Michael Wheiler
2008-05-05 04:56:23 UTC
Andy:
The following is the text version of my LTR on the Big Agnes Sleeping Giant Pad Up-grade Kit. The full html version can be found at http://www.backpackgeartest.org/reviews/test/TESTS/LTR%20Big%20Agnes%20Sleeping%20Giant%20Pad%20Up-grade%20Kit/ . Thank you for your assistnace with edits.
Mike
LONG TERM REPORT
(May 4, 2008)
I used the Sleeping Giant Pad Upgrade Kit on February 22-23, 2008, during an overnight snowshoe hike near Kelley Canyon (elevation 6,177 ft/1,883 m). I had planned to leave work early but, as usual, I was delayed so I ate a hamburger and French fries while driving. By the time I reached the trail head, it was completely dark and I had to hike in by the light of my headlamp. The temperature was 26 F/-3 C. It was overcast and threatening to snow but there was no wind. The snow pack, typical for late February, was hard and icy. The trail I chose was fairly flat at first but then climbed steeply to the spot where I intended to camp for the night. I was carrying a fully-loaded backpack (48.5 lbs/22 kg). After about a 3/4 mile (1.2 km) hike, I reached my destination for the evening. I p
itched my tent and set-up camp. I used the Hinman pad with the Sleeping Giant. After setting up my camp, I went for a night snowshoe hike. The temperature remained pretty constant at 26 F/-3 C throughout the night even though it snowed approximately 1/2 in/1.3 cm. I slept in just light cotton underwear. I was warm and comfortable throughout the night.
On March 21-22, I snowshoed into Lower Palisades Lake (6,131 ft/1,869 m elevation). The round trip for this hike is 8 miles/13 km. Typical spring snow conditions existed--icy hard pack which, during the heat of the day, turned soft and grainy. However, with cold overnight temperatures, the snow froze hard and turned icy again. I was carrying a pack weighing 48 lbs/22 kg and I used snowshoes for the entire trek. While I was packing into my camp site, the temperature was warm enough that I only had to use a light jacket but it was overcast. I was sleeping in a single wall tent with a closed cell foam pad between the floor of the tent and the snow. I used the Sleeping Giant Pad Upgrade Kit with a Therm-a-Rest ProLite 4 pad. This pad is tapered from the head to the foot but it fit well
in the Sleeping Giant. When I settled into my tent for the evening, the temperature was 34 F/1 C. That evening, I ate a bagel and spaghetti with meat sauce. I drank nearly a liter of water mixed with Crystal Lite and a cup of hot chocolate. I slept in polypro long underwear.
Sometime during the night the weather cleared and the temperature plummeted. By 6:00 a.m., my thermometer outside the tent read 0 F/-18 C. Both water bottles were frozen solid as were my eggs which were in a plastic container wrapped in my extra clothes inside my pack. I had a second thermometer inside the Battle Mountain and it read 72 F/22 C. I slept well on the Sleeping Giant with the ProLite 4 pad. This combination provided great insulation and a comfortable bed. I was warm all evening.
I next used the Sleeping Giant on April 11-12, 2008 in Island Park near Henry's Lake (6,470 ft/1,972 m elevation). After eating lasagna, French bread, and brownies which were washed down with Crystal Lite punch, I set-up my single wall tent with a closed cell foam pad between the snow and the tent floor. While kneeing inside the tent, I unpacked the Battle Mountain, put the Hinman Pad inside the Sleeping Giant and inserted the pad into the sleeve of the Battle Mountain. This task was a bit awkward and difficult given the tight quarters in which I was working. Previously, I had performed the same task will kneeling outside the tent with the Battle Mountain and pad inside the tent. When I retired for the evening the temperature was 24 F/-4 C. Again, given the temperature, I slept in on
ly light cotton underwear. By 7:00 a.m., the thermometer inside my tent read 6 F/-14 C. I was so comfortable and warm inside the Battle Mountain that I really did not want to get up.
During the week of April 14-18, 2008, I used the Sleeping Giant while camping along the Clearwater River near Kooskie, Idaho (1,293 ft/394 m elevation). Temperatures during this four-day outing ranged from below freezing to high 60 F/16 C. We saw everything from snow storms and freezing winds to warm sunny days with light breezes. We were sleeping in a canvas wall tent with lots of room so I used the Battle Mountain with the Hinman Pad/Sleeping Giant Pad Upgrade Kit and a cot. While I have found the Hinman Pad/Sleeping Giant combination to provide ample insulation and padding, the cot increased the comfort of this sleep system and I slept soundly each night.
Of note is the fact that, on this last trip, the Sleeping Giant was rolled-up for the better part of 8 hours while traveling to our campsite. We arrived in a cold rain storm, set-up the tent and cot. I removed the Battle Mountain from the compression bag, placed it on the cot, assembled the Hinman Pad/Sleeping Giant combination and placed the pad into the sleeve.
Conclusions:
On each outing, I slept very comfortably on the memory foam of the Sleeping Giant in combination with a self-inflating pad and the Battle Mountain sleeping bag. I never felt any cold spots through the Sleeping Giant/pad combination. Although the Sleeping Giant has been rolled tightly on multiple outings and looks rather wrinkled, the foam always rebounds from the compression. The zipper worked properly and snagged only when I failed to pay attention to what I was doing while operating the zipper. I found it was helpful to place my pointer finger between the zipper and the foam/pad while zipping up the Sleeping Giant. Other than the wrinkling, I have not found any wear or tear in the shell material or the foam pad to date.
The memory foam conformed to the pressure points from my body and added a layer of comfort that I had not experienced previously in an outdoor sleep system. Clearly the Sleeping Giant adds to the weight of my pack but sometimes a piece of gear is "worth its weight in gold." For me, the Sleeping Giant fits into this category. My aging body really appreciated the added comfort and while it may not always make it into my pack depending upon the time of year and length of trip, the Sleeping Giant will be a regular piece of gear in my backpack.
My thanks to Big Agnes and BackpackGearTest for giving me the opportunity to test the Sleeping Giant Pad Up-grade Kit.
Return to the beginning.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------------------
The following is the text version of my LTR on the Big Agnes Sleeping Giant Pad Up-grade Kit. The full html version can be found at http://www.backpackgeartest.org/reviews/test/TESTS/LTR%20Big%20Agnes%20Sleeping%20Giant%20Pad%20Up-grade%20Kit/ . Thank you for your assistnace with edits.
Mike
LONG TERM REPORT
(May 4, 2008)
I used the Sleeping Giant Pad Upgrade Kit on February 22-23, 2008, during an overnight snowshoe hike near Kelley Canyon (elevation 6,177 ft/1,883 m). I had planned to leave work early but, as usual, I was delayed so I ate a hamburger and French fries while driving. By the time I reached the trail head, it was completely dark and I had to hike in by the light of my headlamp. The temperature was 26 F/-3 C. It was overcast and threatening to snow but there was no wind. The snow pack, typical for late February, was hard and icy. The trail I chose was fairly flat at first but then climbed steeply to the spot where I intended to camp for the night. I was carrying a fully-loaded backpack (48.5 lbs/22 kg). After about a 3/4 mile (1.2 km) hike, I reached my destination for the evening. I p
itched my tent and set-up camp. I used the Hinman pad with the Sleeping Giant. After setting up my camp, I went for a night snowshoe hike. The temperature remained pretty constant at 26 F/-3 C throughout the night even though it snowed approximately 1/2 in/1.3 cm. I slept in just light cotton underwear. I was warm and comfortable throughout the night.
On March 21-22, I snowshoed into Lower Palisades Lake (6,131 ft/1,869 m elevation). The round trip for this hike is 8 miles/13 km. Typical spring snow conditions existed--icy hard pack which, during the heat of the day, turned soft and grainy. However, with cold overnight temperatures, the snow froze hard and turned icy again. I was carrying a pack weighing 48 lbs/22 kg and I used snowshoes for the entire trek. While I was packing into my camp site, the temperature was warm enough that I only had to use a light jacket but it was overcast. I was sleeping in a single wall tent with a closed cell foam pad between the floor of the tent and the snow. I used the Sleeping Giant Pad Upgrade Kit with a Therm-a-Rest ProLite 4 pad. This pad is tapered from the head to the foot but it fit well
in the Sleeping Giant. When I settled into my tent for the evening, the temperature was 34 F/1 C. That evening, I ate a bagel and spaghetti with meat sauce. I drank nearly a liter of water mixed with Crystal Lite and a cup of hot chocolate. I slept in polypro long underwear.
Sometime during the night the weather cleared and the temperature plummeted. By 6:00 a.m., my thermometer outside the tent read 0 F/-18 C. Both water bottles were frozen solid as were my eggs which were in a plastic container wrapped in my extra clothes inside my pack. I had a second thermometer inside the Battle Mountain and it read 72 F/22 C. I slept well on the Sleeping Giant with the ProLite 4 pad. This combination provided great insulation and a comfortable bed. I was warm all evening.
I next used the Sleeping Giant on April 11-12, 2008 in Island Park near Henry's Lake (6,470 ft/1,972 m elevation). After eating lasagna, French bread, and brownies which were washed down with Crystal Lite punch, I set-up my single wall tent with a closed cell foam pad between the snow and the tent floor. While kneeing inside the tent, I unpacked the Battle Mountain, put the Hinman Pad inside the Sleeping Giant and inserted the pad into the sleeve of the Battle Mountain. This task was a bit awkward and difficult given the tight quarters in which I was working. Previously, I had performed the same task will kneeling outside the tent with the Battle Mountain and pad inside the tent. When I retired for the evening the temperature was 24 F/-4 C. Again, given the temperature, I slept in on
ly light cotton underwear. By 7:00 a.m., the thermometer inside my tent read 6 F/-14 C. I was so comfortable and warm inside the Battle Mountain that I really did not want to get up.
During the week of April 14-18, 2008, I used the Sleeping Giant while camping along the Clearwater River near Kooskie, Idaho (1,293 ft/394 m elevation). Temperatures during this four-day outing ranged from below freezing to high 60 F/16 C. We saw everything from snow storms and freezing winds to warm sunny days with light breezes. We were sleeping in a canvas wall tent with lots of room so I used the Battle Mountain with the Hinman Pad/Sleeping Giant Pad Upgrade Kit and a cot. While I have found the Hinman Pad/Sleeping Giant combination to provide ample insulation and padding, the cot increased the comfort of this sleep system and I slept soundly each night.
Of note is the fact that, on this last trip, the Sleeping Giant was rolled-up for the better part of 8 hours while traveling to our campsite. We arrived in a cold rain storm, set-up the tent and cot. I removed the Battle Mountain from the compression bag, placed it on the cot, assembled the Hinman Pad/Sleeping Giant combination and placed the pad into the sleeve.
Conclusions:
On each outing, I slept very comfortably on the memory foam of the Sleeping Giant in combination with a self-inflating pad and the Battle Mountain sleeping bag. I never felt any cold spots through the Sleeping Giant/pad combination. Although the Sleeping Giant has been rolled tightly on multiple outings and looks rather wrinkled, the foam always rebounds from the compression. The zipper worked properly and snagged only when I failed to pay attention to what I was doing while operating the zipper. I found it was helpful to place my pointer finger between the zipper and the foam/pad while zipping up the Sleeping Giant. Other than the wrinkling, I have not found any wear or tear in the shell material or the foam pad to date.
The memory foam conformed to the pressure points from my body and added a layer of comfort that I had not experienced previously in an outdoor sleep system. Clearly the Sleeping Giant adds to the weight of my pack but sometimes a piece of gear is "worth its weight in gold." For me, the Sleeping Giant fits into this category. My aging body really appreciated the added comfort and while it may not always make it into my pack depending upon the time of year and length of trip, the Sleeping Giant will be a regular piece of gear in my backpack.
My thanks to Big Agnes and BackpackGearTest for giving me the opportunity to test the Sleeping Giant Pad Up-grade Kit.
Return to the beginning.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------------------