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A few months back I entered to win my choice of gear up to a $150 value on one of Sierra Trading Post‘s 25th Anniversary giveaways (@sierratp on twitter). I had been looking for a down sleeping bag and when I saw the specs on the Vaude Ice Peak 150 Down bag I had to choose it. Luckily I won! I have been meaning to do a review for a while and so I finally got out the camera and put together a video (see below). But before that I want to show a bit more about this bag.
Specs
- 650 fill European Goose Down 90/10 down/feather
- Lightweight fabric with water-repellent treatment
- Shell material: 20 denier polyester ripstop Lining material: 20 denier polyester
- Body-contoured mummy cut
- Warmth collar and pillow compartment inside hood*
- Long side zip from collar to foot section
- Temp rating: 37°F
- Girth (shoulder/hip/foot): 59/56/40″
- Fits to: 6′ Length: 79″
- Stuff size: 11×5″
- Compression sack with pocket
- Weight: 1 lbs. 6 oz.
- Made in China
What I like about it
As a 1 to 2 season bag I’m quite happy with this. My favorite aspects of the bag are weight and compressed size.
The listed weight on this bag is 1 lbs 6 oz or 700 grams. Mine was actually a bit less (650 grams) and that is probably because it lacks a bit of insulating power. This weight can easily be dropped half an ounce by cutting down the compression straps.
When I ordered the bag I was surprised at the stuff size (11″ x 5″) and I assumed that was compressed. It wasn’t. That’s right, when you tighten the compression sack you can get this thing down to 7″ x 5″. I fit both this and my shelter (a golite cave) in my daughter’s school backpack and the size and weight combination meant it was easy for her to pack around! I might get her to carry them on the next backpacking trip!
I’m working on getting my base weight down for backpacking so I assumed that I would be adding a few degrees by wearing warm clothes inside the bag. I got a shock when (after ordering the bag) I saw a review saying there wasn’t any space for that! Well fortunately for my 5′ 10″, 170 lb frame I had plenty of room to spare and my puffy vest fit well on top of me inside the bag (see video for more details).
The sleeping bag boasts a trapezoidal baffle system, which means that you get the benefit of all that down without any cold spots.
There is an additional baffle across the zipper that prevents heat loss. A very nice feature.
What I would improve
As I said before, my bag was a bit underweight. While that would be nice for a tent or backpack, when it comes to a sleeping bag I’d rather have an ounce more of down fill and sleep a bit more comfortably. As well, the rating on the sleeping bag itself says 7 degree Celsius limit, which isn’t the 37 degrees advertised.
The name “Ice peak” covers the whole line of bags, but to me I would never consider this something worthy of an “ice peak”. Perhaps “cool summer peak”, but not Ice peak.
The material, although light have allowed a few pieces of down to escape already in its limited use.
There is no “warmth collar” as advertised. Unless they are referring to the pull string that tightens the mummy top. There is no neck baffle like there is for the zipper.
The bag temperature rating is not accurate. It rates the limit of temperature at 2 degrees Celsius (35 F). At 7 degrees (45 F) I was getting quite chilly in my tarp tent. At that point I added my puffy vest and fleece sweater around my ankles and slept comfortably. It is advertised online as a 35-40 degree bag and I can’t imagine being out in that weather without extra layers.
The zipper works well but to save a couple grams they used one that tends to get stuck when you zip it. It doesn’t look cheap though, just light weight.
The Conclusion:
Ok, I’m very happy with this bag as a 1-2 season bag. It is compact and light and keeps you warm down to the recommended warmth rating. I bought this to be used with insulating clothing layers to bring the temperature up without being pack weight up. It will do for that.
I was hoping for a couple more degrees on the bag (the 37 degrees F (3 degrees C) advertised on all websites) which would have made below freezing nights comfortable with extra layers.
Expect a long term review sometime in the long term.
Where can I buy this or other Vaude Ice Peak bags?
