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GEAR
GORP Tested: Bivouac Sacks
Which bivy sacks deliver tentlike weather insurance without tentlike weight?
By Paul Cleveland
Gear tester Steph Barss hard at work in the field |
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You could accuse bivouac-sack users of being loners, but you'd be wrong. Rather, they're just the practical sort. After all, why share a bulky, heavy tent with a smelly, grubby trip mate when you can weather a storm in a lightweight, compact personal shelter?
The bivouac sack, or"bivy" as it's known, is generally designed with the mountaineer in mind, but it's equally suited to other weight- and bulk-conscious outdoor travelers: day hikers who want that extra measure of safety "just in case"; long-distance cyclists; ultra-light hikers; and kayakers short on below-deck cargo space.
Some other bivy benefits: breathability, easy set-up, and a minuscule footprint that allows it to be pitched just about anywhere there's enough room to lay down. All in all, it's a great substitute for a tent if — and this is a big "if" — you can handle the somewhat-tight quarters inside a zipped-shut bivy sack.
To find out which bivies deliver tentlike weather protection without tentlike heft, we scanned the market to select nine sacks tailored to the needs of mountaineers and climbers. Then our five-person test team subjected the bivies to six months of cruel treatment in a variety of very foul weather and rated them on a scale of 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent). Check out our testers' top picks here.
The distinguishing feature behind each of the nine bivies in the test is simplicity in design. You'll find no small poles or other loose parts that can be lost easily in foul weather. Also, each of the bivies is lightweight and compact, and — by virtue of a combination of waterproof/breathable fabrics, flaps over the zippers, and taped seams — they appeared before testing to be stormproof. But as we found out, appearances can be deceiving.
Our gung ho bivy test team's goal was typically immodest: Find bivy sacks versatile enough to weather the arcticlike flanks of Denali, the clammy Cascades, and far-flung, bug-infested jungle rock walls. So, after nearly half a year of solitary confinement, did they succeed? Let's look.
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Look for zippers that follow the edges of the sack, where they are less exposed to the elements. Zippers that cross the vulnerable chest or face area are prone to leaking. We learned the hard way that zipper location on a bivy spells the difference between a merely uncomfortable wet night and a hellish epic. Still, all of the bivy sacks in the test leaked to some degree, and none approached the stormproofness or comfort of a tent.
Want an extra margin of weather resistance? Consider packing a lightweight tarp that can be rigged overhead.
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Article and photo © Paul Cleveland, 2000.
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