winter or summer UQ

**mbiraman** · 11-22-2009, 10:25

Hey guys. So i have my WBBB now , thanks Brandon, and an OES MacCat comin so now i need to think UQ. Most of my camping will be three season camping and in the spring and fall it can get down to the mid to low 30's at times. Does it make more sense to get a 3 season UQ and pad up for those cold nights or get a winter UQ that covers it all. Mmmm, even as i write this my guts saying 3 season but what do you guys think. Thanks in advance

**Quoddy** · 11-22-2009, 10:38

I've used my 3 season Yeti down to slightly below 30F and was still warm. .. so it should work really well for you.

**Ekul** · 11-22-2009, 10:59

Had my MtW3 down to 30 and still warm. 3 season and a pad made sense to me since I live in the south and dont really see temps for long in the 20s and teens. Although the quilts are much more comfortable than the pad.

**pizza** · 11-22-2009, 13:36

Go with the 3 season quilt. I've had my 3 season Yeti down to 23 degrees with a short pad for the feet and was comfortably warm.

**mbiraman** · 11-22-2009, 15:01

Thanks you guys; Do you guys with the yeti's feel their long enough ?? and what is the size of the yeti anyway??

**Just Jeff** · 11-22-2009, 15:07

If I were going to buy only one underquilt, I'd get a 3-season and add a pad for winter trips. Unless a majority of your trips are in the winter...

Kinda depends on what you mean by winter, also. Keep in mind that a CCF pad is multi-use, also...adds structure for a frameless pack, gives a sit pad for camp (more important when snow camping than just "colder-weather camping," and you can go to ground with it if you lose a glove and are too frostbitten to hang your hammock (again, more important safety factor for true winter camping).

**Rug** · 11-22-2009, 15:22

Disclaimer: I am not a hiker. So I don't have to carry much weight.

I will vote against the crowd wisdom and vote for a '4-season' UQ. I am the kind of person who believes "I would rather have it and not need it, then need it and not have it."

My JrB UQ's can 'open-up' to allow for venting. If I have 'excess' insulation on my bottom I can easily use less or no top insulation. (kick-off the TQ in the middle of the night without even waking up.

I plan on using my Winter Nest year-round (except on hot summer nights 75F+).
1 piece of gear I can always have with me is better then the piece of gear i left at home and wished I had brought.

**mbiraman** · 11-22-2009, 15:34

Although i live in the selkirk mnts our weather where i am is moderate meaning that winter night temps are in the 20 to 35f range on average with some small time spent at 5F. Is there such a thing as being too warm with your 4season UQ. If i'm at 50 degrees is the winter UQ going to feel too warm??

**TeeDee** · 11-22-2009, 16:47

Depends - like most things in life

.

Will you ever want to extend to 4 seasons? If so, can you, or will you, want to spend for another, 4 season quilt?

Even if you extend to 4 seasons, what do you think the likelihood of temps that would exceed the limits of the 3 season plus pad?

Our personal decision was to go only with 4 season, full length quilts top and bottom since we wanted only 1 quilt set for each of us. Buying down for multiple sets is not fiscally desirable for us and we go with the philosophy of "less is more". We find it better to simply vent as needed than to have to deal with more gear than needed. Having said that, we may end up with 2 sets each, down and Insultex, depending on the Insultex performance this winter. But Insultex is considerably less expensive than down.

**Knotty** · 11-22-2009, 18:09

I'm doing same as Rug. Using a JRB Winter Nest year round. You can always cool an UQ down by venting but you can't make a lesser quilt warmer. Downside is you're carrying a larger quilt when you don't need to.

Best solution is probably multiple quilts but I couldn't justify the cost...yet.