The Pounder Sleeping Bag

[Deborah]

Just fyi, I purchase a Pounder yesterday. This is a very lightweight 45 degree Primaloft bag from Marmot. It only weighs one pound so would be perfect for the Camino.

Last night in Portland, the temperature got down to maybe 45 degrees and I decided to sleep in the bag to try it out. I almost froze to death! I wore a long sleeved shirt and fleece pants and I had to get into my bed by 3 a.m.

So... for me, this bag would be great for summer trips, but it is not warm enough for a Spring, Fall, or Winter trek.

I'm taking it back this weekend and looking at something a bit warmer. They make a beautiful women's lightweight down bag, but I'm concerned about the down getting wet in the rain. I have a rain cover for my backpack and a waterproof compression bag, so I think I'll go with down.

I have arthritis and being cold at night makes it miserable moving in the mornings....has anyone taken a down bag on the Camino? Feedback?

Thanks.

 

[spursfan]

i also brought a lightweight down sleeping bag during april / may but hardly used it in the refuges as it was too warm - next time i'd take a sleeping bag liner and use blankets from refuge

 

[Deborah]

liner

I'd consider that except for the fact that I'll be finishing up in October and it's sure to be colder.

The second reason is the few people I've talked to who had to sleep on cold marble floors of the church or other buildings...

 

[lorax]

I intend to carry my North Face down sleeping bag (weighs 2 lbs) plus my silk sleep sack. I'm starting in mid August but I'm not leaving until the end of October.... I'd rather carry the extra weight then to be freezing and uncomfortable.... with global warming and crazy weather.. I'd rather be safe then sorry....

I'm in the Portland area too.... I'd love to meet and talk "camino".

 

[jl]

I have left Santiago at around the 9th of October both times and indeed it was only in the last week, as I approached Santiago, that I even took my 500gm One Planet down sleeping bag out of its bag. Even though travelling in the almost peak time I have also never had to resort to sleeping on cold marble floors or in church porches. In 2007 there were quite a few night when I didn't finsih walking until 7 - 8.00p.m. and yet even then I still always found a bed. By the way, my walking so late was my own fault - I just got caught up in the days activities (which often involved stopping and chatting to various people along the way etc.) and it was never because I was compelled to walk onto the next village to get a bed. Just something more for you to think on. Cheers, Janet

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Sleeping bag temperature ratings are more art than science. The industry uses a copper dummy for scientific data on warmth retention, but the science ends there.

THE LISTED RATING IS THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE THAT AN AVERAGE SLEEPER WILL BE COMFORTABLE (as determined solely by the manufacturer). So it is fair to say that you will be cold in a 30-degree bag when the temperature hits 29! The rating assumes a sleeping mat for insulation under the bag.

The number of "average" sleepers may be quite small. While 95% of us are within two standard deviations of normal, when it comes to being cold, nearly half will be cold at the rated sleeping bag temperature. You warm your sleeping bag, it does not warm you. The insulation can retain only what your are radiating.

No one sleeps under laboratory conditions. "Loft" creates the insulation. After your bag has been tightly packed, it has lost its loft. Over time, the loft may be permanently lost, but during a trip, most of the loft can be restored by fluffing the bag. Do not store your bag in a stuff sack; allow it to fully expand during storage to maintain its insulating qualities. On the pilgrimage, unpack it regularly even if you are not using it.

If you are cold blooded, take a bag that has a rating 20 degrees lower than the lowest expected temperature. Unzip it to sleep when it is warmer.

If you are warm blooded, remember that diet, hydration, and fatigue will affect your perception of sleeping bag warmth. Will a bare minimum bag feel comfortable in an unheated albergue when the temperature drops to freezing and you are exhausted after two weeks of heavy slogging? The extra six ounces of fill may be worth carrying!

Of course you can go with the minimum, and dress up for sleep, a weight conscious plan recommended by many.

 

[Anonymous]

all interesting info - one great tip is to ensure that your bladder is empty! - if you wake up in the night feeling cold then brace yourself, get up and go and empty your bladder (even if you think that you don't need to) - it makes an astounding difference when you get back into the bag .. also, try not to move around in the bag, you want to build up warm air pockets .. and, finally, wear a hat. Try those three and see the difference. (As long as you are well insulated underneath that is!!!!)

 

[Bridget and Peter]

if you wake up in the night feeling cold then brace yourself, get up and go and empty your bladder (even if you think that you don't need to) - it makes an astounding difference when you get back into the bag

I'm sorry, bro, I need to know the science for that - why on earth would doing a wee make one warmer? And does it still make you warmer even though you have got out of the warmish sleeping bag into the cold for as long as it takes?

Or is the effect simply because you get colder, so that when you get back in the sleeping bag you feel warmer than you did before?

Please explain further.

 

[WolverineDG]

Bridget & Peter, whenever I'm cold at home, I get up & do something. The activity makes you warmer because it gets your blood pumping. And of course, sliding back under the covers after being out in the cold will make you feel warmer too.

Kelly

 

[Anonymous]

HHmm - you don't really need to know the science do you - you get into an aeroplane or trust the doctor without saying that I'm sure - so ask yourself what your use of such a sentence is intended to convey .. to me, and to others ...

anyway, I have absolutely no idea how or why it works - just try it and you will see that it does.

My theory - pathetic as it may be - is that the body has to use energy to keep the urine at body temperature and if energy needs are high then to remove that from the system frees up more for elsewhere - yes, I know you could also say the reverse, that a bowl of warm water inside the body may act as a hot water bottle - but, without that internal need at the core of the body there is more energy for the surfaces ... have no idea is that valid or not .. but here's the thing ..

don't pooh pooh it or criticise it, just file it away in the memory and the next time that you wake up cold in bed (at home or in a bag somewhere) then do it and get back in and see if it works or not - it isn't the same as getting up and walking round the room in the cold ... completely different.

Incidentally, have you not ever noticed that when you go walking in winter if you get cold your body instantly wants to empty the bladder? Surely you have noticed this? And when you do you feel less shivery?

Try it and see - report back within the year

I rest my case :wink:

 

[Bridget and Peter]

HHmm - you don't really need to know the science do you - you get into an aeroplane or trust the doctor without saying that I'm sure - so ask yourself what your use of such a sentence is intended to convey .. to me, and to others ...

don't pooh pooh it or criticise it,

No No David, you got me wrong. I was not pooh-poohing your experience - I just wondered what the explanation could be. I admit, my use of the word 'need' was rather crass. I meant 'I need to know' in the sense of 'I'm the sort of person who likes to know how things work so please help me understand this'.

Actually I have often asked my husband to explain why aeroplanes stay up - (at the girls grammar school I attended 40 years ago I had to give up physics and chemistry at 13 in order to do music O level). And I do ask doctors to explain what is going on in my body and how the treatment prescribed is likely to help, if I don't already have a good idea of it.

Anyway, I expect there is someone out there with a better understanding of the second law of thermodynamics than either thee or me who could comment on the effects on body temperature of emptying a bladderful of urine.

I'm absolutely with you on the wearing of a hat on a cold night. And socks. And having as much underneath you as on top of you.

Bridget & Peter, whenever I'm cold at home, I get up & do something. The activity makes you warmer because it gets your blood pumping. And of course, sliding back under the covers after being out in the cold will make you feel warmer too

Yup, that's what Peter thinks too. And then you go back to sleep because you're not busting any more.

 

[Anniesantiago]

Wow.. this thread changed directions, didn't it! ::laughing:::

 

[Artemisofephesus]

I've been searching for a sleeping bag lately as well. I'm going in November/December, so I need something suitable for low temperatures as it could get pretty cold! For established camino walkers - what sort of temperature rating should I be going for? Can anyone reccommend one that's lightweight as well as warm?

~jo

 

[Canuck]

if you wake up in the night feeling cold then brace yourself, get up and go and empty your bladder (even if you think that you don't need to) - it makes an astounding difference when you get back into the bag

I'm sorry, bro, I need to know the science for that - why on earth would doing a wee make one warmer? Please explain further.

Bridget,

Here is science explained for you, in layman's terms, hopefully, making sense:

This is called Bladder Cooling Relex(BCR) and it is a segmental reflex believed to be triggered by menthol sensitive cold receptors in the bladder wall, mediated by a spinal reflex pathway. This spinal reflex weakens with age and certain disorders. It keeps you from deep sleep. After emptying your bladder, you feel better, sleep better and deeper, hence not noticing the cold.
In essence, you're not feeling warmer, just not noticing the cold as much.

Keep a hot bottle in your backpack...

Cheers,
Jean-Marc

 

[Bridget and Peter]

Bridget,

Here is science explained for you, in layman's terms, hopefully, making sense:

This is called Bladder Cooling Relex(BCR) and it is a segmental reflex believed to be triggered by menthol sensitive cold receptors in the bladder wall, mediated by a spinal reflex pathway. This spinal reflex weakens with age and certain disorders. It keeps you from deep sleep. After emptying your bladder, you feel better, sleep better and deeper, hence not noticing the cold.

So Brother David's experiential discovery is confirmed by science!!! What next - some scientist proves that it IS St James in that tomb after all? :shock:

After emptying your bladder, you feel better, sleep better and deeper, hence not noticing the cold.
In essence, you're not feeling warmer, just not noticing the cold as much.

And then you go back to sleep because you're not busting any more.

And I was right too!!!

Keep a hot bottle in your backpack..

I do take one when cycling, but would not like to admit to doing so when walking - think of the weight!!

 

[Zordmot]

liner

I'd consider that except for the fact that I'll be finishing up in October and it's sure to be colder.

The second reason is the few people I've talked to who had to sleep on cold marble floors of the church or other buildings...

Yes, it was amazing how freezing cold it was in church albergues this past May.

 

[NorthernLight]

I've been searching for a sleeping bag lately as well. I'm going in November/December, so I need something suitable for low temperatures as it could get pretty cold! For established camino walkers - what sort of temperature rating should I be going for? Can anyone reccommend one that's lightweight as well as warm?

~jo

I've finished a couple of caminos in late Nov and did a Pyrenese crossing in March (back when you could). I use a down quilt and a silk liner. The quilt can be folded and used as sandwich layers, or as a blanket. I was always toasty warm and sometimes too warm.

The quilt came from Costco, but I believe they have changed the contents from down to primaloft, so I don't know what temps the new ones will cover.

 

[trecile]

I've finished a couple of caminos in late Nov and did a Pyrenese crossing in March (back when you could). I use a down quilt and a silk liner. The quilt can be folded and used as sandwich layers, or as a blanket. I was always toasty warm and sometimes too warm.

The quilt came from Costco, but I believe they have changed the contents from down to primaloft, so I don't know what temps the new ones will cover.

The quilts that I bought from Costco last year are all down. I cut them in half, and it's the perfect size (and weight) to tuck inside a silk liner.

 

[Richmond Gardner]

So, is a sleep sack enough for walking the Primitivo in late August/ early September? Can I expect a blanket at the albergues? Probably stay mostly in private albergues as I prefer smaller groupings in the rooms. If this is viable, it would help keep pack weight minimal and separate me from those buggy things

 

[NorthernLight]

Aug & early Sept and private albergues ... I'd think a liner is enough. You can always use your rain gear as top covers in a pinch.

 

[NorthernLight]

The quilts that I bought from Costco last year are all down. I cut them in half, and it's the perfect size (and weight) to tuck inside a silk liner.

I bought a new one this year and discovered it's primaloft.

So my old one stays in service. I sewed ribbons onto mine at just below the knees, and tied those together. It tucks around the bottom part of my liner and voilá, I have a blanket that won't slither off the bed in the night.

 

[kelleymac]

I take my lighter down sleeping bag. I have one rated for 35 degrees F (1 C) , and one rated for 0 degrees F (-13 C). The 35 degree one has worked well-- I take care to keep it dry, but there are dryers on the camino if you need one (albergue or a laundromat). My 35 degree down one weighs about 2#, so I've been eyeing primaloft bags wondering how well they'd keep me warm. I hate being cold at night; it wakes me up.