Backpacker Magazine – April 2009

Gear Guide 2009: Sierra Designs Nitro 30 Sleeping Bag Review

This full-featured bag is light, warm and comfy. It gets our best all-around summer bag tag.

by: Steve Howe

Tags:
• Camping
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• Gear
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• Sleeping Bags
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Best All-Around
Light, warm, compressible, versatile, and affordable–this is the summer bag that most alpine hikers want. The 800-fill Nitro kept one tester toasty in Idaho's Sawtooths on nights that dipped into the high 20s. Warmth is enhanced by a hood, elastic baffles that eliminate dead space (while allowing unrestricted toss-and-turning), and a half-length zipper that keeps weight down and thermal efficiency up.

But it's not too warm on mild nights, thanks to a zip in the footbox that enhances ventilation. Quibble: The hood perimeter bunches up when you cinch it down to blowhole size, but that's a trivial complaint given the price and performance. Women's version is the Spark. $289; 2 lbs. 2 oz.; 30°F

Sierra-designs.com

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