Waterproof: Mammut Shield Sleeping Bag
August 13, 2009
Using a tent and sleeping bag or sleeping bag and bivy sack is so old school now that the Shield is on the market. The Mammut Shield is a waterproof shelter and 15-degree down sleeping bag rolled into one to make an expensive lightweight shelter. It’s essentially a waterproof sleeping bag. With no seams on top and seam-sealed stitches on the bottom, the roughly 2.5-pound Shield protects you from rain, snow and sub-freezing temperatures. It also has a stiffened visor that comes down to your nose to help keep you dry when you sleep.
If I were a bivy-sack fan and didn’t care whether or not I drowned when it rained, or I planned on backpacking when nobody within 100 miles did a rain dance, I’d be all for it. It seems counterintuitive to combine a down sleeping bag with a waterproof/breathable material, but Mammut seems to have pulled it off. Designed for the minimalist backpacker who wants to conveniently hike light, the entire bag, which has a half-length zipper on either side, packs down to about 6.5 liters. The Shield is available now for $530. www.mammutusa.com
—Ryan Dionne
The above link took me to wilderness sysytems kayak page. Oh this sleeping bag, I am SURE there will moisture and condensation INSIDE the bag with this setup, no Goretex or event fabric is THAT breathable. The vapor barrier needs to be BETWEEN the person and the insulation to work properly…to quote Lynn Weldon…who are you trying to kid?
If this bag is what the specs say — 2.5 pounds, 15 degrees, waterproof, breathable — it will be a godsend of a product for ultra-lighters. I would have loved to have had this setup on a few recent backpacking and mountaineering trips where I brought a bivy and a bag. They weighed more together and were no where near 15 degrees warm. Will try and get my hands on one soon for a test. . .
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It’s not at all counterintuitive and it’s not necessarily for rain. It’s move the condensing point of moisture closer to the shell of the bag. In cold, dry conditions the bag will stay drier and lighter longer. On North Pole expeditions the bags can gain 40-50 pounds of water weight, they gain substantially less with a Gore-Tex or Event laminate shell. If it were such a stupid idea than Mountain Hardwear and Feathered Friends wouldn’t make comparable bags.