The
Electra is different than other bags I have used in a few ways.
First of all, it is the first Sierra Designs bag I've tried. It
is also the first bag I have used with a women's specific cut. I
have been interested in trying these out since Sierra Designs introduced
them a few years ago, and so far I've found the differences to be
beneficial to this woman! It is the only bag I've used with a waterproof
shell (instead of a bivy) and it is also the warmest (temperature rating)
bag I've ever slept in.
During
the Long Term Test period I used the Electra on two nights on two separate
trips.
The
first trip was an overnight snowshoe to Woods Lake near Carson Pass in the Sierra
Nevada. Elevation was approximately 8,250 ft (2500 m)
and temperatures were around 15 F (-9 C) during the
day and at bedtime, 9:30 pm, my weather station read 6 degrees F
(-20 C). I did not take an overnight low temperature reading,
but the forecast had temperatures dropping below 0 degrees F (-18 C) that
night. Some lucky folks in our group slept in snow shelters,
but we braved the temperatures in our tent.
In my
Initial Report, I talked about my personal sleeping style. I
am a cold sleeper, and that's true at home under a pile of
blankets or in a sleeping bag in a tent. I have never been
able to take a sleeping bag near its temperature rating without
having a very uncomfortable night. This means I typically
carry a sleeping bag rated for much colder conditions than
I actually expect. I usually have to correct by about 20
degrees. So for this subzero night at Woods Lake, I expected to be pushing my
comfort limit in the Electra.
I was
wrong! I was really surprised at how warm I was all night
long. About half an hour before heading to bed I tossed a hot water
bottle in the foot of the bag. This warmed it up for me so that when
I went to bed I didn't have much work to do. In preparation for a
cold night, I had extra layers, down to stuff in the dead space around me,
and chemical handwarmers available if needed. I actually ended up
having to unzip the bag for a while since I was warm! This rarely
happens - I usually wrap up tight when I am in a sleeping
bag, with everything cinched tight around me.
One
thing that I noticed on this trip, but no others, was that the zipper was
a bit difficult to get zipped all the way up. It caught briefly, and
once I got it untangled my hands were cold and I had some difficulty
getting it zipped up the rest of the way. This is the only time that
the zipper has caught on me, and for the most part it has performed just
fine.
When
I packed up the bag in the morning there was a lot of dry snow that got
into the tent. Much of this snow got packed in with the bag in the
stuff sack. Hours later when I was home and unpacking, I took the
Electra out of the stuff sack. All the snow had melted, of course,
but I expected the shell to have soaked through with the pressure of the
stuff sack. Instead, the water was beaded up nicely on the shell and
the bag was bone dry once wiped off. It truly is a waterproof
shell!
The
second trip was car camping in the snow at Calaveras Big Trees
State Park. A big campground in the summer, they only
keep one loop plowed in the winter, and campers have
to dig out their own picnic tables, fire pits, or bear
boxes. Since most people seem to think camping in the snow is crazy,
the park was deserted. The only difference to backcountry
snowcamping was that I didn't have to carry everything in on my
back!
Temperatures
were much warmer on this trip, just below freezing at bed time, but
once again the Electra was the perfect sleeping bag. I crawled in
and warmed up quickly, staying warm and cozy all night long. In the
morning I woke to the sun shining on the tent. The previous
day's rain and snow had blown out and left us with a bright and sunny
warm day. I started to warm up quickly with the sun beating down on
the tent, but it was time to wake up and get to making coffee
anyways.
Once
again the waterproof shell was useful since the previous day it had
been raining and snowing. We managed to get some good
puddles in the tent, but every time the Electra came in contact with
the melted snow puddles or condensation drips, nothing
soaked through. I could simply wipe the bag off and it was dry.
Conclusion:
I
have been extremely pleased with the Electra. It has been a joy to
use this bag this winter, especially since it has been my first winter of
staying truly warm all night long. My favorite feature is the shape
of the bag. When I lay flat I can touch my feet to the bottom.
It is also a bit 'tighter' than most bags since it is cut narrower for a
woman. However, I can crawl into this bag and warm up the space much
quicker than any other bag I own. Not having all the extra volume to warm
up with my typically cold body means that I can warm it up before my body
starts to slow down and cool off even more. It has always been a
race in the past - can I warm up the bag before I start to get cold?
Usually the answer is no, and I spend about half an hour freezing away
before warming up enough to fall asleep. In other larger bags, every
time I toss and turn I find a new pocket of cold that needs
warming up. This is definitely different with this womens cut
bag. Initially I worried that the smaller space would feel
restrictive, but the benefits far outweigh any perception of 'tightness'.
Now that I know how much effect this can have, all of my future
sleeping bag purchases will be made with this in mind. Thanks
to BGT and Sierra Designs for keeping me warm all winter
long!
