Sleeping Bag Liners Instead Of Bags

Title:
Sleeping Bag Liners Instead Of Bags

Word Count:
490

Summary:
Sleeping bag liners instead of sleeping bags?. It's my system for those backpackers who want to really travel light.


Keywords:
sleeping bag liners, sleeping bag, backpacking


Article Body:
Sleeping bag liners for camping? My friend Dion made fun of my "poor excuse for a sleeping bag," but it kept me warm as the temperature dropped to the low forties, and it weighed only five ounces. We were camping on the banks of the Manistee River in Michigan.

So, how did it a sleeping bag liner keep me warm? The real secret was the fifteen minutes we spent gathering dead, dry bracken ferns to build a two-foot thick mattress. We set the tent on that. Then, in my liner with all my clothes on, I was fine. Actually, I've rarely slept as well camping as I did that night.

Using Sleeping Bag Liners Instead Of Bags

You can buy light sleeping bag liners from Campmor and other suppliers, or do like I did. I sewed a simple one of bargain-bin nylon material ($1/yard) obtained at Walmart. Buy the lightest nylon or polyester material you can find. Depending on what you use and how big you make it, it should weigh between four and nine ounces.

I found I could stay warm with a light sleeping bag liner in autumn, at a few degrees above freezing, so this strategy should work well for summer nights in the sixties. Be careful, of course. It could be dangerous, or at least uncomfortable enough to ruin your trip. Test this strategy near home, and know yourself and your enviroment.

You may want to learn a few tricks for staying warm if you try this strategy. When it isn't too humid you can breath in your bag, for example. Many backpackers will tell you not to do this, because you'll be damp in the morning, but in a dry enviroment you'll dry quickly once you hit the trail. Spread the liner out to dry during a break.

Just as I did the first time, you can also use a mattress of dried plants. Use dead leaves, palm fronds, grass, cattail leaves, some softer tree barks, etc. A mattress of this sort insulates you from the ground, which normally takes away much of your body heat. Scatter the leaves in the morning so they won't smother the plants underneath.

Try to go to bed warm. If you're warm when you get into your sleeping bag, you're more likely to stay warm through the night. If you start out shivering, it's difficult to warm up, especially in a thin bag.

More tricks for staying warm: Hot tea before going to sleep... Exercise a bit... Cover yourself with extra clothes... Elevate your feet slightly... Go to sleep earlier or later. Experiment to see what works best for you.

These are options, but not recommendations. I've gone out with nothing more than a bivy sack in my jacket pocket, but I'm not recommending that either. This is just to present all the possible options for the ultralight backpacker. One of those options is sleeping bag liners.

BONUS : Title:
Sleeping Bag Pads

Word Count:
409

Summary:
Why sleeping bag pads? Because waking up cold and sore is no fun. It's also no fun to carry a three pound sleeping pad, so here are some better options.


Keywords:
sleeping bag pads, backpacking, backpackers


Article Body:
Sleeping bag pads are not one of the things you should cut from your list. Backpackers want to reduce their weight, but not even ultralight backpackers want to reduce their comfort. Still, who wants to carry those monstrous old inflatables down the trail? Try some of these lightweight options instead.

Make four-ounce sleeping bag pads, and sometimes carry two of them. Use the plain blue closed-cell foam pads available from any backpacking supplier. They are made larger than necessary, usually 24 by 72 inches. Just cut them down to a four-ounce size that fits your torso.

It should reach from your shoulders to your hips. You may want to cut the width a little at a time, testing for comfort as you go. The pad should be as small as you can make it, while still big enough to insulate your torso from the ground. A pillow of spare clothes can be used for your head, and your legs can be on your empty pack to insulate them.

Sleeping Bag Pads For Lightweight Fanatics

To make it really light, cut pieces out of the pad. Small holes in the pad don't seem to make it less comfortable. If you cut out a hundred little pieces of foam, you save an ounce and join the ranks of the fanatical ultralight backpackers.

Want to go even lighter? Leave the pad behind and try sleeping where the ground is soft. You can also pile up leaves or dry grass to sleep on. Do this where it won't harm the enviroment, and scatter the leaves in the morning so they don't kill the vegetation they're on. For fifteen minutes of work each night collecting materials, you can leave the sleeping pad home and actually be more comfortable. A thick pile of dried grass - now that's a nice camping mattress.

More Luxurious Sleeping Bag Pads

Want more cushioning? Inflatable sleeping pads are no longer out of the question for lightweight backpacking. The Big Agnes Air Core Pad from REI is a 3/4 length pad that weighs just 16 ounces and is an incredible 2 1/2" thick! If you've slept with Big Agnes, let me know how she is.

You can also find a few self-inflating pads that are reasonably light. The old Thermarest I sometimes use is actually only 21 ounces, but both Thermarest and others now have self-inflating sleeping pads that are under a pound. That's a lot of comfort for such lightweight sleeping bag pads.