter camping gear this maybe the end all to Dan search:

HENNESSY HAMMOCKS: Cold Weather Camping

Van

 

[BirfMark]

I plan on picking up one of these before too long:

Bag Mod 3 - Used*::*Sleeping Bags*::*Bivouac Gear*::*Government Surplus*::*Gear Shops*::*Jax Mercantile, Co

More info: http://www.socnet.com/showthread.php?t=6527

 

[rusty_tlc]

If your looking for something small and compact look into a camping hammock or a Hennessey hammock. They are excellent, way more comfortable than a bivy and pad. They also keep you off the ground and come with a rain fly.

HENNESSY HAMMOCKS.com: ultra-light line of jungle hammocks, ultra-comfortable camping hammock /chair/ tent combo

C-

Great source for winter camping gear this maybe the end all to Dan search:

HENNESSY HAMMOCKS: Cold Weather Camping

Van

I have actually researched the Hennessy Hammock in the past. All the forums and reviews I read indicated you needed extra insulation on the bottom exterior to be comfortable in the winter.

I've never been a fan of hammocks anyway.

 

[VanGo]

Dan,

Your response echoes my experience and my first reaction to the hammock for cold weather camping, but after reviewing the link I provided, it really makes it a more plausible idea when considering a hammock in colder weather.

vAn

 

[rusty_tlc]

Dan,

Your response echoes my experience and my first reaction to the hammock for cold weather camping, but after reviewing the link I provided, it really makes it a more plausible idea when considering a hammock in colder weather.

vAn

It's good to see that Hennessy has come up with a solution to insulate their product. The last time I researched the product it was all home grown solutions.

I'm still not a fan of sleeping in a hammock. And it would be an expensive thing to try out.

 

[rusty_tlc]

I plan on picking up one of these before too long:

Bag Mod 3 - Used*::*Sleeping Bags*::*Bivouac Gear*::*Government Surplus*::*Gear Shops*::*Jax Mercantile, Co
.....snip....

More info: Sleeping Bag's - SOCNET: The Special Operations Community Network

It looks like the Gortex outer bivy can be had for $60 to $70. Compared to $180 for basically the same thing from other vendors I can live with forest camo even though I'm not a fan. Certainly something to consider. And at 2.2 lbs it's about half the weight of my Sirius 2 tent.

 

[ATVCamper]

I have never been a big fan of bivy's because I'm a big guy and I like to have room to move around. For my winter camping I used a lightweight 3-season 2-person tent with a tarp hung over top with a rope between 2 trees. The tarp keeps any heavy snow off the tent and makes a good wind break. I have a Browning 10 degree mummy bag and I use two pads, one inflatable on the bottom and a foam pad on top of that. With the two pads I am well insulated from the cold ground and it is very comfy. In my early days I did use a bivy but condensation was always a problem but that was before goretex.

 

[VanGo]

In my early days....

I am actuallly old enough that I can relate to this statement, and would agree that the most important aspect of winter camping is comfort. I like your set up and use a similiar, proven, solution: a tent with "efficient" room to move, well insulated ground pad(s) and approriate rated sleeping bag. This combination is easy enough to put together, however you may source your gear, and can be adjusted to suit your field needs. Personally, today, winter camping means leaving my bivy packed in my go bag for an emergency, keeping my hands clean/sanitized and never eating canned tuna, but that is for another tech thread...

 

[rusty_tlc]

I have never been a big fan of bivy's because I'm a big guy and I like to have room to move around. For my winter camping I used a lightweight 3-season 2-person tent with a tarp hung over top with a rope between 2 trees. The tarp keeps any heavy snow off the tent and makes a good wind break. I have a Browning 10 degree mummy bag and I use two pads, one inflatable on the bottom and a foam pad on top of that. With the two pads I am well insulated from the cold ground and it is very comfy. In my early days I did use a bivy but condensation was always a problem but that was before goretex.

That sounds like a lot of gear to haul around.

As I mentioned earlier in the thread this is about acquiring and testing inexpensive compact gear that can stay in the truck full time, for those aww $hit times when an early/late snow storm blows in unexpectedly.

 

[Eldorado556]

Check out this article. Good information.

Thermoregulation: An Overview of Heat Loss Mechanisms and Practical Guidelines for Staying Warm with Lightweight Gear @ Backpacking Light

I've done a lot of winter camping. Most important thing is to know the 5 methods of heat loss.


Conduction
This is where your pad comes into play. I have an insulated Big Agnes as well. If it's cold I'll bring a closed cell foam pad also. Cold ground will suck away your heat.

Convection
Wind AKA the devil. Your shelter must be windproof. Not waterproof so much. Generally in winter it's not raining. Gore-tex is the most over hyped product in the outdoor industry. It cannot breathe as much as you can sweat. Sweat destroys the insulating value of your gear and makes you more vulnerable to evaporative heat loss. Sil nylon has a DWR coating and will breath better while shedding water.


Radiation
Space blankets are good for keeping heat from radiating away.

Evaporation
Goes hand in hand with convection I find. You sweat, it evaporates, you freeze. Regulating your temperature is crucial to minimize evaporative heat loss.

Respiration
Don't be a mouth breather.

So what I consider when winter camping are the following. Does my shelter keep the wind out? Does my pad keep the ground from sucking my heat away. Does my sleeping bag have enough loft to keep me warm? Does my shelter stay dry?

A couple other things... Don't wear a lot of clothes to bed. They constrict too much and compress the loft of your bag. I usually sleep with light fleece pants a long sleeve synthetic shirt and a merino wool hat.

Bring a pee bottle. Always piss before bed. Your body wastes a lot of energy keeping the contents of your bladder warm. No way in hell I get out of the tent to piss when it's -20 with wind chill. Get an old water bottle and mark it with skull and bones. Have some sort of tactile identification so you know you're not pissing in your water.

Eat before bed. Give your body some energy it can convert into heat. Don't drink, don't smoke.

Toss a handwarmer or hot water bottle in your sleeping bag.

The most extreme alpine and arctic explorers use vapor barriers. It's the only way to go when it's really cold. You have a light layer against your body, followed by the vapor barrier, insulation on top. Your sweat stays with you, it can be rather unpleasant, but you stay warm. your insulation stays dry because it cannot touch your sweat. Remember putting bread bags in your shoes as a kid? Same idea. Just change your socks often or get trenchfoot.

 

[rusty_tlc]

Don't drink from the red Nalgene bottle!

 

[Black Op]

Great thread guys. Really nice to see a lot of different opinion/experiences about this.

 

[AdventureToolCompany]

Don't drink from the red Nalgene bottle!

I thought it was the blue one....

 

[Dynosoar]

I always use the piss yellow / orange ones for pee!


Dynosoar

 

[weejub]

You can't go wrong with Backpacking Light - the info there is great and puts you in the ultralight mindset. You can always go heavier and have "more fun." I keep a set of gear for backpacking and one for camping with two very different purposes. Camping stuff includes things like big first aid kit, bigger headlamp, big fluffy camp sleep pad, coolers, etc.

Also check out Andrew Skurka's website for tips on vapor barriers if you like the idea of bivies and good gear reviews.

Backpacking Advice & Tips

 

[rusty_tlc]

Re-visiting the bivy option for different reasons.
The current set-up is a Big Agnes Encampment bag with the same insulated air filled mattress I had back in 2011. That is if I can find the leak in the pad, the pad is around ten years old so it may be time to replace it.
I still use the same Sierra designs Sirius 2 tent, however, I'd like something that is faster to set up and take down. Also a bit more compact.

This is what I'm thinking about;

U.S. Military Surplus GORE-TEX Bivy Cover, Woodland Camo - 96457, Sleeping Bags at Sportsman's Guide

 

[BMThiker]

I'd stick with the Sirius 2. Design-wise, it doesn't get much simpler than a 2 pole free standing tent. How much of a hurry are you in? Is that extra 120 seconds worth the discomfort of a bivvy? I see packed size of the Sirius 2 is 23" long, and they really should have made smaller sections of pole lengths to get a more compact size. I have an older Eureka 2-man, 3 season similar in design/setup to the Sirius 2 but what I love about it most is that the pole sections are only like 15-16" when packed.