Poser
WKR
In the never ending quest to lighten my load, I recently added a MLD “Superlight” bivy with the Cuben Fiber floor upgrade to my quiver.
First impression: this thing is LIGHT! Touted weight the the CF upgrade (+$70) is 5.5 oz for the medium. On the scale, mine is actually 4.7 oz. that’s freakin’ light.
Test: I took this with me on a recent 6 day summer scouting trip where weight was going to be a sensitive issue due to the severity and off piste nature of the terrain. I used it in conjunction with a simple 8.5x6.5 tarp and was camped very exposed, above treeline 4/5 nights.
So, I was slightly over the suggest weight limit of 185# for a medium by about 10#. However, with the size large accommodating a lot of length and I am an athletic profile, I expected the medium to work just fine. Turns out, I should have ordered the large and, when laying in my side and zipped up, the bivy sack is fairly tight around the hips. I don’t mind right as I toss and turn and that seems to keep me still like a gravity blanket, but this is down compressing tight.
The cuben fiber floor is a great option and kept me dry even when the alpine tundra puddled up on my second night out. The top sheet is 10D 3x DWR, which I expected to be sufficient, but turned out to be a little too thin for this particular trip where I had some hard rain coming into the tarp during hard wind gusts.
Conclusion: size up. If you are using a partial tarp like me, I don’t think this is the best option for sustained weather. It’s doable. I got by fine, going forward, I think this particular bivy will serve primarily as my emergency bivy in my backcountry ski pack and for ultralight focused trips where sustained rain is minimal. Especially for bike trips. The 10d top sheet just doesn’t stand up to much moisture, that being said, it’s breathable enough that condensation should never be an issue.
First impression: this thing is LIGHT! Touted weight the the CF upgrade (+$70) is 5.5 oz for the medium. On the scale, mine is actually 4.7 oz. that’s freakin’ light.
Test: I took this with me on a recent 6 day summer scouting trip where weight was going to be a sensitive issue due to the severity and off piste nature of the terrain. I used it in conjunction with a simple 8.5x6.5 tarp and was camped very exposed, above treeline 4/5 nights.
So, I was slightly over the suggest weight limit of 185# for a medium by about 10#. However, with the size large accommodating a lot of length and I am an athletic profile, I expected the medium to work just fine. Turns out, I should have ordered the large and, when laying in my side and zipped up, the bivy sack is fairly tight around the hips. I don’t mind right as I toss and turn and that seems to keep me still like a gravity blanket, but this is down compressing tight.
The cuben fiber floor is a great option and kept me dry even when the alpine tundra puddled up on my second night out. The top sheet is 10D 3x DWR, which I expected to be sufficient, but turned out to be a little too thin for this particular trip where I had some hard rain coming into the tarp during hard wind gusts.
Conclusion: size up. If you are using a partial tarp like me, I don’t think this is the best option for sustained weather. It’s doable. I got by fine, going forward, I think this particular bivy will serve primarily as my emergency bivy in my backcountry ski pack and for ultralight focused trips where sustained rain is minimal. Especially for bike trips. The 10d top sheet just doesn’t stand up to much moisture, that being said, it’s breathable enough that condensation should never be an issue.
