Need suggestions for alternative sleeping system

[Tibbs735]

I would really appreciate your suggestions for a blanket, as an alternative to a sleeping bag.

I tried one of those surplus wool blankets, and it was uncomfortably cold (This was spring btw.) It also seemed a bit too heavy for the amount of heat it provided.

I've seen one product which was an invention of a long distance hiker; he basically removed the part of the sleeping-bag you lay on, so you had the foam mat under you, and the weird modified bag over the other 3/4 of your body. It was bright neon green, and only available in America, so not an option.

What I am looking for is a reasonably light way to stay warm, that doesn't trap me in a cocoon if I have to gtfo quickly

[Binnie]

DO NOT try the czech army sleep system, you'll get hypothermia in summer!

i too am looking for something like this, though nothing ever seems to beat the humble sleeping bag

[NorthernRaider]

Wool blankets are heavy and soak water up like a sponge, you could try a fleece blanket or poncho, failing that sew yourself something out of a piece of ventile.
http://www.ventile.co.uk/

[uks]

http://www.swagsnbags.co.uk/swag.html just a thought

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Remember you need as much insulation underneath you as you do on top of you.

[Binnie]

(13 July 2013, 11:18)uks Wrote: http://www.swagsnbags.co.uk/swag.html just a thought

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Remember you need as much insulation underneath you as you do on top of you.

apparently they saying is "1 layer under you is worth 3 layers over you"

i'd certainly agree with that!

[Highlander]

I am not sure that I can help here, but there maybe a clue in the way clothes were worn up here years ago

Before the Victorians developed the Kilt as we know it today,... the Scots had what they called the `great Kilt`, it was a tweed garment that covered the bottom and was thrown over your shoulder during the day,.... and wrapped around you to sleep in,... they would roll in the wet grass to insulate it

Now I am not saying you should go out and do that, but Tweed is still one of the better materials against wet and cold, its still worn by stalkers today

Now I dont own anything tweed,.. so I cant give a personal reference for tweed

[Mortblanc]

The eternal problem, the never answered question, the endless search.

There is no answer because no two people feel the same in matching systems.

I can not sleep when cold and I get cold easily. I have had several bouts of hypothermia and they have made me cold sensitive. I chill quickly.

I am also mildly claustrophobic and can not sleep in a "mummy bag".

I also do historic reenactments where sleeping bags are not welcome.

I was also combat infantry, when comfort was secondary to being able to roll out instantly.

There is an answer to all these problems, except for my reenactment issues, and it is money.

If you are willing to pay there are sleeping bags available that will allow you comfort, warmth and a zipper that flies open unhindered in a split second. You will find them at the top end of the price scale, not at the bottom or in the surplus market.

As for blankets, the only one that I have found that will keep one warm in temps anywhere close to the freezing mark is the old Whitney "horse rug". Their regular blanket will not do the trick. not for me anyway.

A blanket that is thick enough to keep out drafts and hold in heat at moderately cold temps will weigh 8 pounds. I have one and that is what it weighs. A Whitney horse rug big enough to wrap around me twice. At around 40f I require a second blanket of equal weight and when it reaches freezing I am going to be sitting up, wrapped up hugging the campfire.

My answer to the problems has been a combination of compromises. After years of dealing with one or another problem I decided to spend enough money to get part of my needs covered using two full sized high quality rectangular sleeping bags.

One is a lightweight unit. It has room in the foot, is warm down to freezing and only weighs 3 pounds. Also fits in a little bitty stuff sack. I did compromise on the zipper. That is not ideal but I can live with it. Using a rectangular bag one can shoot out of the top without touching the zipper if necessary.

The second is a heavy "jumbo bag' rated for 0 f degrees. It is heavy, near 8 pounds, and only used when transported by auto. Even with that bag I have been forced to use an additional blanket on occasion.

I lived through combat situations as an officer and I do not remember many times when I really laid down and slept while on a mission. Most of my rest was grabbed leaning against the back wall of a fighting hole wrapped in a blanket, hugging my weapon in a semiconscious state.

At my historic sites I wrap which ever bag I am using in a canvas cover or wrap it in my Whitney blanket in extreme cold. Sometimes when I read the journals and accounts of the past I think that the people of that day did not consider comfort what we do. Sometimes I do not think they considered "sleep" the same thing we do.

The "great Kilt" mentioned above was made from 9 yards of fabric 50 inches wide. That is a lot of fabric! One of the reasons they were "outlawed" was that they made the highlanders a uniquely efficient mobile force.

I have come to realize that there is no cheap sleep system that solves all the problems. Especially when EVERY person has a different comfort level, different preferences and different size needs. What works for me might be a total failure, or impossible, for the next fellow.

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I remember something about your troops in the Falklands abandoning their "sleep systems" so they could carry more ammo.

We often made the same decision. Eight pounds of sleeping bag or eight pounds of ammo was not a decision we even dwelt on. The ammo got priority.

Often we just carried a canvas sleeping bag cover or, most of the time, the quilted nylon poncho liner which we code named the "Woogy".

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In crisis you may have to make the same decision, or one like it.

[Rush2112]

personally, i found if i can keep my feet warm i'm generally ok.

maybe try those heated socks hunters use

[Highlander]

(13 July 2013, 17:10)Mortblanc Wrote: .

I remember something about your troops in the Falklands abandoning their "sleep systems" so they could carry more ammo.

You heard right, The British military sleeping bag is the inner to the Arctic sleeping bags, and although they are very good,.. I still use one now,... they are bulky

Many left the sleeping bag behind in favor of an extra jacket,..

[Mortblanc]

(13 July 2013, 18:13)Highlander Wrote:

(13 July 2013, 17:10)Mortblanc Wrote: .

I remember something about your troops in the Falklands abandoning their "sleep systems" so they could carry more ammo.

You heard right, The British military sleeping bag is the inner to the Arctic sleeping bags, and although they are very good,.. I still use one now,... they are bulky

Many left the sleeping bag behind in favor of an extra jacket,..

Leaves one to consider "alternative approaches" to these problems.

We get so accustomed to the cultural expectations that we ignore other alternatives.

We feel we must have bedding, and we must lie flat on a sleeping mat, and we must get 8 full hours at a stretch.

Any combat infantryman knows that in a tactical situation, the crisis of SHTF, one sleeps when they can and how they can, grabbing whatever comfort is presented no matter how meager.

I once rolled up in a GI poncho and slept on a flat rock during a pouring rain and was delighted to get any rest at all.

Why not an extra pair of wool socks for the feet and pulling one's arms inside the down parka while leaning against a fur tree hidden well under the low hanging boughs. Sleeping for two hours now and two hours latter as danger demands a move sooner than anticipated.

As a parallel to the Scot Highlander example I have documentation of frontiersmen in the Eastern U.S. who would lean against a tree and wrap themselves in a blanket and light a candle stub, placing it on the ground between their knees. The blanket would be draped over their heads and all the heat from the candle flame would be trapped under the blanket. I have done this using a candle lantern and it is very effective.

There is also a method called a "Dakota hole" that some have tried. I have not used that one myself but I know several that have tried it and claim it works.

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They make the Dakota hole and let it burn to coals, then cover the fire with dirt, leaving the chimney section open, then sit on top of the dirt covered coals.