Big Agnes or UQ

[Joey]

I have the HHSS, but was curious if it wouldn't be more simple and just as warm to go with a Big Agnes bag / pad set up. Any thoughts.... I'd especially like to hear from any one who uses, or has used the Big Agnes w/pad in their hammock.

Thanks!

[aboyd]

I use a Big Agnes Insulated Air Core and have stayed warm down to the upper 20's, with a fleece bag liner over the Big Agnes and a 15* bag as a top quilt. I want an under quilt so I don't have to deal with the pad, but can't say the pad was THAT big a hassle, but having no pad under me is a little more comfortable in the hammock.

[Big Papi]

i used an insulated air core pad my first time out. It worked just fine, but instead of being wrapped in a bag, i laid the bag out as a top quilt.

[Greg Dunlap]

I use the Big Agnes Cross Mountain bag with the Hinman pad and have not had a problem. But remember I'm in Northern California and it only gets into the low 50's to high 40's at night when I'm camping.

At 65 with Arthritis in my hips, arms, and legs, I leave the cold weather camping to younger more active folks.

[CajunHiker]

I've got a Yampa 40* and an Exped DAM 7 short. I use a short ccf section in the foot section. I found myself waking up to cold arms, but using a light fleece liner helped.
The other issue is not being able to get a good neck seal. The Yampa doesn't have a hood and the inflatable wants to make the bag lay flat. I may try to shift the pad lower in the bag to see if that helps. I'm also looking at making a collared hood.
The Exped is great and have never been cold from underneath.

[Shewie]

I used a BA Lost Ranger a couple of times in my Blackbird, but that was with a UB rather than a pad or mat.

Does your Hennessy have the bottom entry or the side zip ? I can imagine with the pad and bag together it could be a bit of a faff getting in and out.

[Joey]

Thanks for the input. :-]

[LaVista]

I used a big agnes Pitchpine 40 degree bag & clearview pad on a 400mile AT Section hike (Harpers ferry to NYC) last may/june, and was warm every night and didn't have any problems. I had a side-zip installed however and my hiking partner had a bottom entry only and he always took a bit more shuffling around to get comfy.

Having a sleeping bag with a pad sleeve is pretty much perfect for my sleeping style, but I'm not a super big fan of the blow-up air pad. They fail, they squeek, and they arent that warm. and they're annoying to pack up!! So what I did instead was get a Thermarest foam Z-pad and cut it to fit my pad compartment. it has a slightly higher R value and after the bits I cut off weighs a couple of ounces less then the clearview airpad did. And I don't have to worry about popping the **** thing.

This is now my preferred sleeping-bag-in-hammock setup. If the area i'm camping in has a lot of good shelters for me to use I will bring both, giving me the option to sleep comfortably in the trees or in shelters. I put the foam pad against my back for insulation, and the blow up pad against my ground-cloth for additional comfort & padding.

Basically my only complaints against the big agnes system are as follows:

-airpads are annoying to pack up in the morning when it's time to get back on the trail
-Since the big agnes bags have no insulation on the bottom, you can't open them up and use them like a blanket or top-quilt.

[Detail Man]

I use a Big Agnes Insulated Air Core and have stayed warm down to the upper 20's

Same here. It's actually quite toasty into the 30's for me. My coldspots came from above when my sleeping bag used as a TQ came untucked.

[bwg]

I have Big Agnes Fishhawk (30F) and Moon Hill (0F). I use Walmart blue CCF and/or Volara CCF in my bags. I found inflated pads move too much and were not comfortable. Coldest night I have experienced so far is 16F with two layers of Volara: one inside sleeve of bag is 1/2", and second outside and wider to help cover shoulders is 1/8". If I wear long fleece pajamas, I'm warm with this combination at 16F (Moon Hill, Volara 1/2, Volara 1/8, fleece pajamas, warm hat).