The Kelty Sleeping Bags Guide

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If you are thinking about purchasing Kelty sleeping bags, then there are a few basic guidelines that you will want to consider before making a decision. It's important to select the right sleeping bag for the conditions that you may be exposed to.

Kelty is a very reputable brand that has a long history and their sleeping bags are amongst the bestselling sleeping bags due to their reliability and value for money.

We have outlined a few simple guidelines to help you make the right choice when choosing your sleeping bag whether it's a Kelty sleeping bag or any other brand that you may be interested in.

First you will need to think about the sort of environment you planning to venture into along with the climate. Also think about whether you will be doing a great amount of hiking as this will determine if a lightweight bag is needed.

You will also need to decide on what shape sleeping bag you prefer, as there are a few to choose from and each has different thermal qualities.

What Season Is It!

Kelty sleeping bags come in three different categories according to season. They are Warm Weather, Cold Weather and 3-Season. Within each of these seasons there are bags for different temperature ranges. Kelty has made it easy to choose a bag by placing a number after the bag model name. This number is actually the lowest temperature that the bag is designed for before it starts to lose its thermal capabilities. So in this step just simply determine what season it will be when you go on your camping trip.

For cold weather Kelty has a number of sleeping bags to choose from, such as the Coromell 0. This bag will definitely keep you warm on the coldest nights. It is "semi-rectangular" in shape and has a removable hood, 550 fill down and lots of other features like ground-level seams that prevent heat escaping and this bag can be fully unzipped and used as a blanket.

Another popular choice for cold weather is the Cosmic Down 0. This bag is bright yellow to give the feeling of warmth and is the perfect companion for winter camping as it has hood and collar baffles which are padded material rolls that fit around the head and neck to prevent heat loss. This bag also has 550 fill down and is available in a Long size for the taller person.

A couple of good choices for the warm weather are Kelty's Light Year Down 40 and the Callisto 35. The Light Year Down is a Mummy shaped bag that has 600 fill down and weighs less than 2 pounds. It also has chevron stitching which limits the movement of the down (fill). This bag is a perfect choice for those warm summer nights. The other warm weather choice is the Callisto 35. This is a very inexpensive bag but still loaded with features such as that it can be unzipped and used as a blanket and can also be zipped together with another to form a double bag. It has Kelty's unique synthetic CloudLoft fill and quilt stitching.

A couple of choices for Kelty sleeping bags in the 3 Season range are the Mistral 20 which is a great bag for those on a budget who want a reliable and comfortable bag. It can be fully unzipped to be used as a blanket and also has extra CloudLoft insulation around the chest area.

The other good choice here is the Cosmic Down 20 which comes in three different lengths and weighs from just 1kg to 1.23kg. It is a Mummy shape and is suited for those cooler fall nights.

Which Insulation Do I Choose?

Kelty offers a couple of choices when it comes to insulation. You may choose Down insulation or Synthetic insulation.

Down is lighter and more compressible than synthetic but is also more expensive as it is a natural product from geese or ducks. It is also the warmest fill available. The drawback of down is that if it gets wet it will lose its thermal capabilities. So this is not the ideal bag to take into wet environments.

Synthetic is less expensive and will still perform even when wet. It will dry out quickly and because synthetic is manmade, it is usually hypoallergenic. Synthetic is also less compact so it is not suitable if you are doing a lot of hiking.

What Shape Is Best?

This all comes down to personal choice although the different shape bags do have varying thermal qualities.

If you are the sort of person that moves around while sleeping, then a Rectangular shape bag would be a good choice for you. The only issue here is that they are will take longer to heat up and also lose heat quicker. The Calisto, Galactic and Eclipse Kelty sleeping bags are popular choices here.

Next there is the Semi-Rectangular shape which still offers some room to move but will warm up much faster and retain heat for longer. A very good choice is the Coromell.

The most popular bags today are the Mummy shape as they reach their thermal capabilities much quicker and with all the extra baffles and other features, they also retain the heat longer. These bags are more lightweight and compressible so are ideal for hikers.

There is also a range of Kelty sleeping bags specifically designed for kids so that they can also take full advantage of the thermal qualities of these bags. Other designs that Kelty offers are woman's sleeping bags that are designed to fit a woman's contour.

Now you should have enough information to make a wise decision when choosing your Kelty sleeping bag and remember that Kelty has been around for over 50 years and are known for their high quality and reliable products. They also offer a lifetime guarantee on their products.

Noel Samuels is a review writer for sporting goods and outdoor products. For more great information visit Kelty Sleeping Bags. Here you can find reviews and a buying guides for sleeping bags such as the Kelty Cosmic Down, Light Year and others.

What to Look for When Buying a Tent - A Guide

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With so many high quality tents on the market these days, where should one start when thinking of buying a tent? There are a few topics worth considering before choosing your tent.

Design: How and when you plan to use your tent is going to dictate what type of tent you look to buy. The different types of tent you might consider are:

Dome: Simple design, typically two crossing poles bent into a dome shape, with a flysheet pulled over the top and the inner pegged to the inside. Moderately stable in poor weather, but will struggle in high winds. Generally cheaper than other designs, the dome is best suited for those looking for a straight-forward tent for summer camping, perhaps as a family holiday or at festivals. Dome tents tend to sleep 2-3 people, although larger versions can accommodate 4 or even 5. The Vango Alpha 250 is a classic entry level dome tent.
Geodesic (or semi-geodesic): The expensive brother of the dome tent, geodesic tents have a series of curved poled ergonomically designed to distribution tension from high winds across the surface of the tent and down into the anchor point. Poles generally rest on one another, to prevent excess pressure on one point. These tents are steady as a rock even in dreadful weather, and unlike tunnel tents can tolerate winds from any direction without much trouble. As a result, geodesic tents tend to be more expensive than other tents. The Vango Hurricane 200, with its four criss-crossing poles is one of the cheaper geodesics on the market, but don't expect much change from 200. Only really required by those on expedition or planning for winter camping in hostile climes, but they will also get envious looks at a summer music festival if you've got the money to spend.
Tunnel: The idea behind tunnel designs is that they cut through the wind and as such represent greater stability. This may be very true on the smaller tents, such as the Force 10 Helium 100, which hugs the ground and is steady even in very high winds, but for the larger group tents we suspect that most use the tunnel design because it is the easiest way of accommodating large groups of people. Group tents with ends that taper down to the ground, such as the Vango Orchy 600 are a little more stable than the 'barrel-shaped' alternatives. A point to note with all tunnel tents, they should be pitched so the 'blunt' end (i.e. where it tapers from the highest point to the ground the most quickly) faces into the wind.

Weight: If you are planning on carrying the tent when backpacking or cycle touring, the weight of the tent is going to be very important. As a good rule of thumb, anything under 1.5 kgs per person should be considered as lightweight.

Lighter tents are more expensive, as the materials from which they are made are better quality to provide similar conditions at lighter weight, so you should decide whether you really need to go for a super-lightweight tent. As cool as it might be to brag over titanium tent pegs and poles designed by NASA, you might be able to save lots of money with a slightly heavier tent. On the other hand, if you are taking part in mountain marathons or keen fairly extreme backpacking then shaving an extra 500g off your total pack weight will pay dividends as you approach the top of your fourth munro of the day. For example, the Terra Nova Laser Photon 1 weighs just 720g - lighter than a pint of beer, and just as satisfying at the end of a long day in the hills.

Internal dimensions: All three internal dimensions, length width and height, are important considerations when choosing your tent.

Length: On length, most tents reviewed on this site give between 205cm and 230cm of length. Remember that the inners of most tents taper down to the bottom edge, so we'd recommend that anyone over 6ft tall probably avoid the 205cm, and anyone over 6ft 4in will find 210cm a little short. Only the tallest campers should have a problem with 220cm and above.

Width: One person tents tend to vary from 70cm to 110cm in width. For two person tents, the width tends to vary from 100cm to 150cm. For 3+ person tents, a good guide for comfort is 60cm per person. As a point of reference, a normal sized double bed in the UK is 135cm wide, so a two person tent of close to this width should be more than comfortable enough for two people.

Height: The internal height of tents varies considerably. It is only likely to be of importance in group tents, where there is an external area that can be used to relaxing, on which we'd recommend you look for a tent with a max height greater than your own so you can at least stand straight-up. On smaller tents, less than 80cm of height generally means that it might feel claustrophobic for some campers - but a low profile improves the stability of the tent in high winds.

Hydrostatic Head: Arguably the most important statistic of a flysheet or groundsheet is the 'hydrostatic head', a rather obscure measure to test what height of water can suspended on the fabric. A 1000mm hydrostatic head implies that pressure associated with one metre of water can be withstood by the fabric before it begins to leak. The Ministy of Defence defines materials with a hydrostatic head of 800mm or more as waterproof, whereas most tent manufacturers would consider 1000mm as fully waterproof.

However, the hydrostatic head (often abbreviated to HH) also tells you a lot about the general strength of the material. High winds can stress the fabric on flysheet, whereas stones and other debris can tear groundsheets, so a high hydrostatic head is beneficial in lots of ways.

Generally speaking, the following guide can be used to the hydrostatic head of flysheets:

1500-2500mm: Waterproof, but best suited to spring or summer conditions, may show some weakness in high winds or torrential rain and not suited to repeated exposure to poor weather3000-4000mm: Suitable for pretty much anything the UK weather can throw at it, but may occasionally suffer in extremely poor weather or wintry conditions5000mm: Expedition quality, all-weather fabric

Note that a higher hydrostatic head to the flysheet can adversely affect breathability of the fabric, and as such may worsen condensation issues.

Groundsheets should have a hydrostatic head of at least 6000mm, although 8000-10000mm is more common. Most modern tents have a 'bathtub' groundsheet design, in that the groundsheet also rises up about 15cm around the base of the tent. A high hydrostatic head twinned with a bathtub groundsheet should keep you dry even if you pitch your tent on ground which floods (provided that the flood water is not higher than the bathtub lip).

Hopefully this has helped you decide what kind of tent you are looking for - or maybe it has just added to your confusion! Don't worry, our tent buying guides at Top Tents will help you find the perfect tent in no time