WHAT TO PAY ATTENTION TO WHEN CHOOSING AN EXPEDITION SLEEPING BAG

Are you planning a mountain expedition that's meant to be a challenge? The lower parts no longer satisfy you - you're drawn to the Alps, the Caucasus, the Himalayas? There's one thing that definitely needs to be in your gear: an expedition sleeping bag designed for camping in extreme high-altitude conditions!

SLEEPING BAGS FOR SPECIAL TASKS

A comfortable sleep is essential during mountain camping. To a large extent, the quality of your night's rest determines the routes you can tackle during the day. Sleeping well in a warm sleeping bag significantly enhances safety and improves your condition. However, it's not only the high peaks that offer variable and challenging conditions at night; even the Beskids or the Karkonosze Mountains in winter can present difficult conditions.

That's why when choosing an expedition sleeping bag, you need to consider various factors. Approach the purchase thoughtfully because there's no room for compromises when overnighting in high mountains. The three most important aspects are temperature range, insulation type, and construction.

TEMPERATURE RANGE IN SLEEPING BAGS

The ideal temperature range for you depends primarily on the temperatures you can expect on the trail. Deciphering the symbols on sleeping bags can be challenging, so we're here with some tips.

Usually, the labels show three temperatures, determined in laboratory tests according to the European standard EN 13537 or its global equivalent ISO 23537. The first one is the comfort temperature (t. comf.), indicating the lower limit at which a woman with a standard body build can safely sleep for 8 hours while lying on her back. A man will feel comfortable at this temperature.

The second point defines the limit temperature (t. limit), which is the temperature at which a standard man can sleep through the night in a curled-up position without feeling cold. The last range is the extreme temperature (t. extreme) - if the ambient temperature drops to this limit, men will wake up feeling cold, while women will experience shivering. As you can easily deduce, the temperature ranges are divided for men and women because the body build of each gender significantly affects their perception of cold and resistance to it.

DOWN INSULATION

Why is it not worth taking insulation other than natural down, preferably from ducks and even better - geese? Because they are the best. Even the most technologically advanced synthetic insulation cannot match natural down in terms of insulation effectiveness, weight, and compression.

In sleeping bags, good insulation does not depend on the amount of down but on its loftiness. The appropriate size of chambers is also very important. Twice the amount of down stuffed into the same chamber will not change the thermal properties of the sleeping bag. The higher this parameter, the better. In the Pajak offer, you can find down sleeping bags starting from 700 cuin. The idea is for the insulation to occupy as much space in the chambers as possible, allowing it to trap as much of the warm air generated by your body.

Ultimately, the same parameter that translates into low weight and compactness makes down sleeping bags ideal for carrying on your own back.

It is worth knowing that Polish down products, with expedition sleeping bags at the forefront, are now highly regarded worldwide, and the down from the Polish Kołuda White Goose is considered the highest quality insulation used in outdoor activities.

CONSTRUCTION OF DOWN SLEEPING BAGS

In order for the resilient down to effectively fulfill its task, the proper construction of chambers is also important. The most popular solution is the X construction, which involves stitching the material straight through. The downside of this solution, found in universal sleeping bags and down jackets, is the lack of insulation in the stitching areas. These points are inherently weaker in terms of insulation. To avoid the risk of chilling the body, more advanced Pajak models use a different solution: H or HH chambers, in which two layers of insulated material are separated by spacer tapes. There is also the Z construction, which is an angled modification of the H system.

DETAILS IN EXPEDITION SLEEPING BAGS

As the saying goes, the devil is in the details. Especially in high mountain conditions, this is of cardinal importance. Therefore, when choosing an expedition sleeping bag, don't forget to pay attention to the most important details.

• • Hood - an expedition sleeping bag should have a mummy-style construction. This way, one of the most strategically important points for the thermal regulation of your body - the head - will be properly protected. It is important for the hood to have an adjustment feature.
  • Thermal collar - a adjustable shield should be located at the neck level, which serves to "seal" the interior of the sleeping bag, minimizing the escape of warm air.
  • Draft tube - a 3D down-filled tube is a guarantee of reducing thermal losses from warm air escaping through the zipper.

When choosing an expedition sleeping bag, don't go overboard with the length. A sleeping bag that is too long will not protect your body effectively, just like one that is too short. Although there used to be a fashion for spacious sleeping bags into which you could put equipment elements at night to protect them from the cold, it should be remembered that each additional space requires additional energy to heat.

During one of the expeditions, Andrzej Bargiel was too hot in the Radical 16H sleeping bag, the warmest sleeping bag in the world, in the Himalayas (he currently uses thinner models from the Radical line). If you also want to sleep comfortably and safely throughout the night during your mountain expeditions, look for the perfect model for yourself at pajaksport.pl.

Photo source: pajaksport.pl