Sleeping bag for Kilimanjaro

Sleeping bag for Kilimanjaro

Hi
I'm due to climb Kilimanjaro in the next few months and need a 3-4 season sleeping bag. Ideally, I'd like one that's light, doesn't take up much space and keeps me nice and warm. I intend to use the bag on my return for camping trips on my bike so again size and weight is important, but i don't want to freeze. Any advice gratefully received.

Thank you very much


Thank you very much for your email and for looking at www.walkandtravel.com.

It sounds like a great trip - some friends of mine went up Kilimanjaro last year and thoroughly enjoyed the walk.

The bag that I would recommend would be the Rab Quantum 600 Womens. This sleeping bag is one of the lightest and because it is down filled, with some of the best down available, it is highly compressible, therefore taking up minimal space. It comes with it's own stuff sack, but the sleeping bag can easily be crammed into a smaller stuff sack when needed. The sleeping bag is made from Pertex Quantum fabric which is one of the lightest available and also very high wicking, taking any sweat you produce in your sleep away from your body, helping to reduce chill from being damp in the sleeping bag.

Rab comfort rate this bag down to -12c which is 3+ season usage. Rab are usually pretty good at rating their bags for an 'average' person, but it is always worth remembering that different people feel warmer or colder in their sleep.

I would recommend getting a silk sleeping bag liner to go with the Rab sleeping bag. This will help to keep it clean as you can wash the liner rather than the bag. I recommend a silk liner as this won't impair the wicking abilities of the lining fabric as silk helps to transport moisture out to the liner fabric, whereas cotton will not and can leave you feeling cold and clammy and may reduce the warmth rating on the sleeping bag. A silk liner may add up to a half season of extra warmth to the sleeping bag.

Another great plus with a down sleeping bag is that they last a lot longer than a synthetic sleeping bag and with occasional use could last up to 20 years before you notice any great reduction in their performance. For a synthetic sleeping bag this can be as low as 7-10 years.

If price is a consideration that I would recommend the synthetic 3 to 4 season sleeping bag, Snugpak Softie Chrysalis Autumn - however it's pack size and weight to warmth ratio is not as good as the down sleeping bag.