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OK now 6 0z! That's a bivy I gotta look into!
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Let's talk bivys. Good ones, and cheap ones.
- Thread starter Noshtero
- Start date
OK now 6 0z! That's a bivy I gotta look into!
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They make a 4 oz. in cubin fiber also. Mountain Laurel Designs is their full name. Ron Bell is the owner and makes it all himself. I also have their body bag, which is a nylon bag or quilt liner. Keeps things clean and adds 10 degrees warmth.
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Hey Bear? They got a website?
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Try MountainLaurelDesigns.com or just put it in a search.
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I was looking for a bivy for some travel out west, but figured it was not worth the expense as I doubt I would use it much here in the east.
I opted for a sil nylon poncho from integral designs that can be used as a make shift bivy. I figure I got a more versatile solution as it is can be a poncho and tarp too. I will be pretty dry under the small tarp I use and if it is particulary cold and/or wet I will pull out the poncho and use as the bivy.
http://www.integraldesigns.com/prod...D=226658&CFTOKEN=34136484&mainproducttypeid=1
I was eyeing the Adventure 16 bug bivy as a light weight solution for just that, and again, more versatile as I wouldn't be carrying it except in summer more or less. Anybody use one of these?
http://store.mpgear.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=635
I opted for a sil nylon poncho from integral designs that can be used as a make shift bivy. I figure I got a more versatile solution as it is can be a poncho and tarp too. I will be pretty dry under the small tarp I use and if it is particulary cold and/or wet I will pull out the poncho and use as the bivy.
http://www.integraldesigns.com/prod...D=226658&CFTOKEN=34136484&mainproducttypeid=1
I was eyeing the Adventure 16 bug bivy as a light weight solution for just that, and again, more versatile as I wouldn't be carrying it except in summer more or less. Anybody use one of these?
http://store.mpgear.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=635
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- Feb 28, 2007
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- 9,786
Speaking from this guy's perspective:
"I personally prefer bivy's. They are like a human burrito. The outer layer keeps the meat from getting all mushy inside. The ones where the meat is wrapped in a down sleeping bag also provide an excellent source of dietary fibre! One also doesn't have to contend with the awkward process of pooping out alumninum poles"
In all seriousness though I tend to prefer at tent. Here is a 1 person tent from MEC that weights 2.4 lbs (1.1 kg) with full fly and footprint!
Here are the specs from the website:
"A “real” tent, with real living space, for the weight of a bivy sack. Thanks to slick new fabrics, the trail-ready Seedhouse SuperLight weighs an astonishing 1.1kg. Solo travellers, distance hikers, touring cyclists, and other lightweight fanatics will be right at home in this tent.
Because the floor is ultralight, the optional footprint is highly recommended for maximum tent life. The footprint adds a mere 156g. With the footprint, you can leave the inner tent at home for even more weight savings. The fly, poles, and footprint total 850g.
Fits one person.
Floor and fly are made of 30-denier 1.9oz. high-tenacity ripstop nylon with polyurethane and silicone coatings.
Fly is seam-sealed.
Canopy is made of 20-denier 1.6oz. woven nylon mesh, which provides excellent cross ventilation.
Poles are DAC Featherlite aluminum.
D-shaped doors don’t drop into the dirt when unzipped.
Waterproof zipper on the fly door eliminates the need for flaps and Velcro®.
Plastic clips attach the tent body to the pole frame for quick and easy set-up.
Head height is 81cm. Foot height is 36cm.
Floor area is 1.9sq. m. Vestibule area is 0.5sq. m.
Minimum weight is 1.1kg, packaged weight is 1.3kg.
Packed size is 11 x 51cm. "
"I personally prefer bivy's. They are like a human burrito. The outer layer keeps the meat from getting all mushy inside. The ones where the meat is wrapped in a down sleeping bag also provide an excellent source of dietary fibre! One also doesn't have to contend with the awkward process of pooping out alumninum poles"
In all seriousness though I tend to prefer at tent. Here is a 1 person tent from MEC that weights 2.4 lbs (1.1 kg) with full fly and footprint!
Here are the specs from the website:
"A “real” tent, with real living space, for the weight of a bivy sack. Thanks to slick new fabrics, the trail-ready Seedhouse SuperLight weighs an astonishing 1.1kg. Solo travellers, distance hikers, touring cyclists, and other lightweight fanatics will be right at home in this tent.
Because the floor is ultralight, the optional footprint is highly recommended for maximum tent life. The footprint adds a mere 156g. With the footprint, you can leave the inner tent at home for even more weight savings. The fly, poles, and footprint total 850g.
Fits one person.
Floor and fly are made of 30-denier 1.9oz. high-tenacity ripstop nylon with polyurethane and silicone coatings.
Fly is seam-sealed.
Canopy is made of 20-denier 1.6oz. woven nylon mesh, which provides excellent cross ventilation.
Poles are DAC Featherlite aluminum.
D-shaped doors don’t drop into the dirt when unzipped.
Waterproof zipper on the fly door eliminates the need for flaps and Velcro®.
Plastic clips attach the tent body to the pole frame for quick and easy set-up.
Head height is 81cm. Foot height is 36cm.
Floor area is 1.9sq. m. Vestibule area is 0.5sq. m.
Minimum weight is 1.1kg, packaged weight is 1.3kg.
Packed size is 11 x 51cm. "
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- Jan 7, 2003
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- 2,373
+1 to what Hikeeba said about the $30 Guide Gear bivy's. If you're looking for an entry level bivy that you won't later regret buying then this is a good place to start.
I have used the three I own extensively in all sorts of weather and they work well but handle exactly as he described. There are better bivys out there for sure but for $30 you can test the concept to see if it will work for you and even if you don't like it you still have a great piece of kit to loan to someone else or keep in a survival kit.
I use these cheap bivys for all of my trips and so far haven't had a bad night in one. They are a little stuffy if you zip the face screen shut but they are very warm and comfortable. They don't develop condensation. I have used them in weather down to 18 degrees F with no problems. They do significantly add to the thermal value of a bag. I use them here with very light weight tropical bags and stay plenty warm down to about 50 F. The night I spent in 18 degree weather my bag (Snugpack) was rated to 32F Comfort/ 18 F extreme and I stayed warm all night in the bivy. Just as a point of reference my Platypus bags froze in our tarp shelter that night.
I'm planning to buy a few more of these as they are they are the only bivy I can afford multiple copies of and I have tested them enough to know they will work for me. Mac
I have used the three I own extensively in all sorts of weather and they work well but handle exactly as he described. There are better bivys out there for sure but for $30 you can test the concept to see if it will work for you and even if you don't like it you still have a great piece of kit to loan to someone else or keep in a survival kit.
I use these cheap bivys for all of my trips and so far haven't had a bad night in one. They are a little stuffy if you zip the face screen shut but they are very warm and comfortable. They don't develop condensation. I have used them in weather down to 18 degrees F with no problems. They do significantly add to the thermal value of a bag. I use them here with very light weight tropical bags and stay plenty warm down to about 50 F. The night I spent in 18 degree weather my bag (Snugpack) was rated to 32F Comfort/ 18 F extreme and I stayed warm all night in the bivy. Just as a point of reference my Platypus bags froze in our tarp shelter that night.
I'm planning to buy a few more of these as they are they are the only bivy I can afford multiple copies of and I have tested them enough to know they will work for me. Mac
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- Feb 7, 2005
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- 1,086
I have a Zeus LE, and the condensation is pretty bad. It's light weight and sturdy, just don't roll over and touch the walls.
Could you explain the advantage of a bivy bag, Vs a tarp
I have for years used a ponch as a tarp.
I can do anything with a ponch and a walking stick as a shelter.
Could you explain the advantage of a bivy bag, Vs a tent
Where do you store your bag in bad weather.
Like pissing with rain?
How do you cook in poor weather?
Sit up to change clothes?
I have for years used a ponch as a tarp.
I can do anything with a ponch and a walking stick as a shelter.
Could you explain the advantage of a bivy bag, Vs a tent
Where do you store your bag in bad weather.
Like pissing with rain?
How do you cook in poor weather?
Sit up to change clothes?
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2003
- Messages
- 2,373
Neeman,
A bivy, like a hammock isn't the end all solution for all shelter needs. It is the best option for alot of reasons. The disadvantages you mentoned are real ones. Bivy shelters are a pain if you are in a location that gets pounded with rain. When I am going to hike in rainy season here in a area with trees I would much rather have my hammock and tarp to give me lots of space. If I'm hiking up into the mountains were there are no trees and the ground is very fractured and steep the bivy, ponch, and rocks are the way to go.
One huge advantage of the bivy verses a tent is that I can set up just about anywhere I can physically lie down as opposed to finding a space large enough for the tent. I go from one or two possible shelter sites to dozens when you can cut them down from tent to body size. I can also take advantage of the natural shelter offered by the terrian much better if I don't have to erect a tent.
A bivy/poncho is a much better solution for a daypack when hiking in areas where you don't plan to spend the night but might have to. I won't carry my two man tent for emergencies but I will pop the bivy, poncho, and liner, and some cordage into my pack.
A bivy vastly improves any expedient shelter you'd care to make. Imagine sleeping in a debris shelter... now add a bivy, not so bad. A bivy all by itself is a decent shelter being wind and waterproof. Theya re great for a bug out bag. Mac
A bivy, like a hammock isn't the end all solution for all shelter needs. It is the best option for alot of reasons. The disadvantages you mentoned are real ones. Bivy shelters are a pain if you are in a location that gets pounded with rain. When I am going to hike in rainy season here in a area with trees I would much rather have my hammock and tarp to give me lots of space. If I'm hiking up into the mountains were there are no trees and the ground is very fractured and steep the bivy, ponch, and rocks are the way to go.
One huge advantage of the bivy verses a tent is that I can set up just about anywhere I can physically lie down as opposed to finding a space large enough for the tent. I go from one or two possible shelter sites to dozens when you can cut them down from tent to body size. I can also take advantage of the natural shelter offered by the terrian much better if I don't have to erect a tent.
A bivy/poncho is a much better solution for a daypack when hiking in areas where you don't plan to spend the night but might have to. I won't carry my two man tent for emergencies but I will pop the bivy, poncho, and liner, and some cordage into my pack.
A bivy vastly improves any expedient shelter you'd care to make. Imagine sleeping in a debris shelter... now add a bivy, not so bad. A bivy all by itself is a decent shelter being wind and waterproof. Theya re great for a bug out bag. Mac
Could you explain the advantage of a bivy bag, Vs a tent
Where do you store your bag in bad weather.
Like pissing with rain?
How do you cook in poor weather?
Sit up to change clothes?
-----------
These are excellent questions.
1) Could you explain the advantage of a bivy bag, Vs a tent
Bivy is a verb & a noun. Mountaineers usually can't tent it above a certain altitude since the available surfaces simply don't exist- a bivy allows you to Bivouac, to have shelter- sitting, standing or lying down. No tent can do the Sitting / standing part.
2) Where do you store your bag in bad weather?
Try setting up a tent in high winds. Just try. A bivy can be set up anywhere and anytime becvause all it is is a waterproof shell for your sleeping bag.
If it's raining, I simply select a well drained spot and orient my bivy accordingly. Intelligent selection allows for you to do that. doing whatever you have to to defeat driving rain, snow and wind. The good Bivies have anchor loops to make sure that you don't fall off the mountainside accidentally.
3) Like pissing with rain?
They unzip, If you're smart, you'll piss in a .75L plastic bottle. I do all the time. I'm therefore smart
Otherwise, stand up in the bivy, stick the tool out the opened zipper and piss. Hell, pooping is the HARD part LOL!
4) How do you cook in poor weather? All you need is a 36"X36" vestibule or full tarp.
5) Sit up to change clothes?
It's not the Ritz Hotel. See TARP.
Keep in Mind that Bivies are for ultralight adventures, not Ulra- Luxurious adventures.
Where do you store your bag in bad weather.
Like pissing with rain?
How do you cook in poor weather?
Sit up to change clothes?
-----------
These are excellent questions.
1) Could you explain the advantage of a bivy bag, Vs a tent
Bivy is a verb & a noun. Mountaineers usually can't tent it above a certain altitude since the available surfaces simply don't exist- a bivy allows you to Bivouac, to have shelter- sitting, standing or lying down. No tent can do the Sitting / standing part.
2) Where do you store your bag in bad weather?
Try setting up a tent in high winds. Just try. A bivy can be set up anywhere and anytime becvause all it is is a waterproof shell for your sleeping bag.
If it's raining, I simply select a well drained spot and orient my bivy accordingly. Intelligent selection allows for you to do that. doing whatever you have to to defeat driving rain, snow and wind. The good Bivies have anchor loops to make sure that you don't fall off the mountainside accidentally.
3) Like pissing with rain?
They unzip, If you're smart, you'll piss in a .75L plastic bottle. I do all the time. I'm therefore smart
Otherwise, stand up in the bivy, stick the tool out the opened zipper and piss. Hell, pooping is the HARD part LOL!4) How do you cook in poor weather? All you need is a 36"X36" vestibule or full tarp.
5) Sit up to change clothes?
It's not the Ritz Hotel. See TARP.
Keep in Mind that Bivies are for ultralight adventures, not Ulra- Luxurious adventures.
Last edited:
Problem with bivies is that they quickly get as heavy as a light tent (notably most the army ones).
Almost all bivies have condensation problems at some point, notably in below freezing temperatures.
I'd personnally recommand to have a look at the Hilleberg Bivanorak.
http://www.hilleberg.com/2006 Products/NewBivanorak.htm
It is quite light.
Reasonably bretheable.
Very convenient.
Not "too" expensive.
Makes a great bottom of the bag emergency shelter/poncho/windsack.
Almost all bivies have condensation problems at some point, notably in below freezing temperatures.
I'd personnally recommand to have a look at the Hilleberg Bivanorak.
http://www.hilleberg.com/2006 Products/NewBivanorak.htm
It is quite light.
Reasonably bretheable.
Very convenient.
Not "too" expensive.
Makes a great bottom of the bag emergency shelter/poncho/windsack.
I have a Tarptent (solo model---one of the older made-to-order ones) with the built-in floor, bug netting, and the small beak-like vestibule. Weighs about 24 oz.* and is much more roomy than a bivy, with no condensation issues because of the flow-through mesh ventilation around the base. I've used it on about 30-40 days of backpacking, including some rain and high wind, with good results. So far, I'm happy with it.
DancesWithKnives
*Using trekking stick for the main pole.
DancesWithKnives
*Using trekking stick for the main pole.
Mac,
Thanks for your answer.
What I learnt in walking the British Hills is to carry an Emergency Bivi bag.
It is a very large heavy gauge plastic bag.
Every walker carries one, and if you are caught short and are benighted, you just open your bag and in you go.
I did extensive winter camping in the Adirondacks, Green and White mountains.
I used either a poncho or a free standing tent.
A tent although heavier to carry, and harder to pitch gave me so much more protection especially on hard snow.
But it is quite amazing what sort of protection I could get in the snow with just a poncho.
For the summers I had a net tent with a ponch.
Also,
What is the weight of a tarp and a bivi combined?
How near is that to a solo tent?
When I am in the market for a new solo tent, I will look at what a bivi has to offer.
Thanks,
Neeman
Thanks for your answer.
What I learnt in walking the British Hills is to carry an Emergency Bivi bag.
It is a very large heavy gauge plastic bag.
Every walker carries one, and if you are caught short and are benighted, you just open your bag and in you go.
I did extensive winter camping in the Adirondacks, Green and White mountains.
I used either a poncho or a free standing tent.
A tent although heavier to carry, and harder to pitch gave me so much more protection especially on hard snow.
But it is quite amazing what sort of protection I could get in the snow with just a poncho.
For the summers I had a net tent with a ponch.
Also,
What is the weight of a tarp and a bivi combined?
How near is that to a solo tent?
When I am in the market for a new solo tent, I will look at what a bivi has to offer.
Thanks,
Neeman
- Joined
- Feb 8, 2004
- Messages
- 4,212
I'm with Pict. I really like hammocks...in fact both my kids now have Hennessy hammocks which they like (and carry themselves!). However, a bivi bag is quicker to bed-down, much easier and less dependent on the location. I also like a simple Siltarp, light and easy to use for a bunch of different uses.
ROCK6
The only bivy's I have experience with are the Army issue Gortex, in both the original woodland pattern MCSS (modular component sleep system) and the new ACU pattern.
The Gortex cover is "mummy" style so that you don't have to completely cover your face, but you can if you want. The only condensation problems I've ever had come from my breath hitting the gortex and me rolling into it. No problems at all with my body getting wet, only a small patch in front of my face.
Never tried a non Army issue sleep bag inside the bivy cover, but I don't see how it would work any different.
Sleeping out in the rain is difficult because the "tap tap tap" of raindrops on Gortex keeps me up, but it does keep you dry. A tarp or Poncho hooch makes life a lot more comfortable in the rain.
Jimro
The Gortex cover is "mummy" style so that you don't have to completely cover your face, but you can if you want. The only condensation problems I've ever had come from my breath hitting the gortex and me rolling into it. No problems at all with my body getting wet, only a small patch in front of my face.
Never tried a non Army issue sleep bag inside the bivy cover, but I don't see how it would work any different.
Sleeping out in the rain is difficult because the "tap tap tap" of raindrops on Gortex keeps me up, but it does keep you dry. A tarp or Poncho hooch makes life a lot more comfortable in the rain.
Jimro
I was always taught that bivvies need a tarp of some description overhead. My father once found out in the MORNING that he'd been sleeping in a puddle all night. His bivvy kept the water out. He has an Outdoor Research Advanced Bivvy. Lots of bivvies don't have a way to fully cover your face though, and you still need a place to stick your gear and change.