Talk me out of a bivy... Please.

[307]

Well, you guys failed and I bought a damn bivy...

The appeal of simply rolling it in/out quickly and being able to sleep nearly anywhere were too much to resist. Plus, my bag is a little on the light side as far as temp rating so the slight improvement there is helpful as well.

 

[sneaky]

Well, we led the horse to water lol

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[sneaky]

I was responding to the OP's mention of "simple and fast," since those seemed to be the major concerns. It doesn't get any faster or simpler than a pop-up, and the Burrow offers miles more room than a bivy, which is what the OP had initially been considering.

Miles more room? I think that's a wee bit of an exaggeration. I've used those in the Marines, they are a 2lb bivy, that's it. If I were buying a bivy, it would be a 5oz bivy.

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[bansheekitty]

My Burrow seems pretty roomy to me. Mind you, the one person tents I've used have all been pretty small, so the Burrow is comparable (it's even wider in the head area actually), just somewhat shorter in height. I'm not sure what bivies you've looked at, but I doubt there are any that approach the Burrow's width (not any 5 oz ones anyway). The roominess is specifically why I chose the Burrow over a bivy.

Anyway, we clearly have had different subjective experiences with the Burrow. My suggestion was in response to OP's #1 concern, which appeared to be quick and easy setup. Hence why I suggested the Burrow in the first place. Nothing aside from a bivy or similar pop-up is going to beat the Burrow's setup time of about 1-2 seconds. Based on the final decision, setup time clearly trumps extra space for them, and I hope they are happy with the bivy they bought.

 

[Ledd Slinger]

I tried a bivy. Way too cramped for me

The extra 2+ lbs pack weight is worth the added luxury of a 2 man tent to me. Dont pack camp while out hunting from spike but can still go back and move camp fast when I need to.

 

[307]

Well, we led the horse to water lol

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I'm more of a donkey but the point is valid.

 

[bowtech101st]

Cool man I really considered trying that setup. What do you think of the pocket tarp with the doors so far?

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So I took a couple pics of my new bivy set up in my yard. All in all, with the Z-Packs Pocket Tarp, XL bathtub groundsheet, groundsheet attachment kit, and 8 titanium shepherd hook stakes the total weight comes in at 11.5 oz. The pictures really don't do it justice, this Pocket Tarp is a lot roomier than I expected it to be. I have plenty of room to sit up, change, cook, store all my hunting gear, you name it.

I threw in a picture of my MLD Duomid for a size comparison

 

[CApighunter]

A Tarptent Protrail was too small for me, no way am I squeezing my ass in a bivy. Switched to a supertarp and haven’t looked back.

 

[307]

This horse is now thirsty!

So, I had the good fortune to spend a night in my new OR Helium bivy sack. It was memorable to say the least.

Backpack hunt with a small pack and minimal gear. Found myself on a ridge among the elk at dark so I decided to stay there and test my new bivy... Thunderstorms had cleared and I found myself a small perch and got to bed. The OR helium has a bug screen or a "hard top" option. Set it up with the bug version and all was relatively well (other than getting into the damn thing which is nearly a feat worthy of Cirque du Soleil) until a second round of storms came through. Rain and LIGHTNING that redefined my respect for nature's fury had me quickly deploying the "hard top" option, which I sort of held in place as to preserve some ventilation, rather than zipping it all tight.

After about an hour, I had seen the light...

Almost literally...

The condensation was really awful. Not sure if the inside or the outside of the bivy was more saturated. My down bag, which was barely warm enough for this trip, was now wet, at least on the outside... After the storm passed again, I decided to go back to "bug mode" to have much better ventilation.

The design of the OR Helium is that the "hard top" portion sort of gets wadded up and loosely attached to the single pole, which I had tied off to a branch above me. Shockingly, a wad of wet material hanging above your head, dripping cold water on your face, does not assist restful sleep...

So, after a bit of trying to fold/wrap/roll the material in a better way, which I determined was simply not possible, I bailed out.

Luckily, I had my LBO with me as a backup plan. I set it up and was very thankful to have thrown this redundancy into my kit, even when the primary goal was small/light/fast. I finally got some sleep and determined that REI could have this OR Helium back and I'll spend my $ elsewhere as I should have done in the first place.

So, there you have it.

This horse will now drink, as advised...

 

[dutch_henry]

Gotta agree with 307. Condensation that can make your bag sleep colder. No real place to get out of the weather or dry gear. I tried to like them but never got there.

I've been curious about these: Dan Durston X-Mid 1P Tent. At 28oz , it's chunkier than cuben fiber shelters, but given the size, full floor, and price ($200), I'd be okay with that.

 

[dog812]

I got my xmid in the mail yesterday. I am pretty happy with it.
I had the duomid, then the mountain shelter from Jimmy, then s.o lbo, my last tent was the lunar solo...
Now the xmid.
One thing I didn't like about bivys or single wall was the condensation... I just could never get it right.
So I am excited for a 29oz double wall.
I'll let you know how it goes.

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[bncrshr77]

This year I decided to have a versatile set up for just about any condition that came up.. I slept a couple nights on the side of the mountain in mule deer beds in the bivy only and when the terrain was right I threw up the pyramid as well!

Love being able to be super fast as well as have full protection for myself and gear if needed.

Whole setup under 4 lbs with stakes

Sleep system:

MLD event soul biivy... 8oz
Hyperlite mountain gear Ultamid duo... 19 oz
enlightened equipment 20 degree quilt... 22 oz
thermarest neo air x-lite pad... 12 oz
piece of window insulator film for groundsheet... maybe 1-2 oz>

 

[Superdutch]

Just curious if anyone had tried the Kuiu Ultra Star 1 person tent? I haven't but it seems like it could be the answer?

 

[rgrmike]

I just bought the Seek Outside Silex. Seems hard to beat if you run trekking poles and are going to be on the move.

 

[mmac]

I had to laugh at your storm experience, same for me last week in Colorado. I am surprised there is not more love for the Nemo Hornet. 2 lbs or so, enough for one plus my gear was dry with me. Not as light as some of the other set ups, but easy to set up and half the price.

 

[dutch_henry]

I got my xmid in the mail yesterday. I am pretty happy with it.
I had the duomid, then the mountain shelter from Jimmy, then s.o lbo, my last tent was the lunar solo...
Now the xmid.
One thing I didn't like about bivys or single wall was the condensation... I just could never get it right.
So I am excited for a 29oz double wall.
I'll let you know how it goes.

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Hey wow, thanks for posting this up dog. Looks awesome. You'll have to post a review once you get it out!

 

[Scooter90254]

Bivy’s are great for carrying. Not so great for sleeping in.

 

[Mike 338]

Talk you out... ok.

You'll get wet from condensation and they suck cause your basically in a casket. On the up side, for entertainment, you can count all the water droplets in the morning, two inches from your face.

 

[wildcat33]

I was about to ask if bivy sacks had changed any since I last tried them 10 yrs ago. Nope, sounds like you still get soaked with condensation.

 

[Jake Larsen]

Ever considered a Hilleberg Akto? I'd say it checks your boxes... Also, the weather protection for both rain /snow and not having to manage condensation is well worth the slight weight penalty IMHO.

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