[pct-l] RE: Western Mountaineering Highlite bag

[metam01 at earthlink.net (Monty Tam)]

Thanks Suge

Wow, an entire thru-hike review, and well constructed, from exactly where
I'm going to use it, and it's sounding very much like I am going to use it.
Should be in by tomorrow.

Monty

> [Original Message]
> From: Chris Willett <CWillett@pierce.ctc.edu>
> To: pct list <pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net>; <metam01@earthlink.net>
> Date: 2/28/2005 6:52:00 AM
> Subject: RE: [pct-l] RE: Western Mountaineering Highlite bag
>
> Here is the review that I posted last month concerning the same topic.
>
> Suge
>
>
> Reviewer: Chris Willett aka Suge aka Sugarmonkey
> Age: 29
> Height: 6'4"
> Weight: 190 lbs
>
> Locations tested:  2658 miles on the Pacific Crest trail this summer. 
Sleeping elevations ranged from 1000 ft to 11,500 ft and between May 9 and
August 21.  Environments included classic desert,desert mountains, high
alpine environments, forests, and lava beds.
>
> Similar products used: Marmot Arroyo
>
> Weight (as advertised): 17 oz.
> Weight (as tested): 18 oz.
> Price: $230
> Manufacturer's web address: www.westernmountaineering.com
> Phone number: 408-287-8944
> Email address: N/A
>
> Construction:  The Highlite is a 40 degree down sleeping bag constructed
out out a very lightweight shell and utilizing a 1/2 length zipper.  Rather
than continuous baffles (i.e, like a normal sleeping bag), the Highlite is
boxed quilted.  This means that the down in held in place in little boxes,
rather than in tubes that go across your body.  I used the 6'6" version but
there are 5'6" and 6' versions available.
>
> Fit:  The bag fits me very well indeed.  It is cut to a 60" girth in
long, 59" girth in the 6' and 5'6" versions.  I am broad chested and
initially thought that I would need a 62" or 63" girth, like my Arroyo. 
However, I never felt constrained in the bag, could thrash around to my
hearts content, and never felt confined.  Additionally, the tighter cut
meant that there was less air inside the bag to keep warm:  Thermally, a
tighter bag is more efficient. Before buying a larger bag, try on something
tighter and see how it treats you. You might like it.
>
>
> Initial Impression:  When I got the box that the bag came in, I was
rather dubious as to the existence of a sleeping bag actually inside.  I
was thrilled about the light weight and the minimal space it takes up: It
packs down to the size of a can of Fosters.  I was a little dubious about
some of the features however.  The shell material is very light and I was
unsure if it would hold up to a summer of use, particularly since I tend
not to pitch a tent and just sleep out, under the stars, with a ground
cloth and a Z-rest.  The box stitching was the next thing to worry me, as
all those stitches must surely let drafty air in.  Then there was the lack
of a draft tube.  Cold air must come in through the zipper, I thought. 
Then there was the zipper itself.  A little, flimsy thing that would no
doubt bend and break after I rolled over a few times onto rocks.  However,
despite all of my doubts, I took the Highlite with me on the PCT, rather
than my warmer, Ultralight (as a Western Mountaineering bag).  None of my
worries would become much of issue.
>
> Trail Test:  I was generally a hot sleeper when I started the PCT. 
During the course of the trail, I lost a good portion of my body fat and
become a more neutral sleeper.  I pitched a tarp perhaps a dozen times and
the rest of the nights were spent sleeping out under the stars. This meant
that I had no tent to provide additional warmth.  Sleeping conditions along
the trail varied. Southern California above 6,000 feet is cold, with many
nights below the bags 40 degree rating. Below 5,000 ft, it never got cold
enough for me to wake up and make a temperature estimate.  However, much of
the trail in SoCal is above 5,000 ft.  I moved through the Sierra Nevada
during most of the month of June.  I was camped above 10,000 ft for the
better part of 2 weeks. I got 2.5 inches of snow at 10,000 ft. on June
23rd, in the northern edge of Yosemite.  In short, it was very cold at
night, with frozen shoes, frosted gear, and lighters than would not work. 
Several nights the temperature reached the mid 20s.  Once I cleared Lake
Tahoe (roughly 1,100 miles), the night time temperature became more
agreeable, perhaps getting as low as 50 or 45) until reaching Washington,
when a cold front came through and dropped night time temperatures into the
40s at times.
>
> Not to be dramatic about things, but the Highlite was overwhelmed for the
most part by the cold weather.  It wasn't so much the cold air coming in
through the stitching (which is tight) or the zipper as it was the lack of
down.  This is a 40 degree bag, no more, no less.  I would always sleep in
a silk liner.  On several days in Southern California and for the 400 miles
through the Sierras to Tahoe, I added medium weight thermals, an insulated
pull over, a hat, gloves, and socks.  I would still wake up cold around 3
am and only be able to sleep fitfully until the sun came up.  In order to
avoid bear problems in the Sierras, I slept high up, usually just after
coming off of a pass, rather than down lower in the forested valleys. 
After Tahoe, when the night time temperature was more moderate, I generally
slept just in my drawers with the liner.  In northern Washington I
generally put on my thermals. This represents the bulk of the trip, so I
would say that, minus a few weeks, the Highlite was warm enough for me.  I
just wished I had my Ultralight sent out to me for the Sierra to Tahoe leg,
although there were times in Southern California when I would have liked
the warmer bag as well.  The 40 degree rating really helped in far northern
California and Oregon, where a combination of warm nights (low 60s) and
abundant mosquitoes made sleeping in a 20 degree bag (as some friends had
to do) unpleasant.  The mosquitoes were tough enough to bite through my
(and others) silk liner and most bug netting is designed only to cover the
head and chest area.  While friends roasted, I slept well.
>
> The bag had no durability issues.  The shell held up, except for a small
hole where some ashes burned through (smoking with the hood cinched down
can be difficult).  The zipper shows no signs of wear.  The bag stinks only
moderately, for which I credit the use of the silk liner, which smelled so
bad after 2150 miles that I finally washed it.  The shell does a reasonable
job of repelling water, although I had to avoid sleeping in meadows as the
condensation would generally start to kill the loft.  Condensation from
sleeping in the open is a much more serious problem in the West than in the
East or the South, but combating it was simple.  Recognize spots where you
are likely to get condensed on (meadows, next to a lake, etc) and either
don't sleep there or sleep near something that will catch most of the
condensation.  For example, sleeping under a tree with lots of low
branches.  Or, pitch your tarp.  There were some mornings in California
when I would wake up with the down thoroughly damp.  However, this was not
much of a problem due to the weather in California:  You are almost assured
of a warm, sunny day.  When I stopped to cook in the afternoon, I took the
bag out, put it in the sun, and it would be dry in 20 or 30 minutes.
>
> Conclusions:  I would highly recommend the Highlite for long distance
hiking in moderate temperatures.  It is durable enough to last a long trip:
Mine will be going with me on future long hikes.  Used with a liner, you
won't have to wash the bag no matter how smelly or dirty you happen to be. 
In the warm summer months, it is perfectly adequate for most places (i.e,
below 11,000 ft) that long distance hikers are likely to camp.  Used with
thermals, an insulating piece, hat, gloves, and socks (which you are
carrying anyways, right?), the bag can be pushed comfortably to the
freezing point. You will be safe, but not comfortable, in the mid 20s. 
Note that using a newer sleeping pad will help you stay warm. I switched to
a new Z-rest in Sierra City (mile 1191) and felt that it made a huge
difference in how warm I was at night.
>
> If I were to start an AT hike, for some bizarre reason, in March, I would
take my Ultralite, or perhaps the Highlite with my bivy sack.  If I were
starting in late April or the start of May (as sensible people do), I would
just bring the Highlite.
>
> Alternative recommendations:  If you are looking for a larger cut bag and
perhaps a little warmer, Western Mountaineering makes a bag called the
Megalite:  Rated to 30 degrees, 64" girth, and a 25 oz. weight.  I've found
that my Marmot Arroyo is not accurately rated to 30 degrees, is much
heavier than advertised, and loses its down quickly.  I've already had it
restuffed by Marmot, despite being only three years old.  It is now my car
camping bag. Yeah, it really is that good!
>
>
> ---------------------------
> Christopher Willett
> cwillett@pierce.ctc.edu
> www.pierce.ctc.edu/faculty/cwillett
> Pierce College
> 9401 Farwest Drive SW.
> Lakewood, WA. 98498-1999
>
> > ----------
> > From: 	pct-l-bounces@mailman.backcountry.net on behalf of Monty Tam
> > Reply To: 	metam01@earthlink.net
> > Sent: 	Sunday, February 27, 2005 12:44 PM
> > To: 	pct list
> > Subject: 	[pct-l] RE: Western Mountaineering Highlite bag
> > 
> > Thank You 
> > 
> > Any other comments??
> > 
> > Two Legs says too tight.
> > Ed..... said
> > Too tight.........went to Mega light
> > Poetic reviews
> > 
> > Another seasoned packer says "I love it".  Thank You Judson.
> > 
> > Everything here still says yes for my style.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > A-16 will probably call me tomorrow to look at one.  (65 miles)
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > > [Original Message]
> > > From: Gustafson <jgus@sunbow.org>
> > > To: <metam01@earthlink.net>
> > > Date: 2/27/2005 12:03:37 PM
> > > Subject: WM Hilite bag
> > >
> > > Hi, Monty Tam
> > >
> > > I used this bag on the 600 miles of the PCT I did in 2003.  First: 
It 
> > > was a very tight fit!  I don't like that so I removed the Half-length 
> > > zipper, kept the area open where the zipper had been (as if the
zipper 
> > > were merely open) and used the lower half of the bag as a leg pouch. 
I 
> > > then arranged the top half of the bag over me like a quilt.  I sleep
in 
> > > 100 wt fleece pants and 100 wt fleece long sleeve pullover (also my 
> > > evening camp wear) plus a fleece cap so I was warm enough, even on a 
> > > closed cell foam pad.  That is, I was warm enough on a night that had 
> > > little wind, and wasn't particularly cold.  Problem:  that was a
rather 
> > > cold season from Campo to Wrightwood (I jumped from there to KM), and
I 
> > > wasn't often warm enough.  I wound up putting on more clothes, 
> > > including sometimes my Frogg Toggs.  When I went back to the trail a 
> > > few weeks later for the High Sierra portion, I had  longsleeve
capilene 
> > > lightweight shirt to wear under the fleece top, and often wore
ordinary 
> > > pantyhose under the fleece pants.  I also had a 9 ounce Bibler winter 
> > > bivvy bag (made of Epic wind resistane, very water resistant, very 
> > > breathable materia.  This bag is now sold by Black Diamond) which
added 
> > > warmth and water resistance to my bag.  This was a good thing, as I
no 
> > > longer worried about brushing condensation off the insides of my 
> > > tarptent and getting the down bag wet.  All in all, the bag didn't do 
> > > the job for me.  I now have a Marmot Hydrogen, which is warmer,
roomier 
> > > (I can zip it up, which is a good thing), and just about as light.  I 
> > > still use the Bibler bivvy bag, and still wear my fleece jammies, and 
> > > stay toasty warm on cold nights in the Sierra.
> > >
> > > Hope the info helps.
> > >
> > > Regards,
> > >
> > > Two Legs 
> > >
> > 
> > 
> > 
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