I just wondered what your sleeping bag set up is like? Do you just have the one bag for all year around or do you have one for winter and one for summer?
I'm trying to decide how to do this... whether I get a bag for summer and also winter, or whether I just get a 3 season bag which I open up in summer, and just wear warmer clothes inside it during the worst of winter?
I'm wondering what the best scenario would be when you consider cost as well as weight?
E.g.. summer down bag cheapest I've seen for Down is £80 for the Deuter Trek Lite 200 (610g). (1-2 season)
I use a single 3 season down bag which suits me as it covers the vast majority of conditions I am likely to encounter. However this kind of thing is very personal as it all depends on your metabolism, where you are going, how you are getting there and how long for etc. I think you could get some better advice if you share more details on intended usage with the experts on this forum (and I would certainly be learning from those guys too).
One possibly more versatile solution I have been considering moving to is to have a 2 season down bag and a 2 season synthetic. This gives you the option to use both bags simultaneously in winter. The synthetic bag would fit over the down bag in order to try to move the dew point out of the down. I have seen a down bag fail miserably in freezing conditions due to condensation after about 2 to 3 nights - luckily back when I could only afford bargain basement synthetic bags. I was using 2 layered together which wasn't a big deal as we were car camping, but one of my friends had a very nice down bag. The rest of us were green with envy until about the third day...
I have a n Alpkit PD600 and a Vango Ultralite 300. Tbh I'll prob just use the Alpkit all year round as it's actually slightly lighter - I'll just unzip it if I'm toasty!
I've a 3 season down bag with 550 gr. down 750+ cuin. I use this bag also in the summer. Most of the times I sleep with this thing zipped open as a blanket. May be I'll buy a special summer bag to save weight, don't know yet.
For winter camping (when it's well below zero) I use a bag with 900 gr. down 600+cuin, it's an old beast but good enough untill -15 without clothing, when colder I need extra clothing in this bag. I might replace this bag with something similar down weight but more cuin to make the usuable range better. I'v often slept under this bag zipped open as a blanket, obvuouisly it wasn't -15 those times but more around -5.
And I sleep an a short Exped downmat 7, this keeps my back warm all the time (hence the use as blanket of my bags...)! For my feet/underlegs I use my coat, empty backpack or a short 15mm EVA mat in winter.
An exped downmat does make a huge difference in winter - you may find the three season bag enough with one of those.
And I'm selling one here - open to reasonable offers....
Re you original question, I think two (at least ) bags are worth having if you intend to camp year-round, or possibly overseas as well as in the UK, but I'd certainly consider two lighter bags and then teaming them up to achieve the performance for serious cold. Andy Kirkpatrick has written about the concept (from a climber's perspective but the logic still applies)
and PHD (possibly others) produce 'combi' bags specifically designed for it (the sizing is key to allow both bags to perform to the full).
My warmest bag is only rated down to -5C but when I need more I can add one or other lighter bag and produce performance potentially rated down to -25C! I've never needed to go that extreme yet, and that's one of the benefits if you're on a budget - you don't tie up a lot of expense in a seriously warm bag that may not see a lot of use. Against that the combi approach will be heavier and bulkier than a single cold-weather bag, but in the end you decide which is more important to you.
I've found something like an ME Lightline 550 can be used all through the year. I supplemented it with a Dewline when I had a great Bargain Bin opportunity and I'm glad I did for the extra weight saving when I don't need the extra warmth, but I have done it with one bag the whole time and it does work.
Another vote for the Exped Downmat in cold conditions.
It is extraordinarily effective and, in my experence, more than compensates for its extra weight by enabling me to use a lighter bag. I sleep colder than a corpse and a full-length Downmat at c975g plus a 495g sleeping bag (Cumulus Quantum 200) is cosy down to freezing at a combined weight that is lower than many winter bags.
) bags are worth having if you intend to camp year-round, or possibly overseas as well as in the UK, but I'd certainly consider two lighter bags and then teaming them up to achieve the performance for serious cold. Andy Kirkpatrick has written about the concept (from a climber's perspective but the logic still applies)
