Personal Biographical Information:
Name: André Corterier
Gender: M
Age: 34
Height: 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight: 80 kg (175 lb)
Chest: 100 cm (39.5 in)
Waist: 84 cm (33 in)
Shoulder Girth: 125 cm (49 in)
Email: andreDOTcorterierATfreenetDOTde
Home: Bonn, Germany

Backpacking Background:
I have started out with backpacking slowly – single-day 24 km (15 mi) jaunts by myself or even shorter hikes in the company of my little daughter. I am getting started on longer hikes, as a lightweight packer and hammock-camper. I’ve begun upgrading my old gear and am now carrying a dry FSO weight (everything carried From the Skin Out except food, fuel and water) of about 10 kg (22 lb) for three-season camping.

Year of manufacture: 2006
Manufacturer: Mont Bell Co. Ltd. (Montbell)
URL: http://www.montbell.com
MSRP: 255 USD

Listed Weight: 1 lb 6 oz/22 oz (624 g)
Measured Weight: 606 g (21.4 oz) for the bag, 24 g (0.8 oz) for the stuff sack, 630 g (22.2 oz) total
Listed Dimensions (Stuffed): 10.4 in by 5.3 in (26.5 cm by 13.5 cm)
Measured Dimensions (Stuffed): 11 in by 5.3 in (28 cm by 13.5 cm)

Introduction:
This is a light, elastic, mummy-shaped down bag with a hood. The manufacturer claims that I should be comfortable in it wearing nothing but a base layer in temperatures down to 32 F (0 C). It has a zipper running down almost the entire side of it. For a more detailed description of the bag, see my Initial Report.

Field Experience:
Over and above the testing done during the Field Report phase of the test, I have spent several more nights in this bag, finally including one in a hammock. Temperatures ranged from 8 to 18 C (46 to 65 F). Elevations were low, humidity and precipitation not a factor. The hammock night was extremely windy.

Comfort:
The Downhugger remains the most comfortable bag I have ever slept in. This is the result of light weight, adequate warmth for my use and the relaxed, huggy fit of the "Gathered Quilt" system. The fact that everybody else in my family likes to use the bag as a comforter means I sometimes have to look for it before I can pack it up to take it along.

Temperature Range:
To date, I have not been able to employ the bag at or below its listed rating (it got too warm around here too soon). Maybe I can post a follow-up in winter, once I have had a chance to try it out under such conditions. In the temperatures not far below 10 C (50 F) in which I have used the bag, I was very happy with the insulative properties of it. The only night in which I wasn't entirely happy was one in which I went to bed with cold, clammy feet. These failed to warm up during the night (the temperature was above 10 C/50 F in the evening, just below in the morning). I tried tightening the "Bottom Adjuster" of the bag to more closely envelop my feet, but did not find this to make an appreciable difference through the night. The rest of me was warm, so I'm not blaming the temperature range of the bag.

Hammock Use:
I have finally (after wrapping up a test of a combination shaped tarp/poncho) been able to test the bag in my hammock. As I surmised, the bag presented no special difficulties in this regard. In fact, the pronounced slipperiness which I remarked upon in my Field Report was in no way noticeable when used in this environment. I am guessing that the closed-cell foam pad I was using in the hammock provided more friction than the Exped Down Air Mat I used on the ground.

I particularly enjoyed the freedom of movement which the bag allows for during this night in my hammock. I have created a wide pad for use in my hammock, which allows me to sprawl in it without having the sides of my shoulders or arms or my knees get cold where they are off the pad and compress the bag against the hammock fabric. Getting into the bag was also fairly easy, even though the one I have has the zipper on the right side (the bottom access slit to my Hennessy hammock is to the left of my legs when I'm inside the hammock). Once I had it laid out on the pads, I could sit back into it, slide my feet into the "Bottom Adjuster", lie back and arrange the bag and hood around me with very little fiddling.

Wind Resistance:
It was very, very windy (read: storm, though no precipitation) the night of my hammock test and I had hung my hammock in a rather exposed place. Though I staked the fly down on the windward side and tightened it, there was still quite a bit of a breeze inside the hammock. This came from my right side, where the bag has its zipper. I felt a bit of a draft there every once in a while, where the breeze managed to get past the small draft tube. While I was ready to criticize this while it happened, I no longer feel that way. It was only a minor failing, and that in a rather extreme use of the bag (which is not a winter/mountaineering bag). Thus, constructing the draft tube not to let in a draft even under these circumstances would be overkill in all other situations, and additional weight which I would have to carry always. So I guess the draft tube is just right. I just need to follow my own advice and hang my hammock *inside* the woods.

Venting:
When trying it out in my hammock, because I don't like the feel of closed-celled foam directly against my skin, I was lying on top of / inside the bag. The night, though windy, was rather warm so I did not close the zipper of the bag more than halfway. During the course of the night, I twice moved the zipper up by a little bit. I have found this method of venting to be more effective for me than using the bag as a quilt. When I use it as a quilt and get too warm underneath it, I have to vent by flapping it a little, or else I leave a section of my upper body uncovered, which then tends to get cold. Having the zipper partially open seemed to distribute the warm/cool area better. This is likely more a general observation regarding quilts vs. bags, but it was my experience with this bag, so now you know.

Durability:
The bag has not been washed. It still looks like new. I have not seen any down sticking out or even escaping the bag during the Long Term report phase. I am now guarding the bag jealously, because I like it so much.

Specific Questions and Their Answers:

Warmth: Obviously – will I be warm enough in just a base layer down to freezing? Will I overheat in summer? How easy is venting with the zipper when it's zipped up, what is the spectrum of adequate warmth when I use the bag as a quilt? (I'll carry a little lightweight thermometer around to enable accurate reporting.) It's been quite warm down to 8 C/45 F with the hood only partially drawn. I've been able to make use of it up to just over 20 C/70 F.

Comfort: Will it fit me? (My shoulder girth is on the low side of the manufacturer's given range, as is my height – for the "Long" bag.) Yes, it does. Will I notice anything different on my skin regarding the "calendared" thread? No. Will the inner lining feel good? It's okay. Will it be clammy if I'm warm (or, worse, even if I'm cold)? No. Can I get into and out of the bag without problems, or is finagling the zipper open an exercise unsuitable for a sleepy person with a full bladder? I have not encountered any problems. Particularly, the bag has kept me warm enough that midnight potty breaks weren't necessary. Will the single draft tube prevent drafts? It hasn't been breezy enough to really test this feature, but I have felt no drafts inside the bag so far. How well does the hood fit, and how easy is it to adjust in the dark? Very (in both instances). Will the "Gathered Quilt" system of elastics sewn into the baffles make the bag feel roomier than its cut would imply? Absolutely. It works like a charm. If due to the way I turn I stretch the bag in the horizontal, will this reduce the loft in that area, resulting in a cold spot? I have not noticed this.

Packability: Does the bag really compress down to 5 by 8 in (12.5 by 20 cm) with the help of the compression sack? Yes. If carried without the compression sack (wrapped in a garbage bag or just stuffed into the last baffle with the help of the "Bottom Adjuster"), how much volume does it require? Hard to say - it's about the size of a normal pumpkin or a regulation soccer ball, but of course it can be compressed further.

Loft: How much loft is there? Just over 5 cm/2 in between my body and the outside when I draw the bag slightly out to allow measurement, thereby stretching it a little. I guess it has more effective loft where the "Gathered Quilt" system tucks it in. How quickly does it recover from being somewhat compressed or very heavily compressed? A bit of fluffing up seems to be all that is required. In various levels of humidity? Humidity has not affected the bag's fluffiness in any way so far.

Weight: Is the reported weight (1 lb 6 oz/620 g for the Long version) accurate? Yes - and it includes the stuff sack. How much does the compression sack weigh? 24 g/0.8 oz.

Durability: I am aware that such a lightweight sleeping bag, especially one that has considerably more weight in the down filling than in the fabric (!), requires care and will treat is as such. Still, if the zipper snags or I fail to notice a branch where I unpack the bag – will the fabric used (reportedly stronger than some fabrics twice the weight) be up to what wear and tear is unavoidable over four months (and hopefully beyond)? No issues at all. Will the calendared thread employed in the construction manage to avoid down leakage altogether? It seems that way.

Moisture Management: How much moisture does the bag take on (from the outside/from the inside)? The maximum total was shy of an ounce (28 g). How quickly does it dry? (A "felt" guess in the field, which I'll try to back up with measured weight from my gram scale when testing close to home.) Two hours in the sun took care of it - it might have been dry sooner, but that's when I checked on it. Will I be able to observe the DWR in action (I guess I'll try a bead test)? Yes. It works. Will it still be as good when I write my Long Term Report? Yes, it still works. I have read that DWR treatments tend to suffer badly under friction. As this bag has been stuffed and unpacked a good bit, I am impressed it's still holding up.

Bottom Adjuster: An interesting gimmick. Will it help me adjust the bag to my personal length and warmth requirements? Length - no. I *just* require the long length according to the manufacturer's online sizing chart and cannot shorten the bag this way. I have not noticed a warmth difference on my feet when cinching the bag around my feet. Will it be a good stuff sack for the bag? Yes. I usually pack it this way whenever I have a little room left in my pack. Or could I do without the added complexity? I could, but I prefer it this way. Is it easy to adjust in my hammock in the middle of the night? Will it stay the way I set it if I toss and turn a little? Well, adjusting it does require me to sit up and get at least one hand out of my bag - I did it with both of them when I did it, trying it one-handed was too much of a hassle. Once set, it did stay that way.

Vertical Box Construction: Keeping the down where it should retain most of the warmth is good, of course – but what if I sleep on my side? Will I have less down there then? What about my back (if I sleep on my side)? In my current bag, I can shift the down around on purpose – I guess I won't be able to do that here. Will that be good or bad? I have not had any issues in this regard at all. The bag has simply kept me warm all around. When I noticed heat loss, it was through the open hood and all I needed to do was close it.

Summary:
I like this bag a *lot*. It's been the most comfortable bag I have slept in - ever. While really roomy bags have also managed not to constrict me, they would create cold pockets which I would feel when moving around. This bag kept me warm *and* did not confine me, and I love it for it. Packing for a trip now begins by inserting the "green pumpkin" (the MontBell Downhugger packed into its Bottom Adjuster) into the bottom of my pack, and I'm always smiling when I do that.

Read more reviews of MontBell gear
Read more gear reviews by Andre Corterier

Long Term Report

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