UL sleeping bags FF vireo + cilogear 30L pack

[Laughingman]

Hi everyone, does anyone have experience with the feathered friends vireo? I am 6ft tall and am torn between the 68in version and the 72in version. Complicating the decision i end up sleeping on my belly a lot of the time. Any advise would be helpful.

 

Also does anyone have experience with cilogear 30L pack? I am under the impression it lacks a frame sheet is this true? Also has anyone been able to stuff enough gear into the pack for a 2 day trip?

[Dane]

Get the long one. And if it is cold you'll want a hooded jacket.

 

 

[BootsandPants]

I've been using the Vireo since the beginning of the year, so my experience is pretty limited, but so far I really like it. Very light and has the ability to be used in the summer as well as the winter with the right coat. I'll use a FF Volant when it's colder and my lighter pile jacket when warmer, or just the bag if really warm.

As for height; I'm 5'8" and I can get the regular length bag cinched around my shoulders with a little wiggling. I'd go for a long if I were you. Another option would be to pop by their store and try them out.

It's a very versatile piece of kit that, so far, I've found works great in our range here.

[Fromage]

I have been using the Vireo for about 5 years. Best bag I have ever owned. From my fleet of many bags this is the one I use about 70% of the time. Coldest I've used it was in the upper 20s in winter in the North Cascades (with a hooded Volant), have also been comfortable on several Rainier climbs (even in May).

 

You can rent a Vireo from FF and if you like it they will apply the cost of the rental towards your purchase. The store used to have a deal where if you bought the Vireo and a jacket together you'd get a 15% package discount.

 

Buy this bag. The long one. Pair it with a Hooded Helios for summer & shoulder season trips. You will wish you had discovered this combo years ago.

 

I have a Cilo 45l that has worked for 2-day trips, but it is a squeeze. And that is with my Vireo, a tarp tent, rack, rope, and compact stove/pot. A 30 might be stretching it. I think FF also has one of these you can borrow for free to try out.

[featheredfriends]

Laughingman, at 6ft tall we would definitely recommend that you go with the 72" model Vireo. Although not always necessary, the ability to cinch the top above your shoulders (rather than in your armpits) is pretty critical when using the bag towards the bottom of its temperature rating. As mentioned above, when paired with our Volant Jacket the bag is good for the mid 20s (this is my preferred setup for Rainier) and with a lighter jacket such as our Hooded Helios or Hyperion the bag is good for the mid-upper 30s. The bag also works great by itself as a light summer bag for overnight temps around 40-50.

 

Personally I have been using a Vireo since the spring of 2008 and have never looked back. Usually on longer trips I will take a bag like our Swallow or Lark with a full zip for more comfort but for shorter trips I always go for my Vireo; I have also used it on trips up to 9 days long when saving weight/bulk was critical.

 

Regarding your question on the CiloGear pack, you are correct it does not have the HDPE framesheet/aluminum bar, it just has the folded over EvaZote very stiff crosslinked foam with almost the same thermal insulative properties of EvaZote back pad. I have managed to cram a 4-day Rainier trip into my 30L but typically use it for in-a-push climbs or climbs with only one overnight. Depending on the bulk of your other gear and how well you pack you should probably consider bumping up to the 45L and just taking the framesheet out/leaving the lid behind when you want to save weight for shorter trips.

Edited September 2, 2011 by featheredfriends

[chubler]

Yup, as mentioned above - no framesheet just the EvaZote pad.

 

How much can you stuff in there? Ask Kyle Dempster....

http://blog.cilogear.biz/?p=1286

 

I'm always surprised how much I can stuff in my 30L.

[NotMessner]

I’m 6’ 2” and my 72” Vireo (with an eVent outer layer) pulls up over my shoulders and cinches around my neck, but just barely. If the bag was any shorter, I couldn’t do it. If I want to use the bag as an Elephant’s Foot, I cinch it under my armpits or lower. I do not know if they will build one with eVent anymore.

[crackers]

Yup, as mentioned above - no framesheet just the EvaZote pad.

 

How much can you stuff in there? Ask Kyle Dempster....

http://blog.cilogear.biz/?p=1286

 

I'm always surprised how much I can stuff in my 30L.

 

in case you don't know, i own cilogear.

 

Just a note about the pad in the CiloGear packs. It's not EvaZote. EvaZote is extremely floppy even in the highest densities and doesn't carry a load well as a result. CiloGear uses a very stiff crosslinked foam with almost the same thermal insulative properties of EvaZote for the back pads to allow for the best possible load transfer, carrying and sleeping on in a pinch.

 

Kyle is obviously a different character, using a 30L for EIGHT DAYS! Well, he's not called the Alpine Silverback for nothing.

[Blake]

If you can't fit 2 days worth of stuff in a 30L, take less stuff. With a rope folded over the top and along the sides, plus the lid, it carries a lot of gear.

[Sol]

I just used my cilogear 30L pack for an 8 day trip into the picket range. It was the best performing pack of the group and worked great. I highly recommend it.

 

Also, I was able to use a FF vireo as well. Awesome sleeping bag. Light, warm, packable. It is a bit constricting without a zipper and not wide enough to sit cross-legged in. But when I can afford it, i'm gonna pick one up for myself.

[robpatterson5]

I really like mine - size it to cinch around your neck, very much depends on the other insulation your packing but I reach for mine before my 2lb 15degree bag

[chubler]

 

Just a note about the pad in the CiloGear packs. It's not EvaZote. EvaZote is extremely floppy even in the highest densities and doesn't carry a load well as a result. CiloGear uses a very stiff crosslinked foam with almost the same thermal insulative properties of EvaZote for the back pads to allow for the best possible load transfer, carrying and sleeping on in a pinch.

 

My bad. Whatever the properties...it does the job well.

[keenwesh]

45l cilogear pack can easily hold a weeks worth of backpacking gear/food. I wouldn't go any smaller though. I don't think I could get a pickets traverse sized load of gear in a 30... whats the weight difference anyway? I picked up the 45 worksack last spring and have used it a ton. best pack I've ever owned hands down.

[fenderfour]

+1 for the Vireo. I've used it for about a year. I need a slightly warmer puffy to pair it with, though.

 

I'm a huge fan of the Cold Cold World packs. The Chernobyl and the Valdez are really good small overnight bags. They are decidedly old school. I have owned older Cilogear packs. They were nice, but I preferred the simplicity of the CCW.

 

 

[Woodcutter]

I climbed Buckner N Couloir last Oct with the 30l CIlo pack as part of a 3 man team. It can work, the pack does becomes uncomfortable if overloaded, I can still remember the pain in my shoulders now form the approach, but that may be from carrying really heavy skis earlier in the season, can't remember.

 

I also used (& still use the vireo & helios combo (both with 2oz overfill) on that trip and was just about right.

The vireo combo is great for me cos I don't sleep like a corpse on my back, I squirm around all night and you don't and up getting twisted in a full bag with the hood upside down.

 

I packed for Rainier last weekend into the 30l Cilo, but re-packed into a 40l MEC pack for an easy life.

 

Love the pack though, just don't overload it. Love the Vireo combo, saves carrying sleeping bag & puffy parka.

Edited September 16, 2011 by Woodcutter