sleepingbag or blanket ?

R

RSO66

Joined
Jan 17, 2005
Messages
18
i am wonder how many of you use a blanket over a sleepingbag i need to get a new one but i think i might go for a good wool blanket. and i was wonder what a lot of you use. thanks
 
I used to always use a surplus GI warm weather mummy, but I move around a lot when I sleep and get a bit clausterphobic. My last trip to the Sierra, I used a thin polyester blanket and a Swedish army wool blanket and really liked it. I was warm, and could move around more freely. The blankets are not too heavy, but they are bulky and harder to pack.
 
I definitely wouldn't rely on a single blanket in a place that gets even moderately cool overnight. A sleeping bag is just much more efficient all round - especially in terms of insulating ability, heat retention, weight etc.
 
I use both at various times but unless you have a desire to "live" in another time period the sleeping bag is much better. Blankets are heavy and bulky and hard to pack. Most packs have a sleeping bag compartment that will fit any modern bag without a stuffsack. Good wool blankets are also expensive, the Swiss mil blankets being the exception. If you are car camping then either would do.
 
I Cast a vote for sleeping bags, even though in the warm weather i often leave them unzipped or sleep on top of them.

Try This I have, Open your sleeping bag up and just jay it over you on a cold night then try zipping it around you you will find a big difference in warmth.
 
I had same Q on another forum and someone in the know said i would need to carry about FIVE blankets to get same warmth as a 3 season sleeping bag. For the weight alone i would go with the sleeping bag let alone how much room five blankets would take. Unless you got a nice Down blanket. I got one and its so warm that i sweat with it when outside is 20deg. No idea how some people can use it in the summer time.

sasha
 
I carried a wool blanket and then a wool saddle blanket for several years and was satisfied with their performance, but recently decided to shed some weight and give a bag a try. So I picked up a Slumberjack Ultimate 20 degree bag from Campmor and couldn't be any happier with it.
 
A high quality wool blanket is surprisingly efficient. I'm talking of a Pendleton or Hudson bay and there are some much better than those. A good one will cost three times as much as a reasonable sleeping bag, and weigh three times as much also. There is still much to be said about going on a trek with only gear that you would have had 150 years ago.
I have had some of the best times of my life wrapped in a wool blanket in front of a fire fixing my arrows for the morning hunt.
 
Depends on your use. In warmer weather I think you could get away with it. Be sure to have something underneath you to keep the cold out. When we car camp we use wool blankets on the air matress, but it takes a few. For backpacking, no way. Too heavy and not enough warmth. I use a Sierra Designs bag, it is an expandible mummy 15 degree. I can't think of the name. I use it year round. If I am too warm I just unzip it or sleep on top of it.
 
A bag and a silk inner works for me. If it get warm, I lay on the bad and just sleep in the slik inner. This also helps to keep the bag clean and increase the times between cleaning the bag.
 
Wool blankets do add versatility for a true "Survival" pack as they can be used as shelter, and still retain warmth when wet and I like to use them on true minimalist trips but for most excursions I still go with sleeping bags
 
As nice as wool blankets are, the sleeping bag wins if only for keeping out the inevitable drafts you get when using blankets. I wound up getting an inexpensive fleece bag and put my blanket inside to solve just that problem (and to keep the blanket clean) and plan to get a real bag before this fall. It's just easier.
 
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