America’s Best Backpacking and Outdoor Adventures
By Michael Lanza
Finding a sleeping bag that’s right for you may be the most confusing gear-buying task. Getting the right one is critical to sleeping comfortably in the backcountry—and in an emergency, your bag could save your life. But with the myriad choices out there, how do you tell them apart, beyond temperature rating and price? This article will explain how to evaluate the key differences between bags to make your choice much more simple.
Ultralight Sleeping Bag
Sea to Summit Spark Pro -9C/15F Bag
$649, 1 lb. 11 oz./765.4g (regular)
Sizes: unisex regular and long ($689)
seatosummit.com
We woke up from our first night in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains in mid-September, at well over 10,000 feet beside a creek that sang soft lullabys to us all night, to find ice crystals in our water bottles and one full water bladder that had been left outside the tent partly frozen. But the overnight temperature dropping to below freezing had hardly registered with me as I slumbered soundly zipped up inside my Sea to Summit Spark Pro -9C/15F sleeping bag—one of the warmest for its weight, most packable, and well constructed ultralight sleeping bags you’ll find.
By Michael Lanza
Head into the mountains in summer, or almost anywhere in fall or spring, and you can encounter nighttime and morning temperatures anywhere from the 40s Fahrenheit to well below freezing. That’s more than cold enough to pose a real risk of hypothermia or, at the least, result in a miserable night for you or a partner or child you’ve taken backpacking or camping—and would like to take more. Here’s the good news: The very simple techniques outlined in this article can turn a potentially unpleasant night into a comfortable one.
Ultralight Sleeping Bag
Marmot Hydrogen 30
$399, 1 lb. 9.4 oz./720g (regular)
Sizes: unisex regular and long ($419)
backcountry.com
For backpackers prioritizing low gear weight who don’t tend to get cold very easily, a sleeping bag rated 30 degrees Fahrenheit can function as their go-to for most three-season trips. And Marmot’s Hydrogen 30 remains one of the perhaps three highest-quality and warmest ultralight mummy bags at this temperature rating, as I affirmed sleeping in it for two nights on southern Utah’s Owl and Fish canyons loop in early May, four nights in Montana’s Beartooth Mountains in August, and five nights on the Grand Canyon’s Gems Route in mid-April.
By Michael Lanza
So you’re planning to thru-hike the John Muir Trail and making all of the necessary preparations, and now you’re wondering: What’s the best gear for a JMT hike? Having thru-hiked the JMT as well as taken numerous other backpacking trips all over the High Sierra—mostly between late August and late September, which I consider that the best time to walk the Sierra, to avoid snow and the voracious mosquitoes and blazing hot afternoons of mid-summer—I offer the following picks for the best ultralight and lightweight backpacking gear and apparel for a JMT thru-hike.