Cycling UK Forum

Sweep wrote:

philsknees wrote:One other more delicate issue surrounding winter camping particularly if, like me, you're of an age to know better & also sleep unclothed, is the inevitable overnight call(s) of nature in bad weather.
https://www.backpackinglight.co.uk/hydr ... 4-115.html
Expensive but well worth it. I've found it durable, packable & very user-friendly with a zip bag. Choose the size based on your expected output !

"Wide-mouth accepts ice cubes"

??

"Easy to fill from flowing streams"

rfryer wrote:

Sweep wrote:

philsknees wrote:One other more delicate issue surrounding winter camping particularly if, like me, you're of an age to know better & also sleep unclothed, is the inevitable overnight call(s) of nature in bad weather.
https://www.backpackinglight.co.uk/hydr ... 4-115.html
Expensive but well worth it. I've found it durable, packable & very user-friendly with a zip bag. Choose the size based on your expected output !

"Wide-mouth accepts ice cubes"

??

"Easy to fill from flowing streams"

gentlemans urinal available from Boots and other Chemists
https://www.uksmobility.co.uk/female-ur ... e%20Urinal

Calibrated I see.

Not sure I'd trust myself with such a thing to be honest. Not inside a tent.

A better solution awaits.

Sweep wrote:Not sure I'd trust myself with such a thing to be honest. Not inside a tent.

I've never resorted to this sort of thing myself, even in some pretty hostile weather, but if you are going along this route it's another advantage of a decent sized porch. If it all goes The Way Of The Pear your sleeping bag is the right side of a bathtub groundsheet from the mess.

Pete.

pjclinch wrote:

Sweep wrote:Not sure I'd trust myself with such a thing to be honest. Not inside a tent.

I've never resorted to this sort of thing myself, even in some pretty hostile weather, but if you are going along this route it's another advantage of a decent sized porch. If it all goes The Way Of The Pear your sleeping bag is the right side of a bathtub groundsheet from the mess.

Pete.

Hmmmm and it all takes place next to two pear shaped objects....

Back to sleeping bags.
About this time last year I was thinking that I couldnt do any cold weather camping with my rather old and flattened Pipedream 400. So I forked out and bought a four seasons Skyhigh 900L (before they went hydrophobic).
So far the only time I have been in it is on the front room floor to see if it fits and how it felt. It feels absolutely delicious, I am sure it will be toasty.
but
It is massive, compare packed sizes https://www.alpkit.com/support/stickies ... own-jacket
35Litre bag compared to 13L for the Pipedream. This means an entire large rear pannier just for it.
Or half of a rucksack. OK it is possibly nearer to 20L and they dont sell any bags between sizes but still big.
I also have the Hunka XL which I have had for years and used just once and I can only just fit myself and this sleeping bag into it. Certainly not with the sleeping mat too.
The main reason that I havent used it is that I just cant face all the other coldness (or worse, cold dirty wetness) from getting off the bike to being inside the nice cosy sleeping bag. I should have realised that before I bought the sleeping bag.
At least now if I do find cause (motivation) to set off, I have a sleeping bag that does the job.
In the meantime it is YHAs for me during winter.

meic wrote:Back to sleeping bags.
About this time last year I was thinking that I couldnt do any cold weather camping with my rather old and flattened Pipedream 400.

If you've got a down bag that's looking flattened it probably just needs a wash (it can't be that old, Alpkit have only been about since the mid-noughties IIRC).

I'd suggest getting a professional down cleaning specialist unless you're completely skint, because IME they do a much better job and doing it properly yourself is a PITA. I can't recommend one personally at the moment as the last time I had one done was by Franklins and they closed years ago, but most people are amazed at the transformative effect of a professional wash on a sorry looking down bag.

Unless you're a particularly cold sleeper and/or you're doing regular winter mountaineering a good bag with ~600g fill should probably be enough. I use an ME Lightline from the 90s with 550 g fill and that's seen me right in a snowhole where it got cold enough overnight to freeze a bottle of juice solid. I once owned an Iceline (950 g fill) that I bought after a very cold night in a 3 season bag, but in the 7 years I owned it I only ever got the zip done up all the way for a whole night once, and then it was below -20C (I had light base layers on and a normal silk liner). Sold that to a friend who is a very cold sleeper.

Pete.

So basically this side of your border I would have been better off with a Skyhigh 700.
My Ex had a glorious bag (Climbhigh for going up silly mountains weighing 1800g) which she took with her and I was after something like that. I probably aimed too high, forgetting about packing size.
Or I have to go and sleep on top of Cader Idris and Pen y Fan just to make the purchase worthwhile.

meic wrote:So basically this side of your border I would have been better off with a Skyhigh 700.
My Ex had a glorious bag (Climbhigh for going up silly mountains weighing 1800g) which she took with her and I was after something like that. I probably aimed too high, forgetting about packing size.
Or I have to go and sleep on top of Cader Idris and Pen y Fan just to make the purchase worthwhile.

That's about the size of it, though it's quite possible you'd need a bigger mountain than the UK provides!

The current Iceline is 1650g total weight and ME market it with Whether on K2 or Denali the Iceline is the ultimate in extreme mountaineering performance for the coldest of conditions.. Mine (an earlier one with a little less fill) was certainly well over the top for winter mountaineering in Scotland, and a pal with a Snowline (750g fill) found it more than up to anything he ever needed it for, including bivvying on winter climbing jaunts in the 'Gorms. Having said that, my Iceline was a popular loan even in summer to my "always cold everywhere" friends.

Pete.

meic wrote:...
The main reason that I havent used it is that I just cant face all the other coldness (or worse, cold dirty wetness) from getting off the bike to being inside the nice cosy sleeping bag. I should have realised that before I bought the sleeping bag.
At least now if I do find cause (motivation) to set off, I have a sleeping bag that does the job.
In the meantime it is YHAs for me during winter.

Same here, I suspect I have Raynaud's condition as my fingertips and toes get very cold even inside the house, while my core body is quite warm; my main problem is cold hands when fumbling around the tent, plus can't do anything like reading and cooking becomes tricky too
That's why I'm happy with a quilt that is rated for -5ºc as I don;t camp in full winter, the times I've been out and has been cold below zero it did a good job. I also carry a "reflective" bivy bag that does a nice job in reflecting the body heat and protecting from any possible draught.
I'll probably experiment with a reflective foil (like the one used behind radiators) to be placed under the Thermarest sleeping pad, just to give even more insulation.

deleted because of bad link. What I posted was a link to the PHD winter sales.

Bad link?

To a gmail thingy?

Try https://www.phdesigns.co.uk/sales-and-special-offers

Sorry, I copied the web adress in my email inbox.