Oh, if only it were simple. But no, there are many options for a throw down sleep system, each having its own up and downside. Let’s explore what I have available in my gear closet. Some iteration and combination of these items will make it into my pack for my 35th Wonderland Trail fastpack. NOTE: many of these items are No Longer Available for order or new purchase, annotated “NLA”

THE EASIEST: In 1999 I did a 36 hour transit of the Wonderland Trail. All I had was a hydration pack, some food and Montbell rain top and bottoms. At some point after going 24 hours I decided to get some sleep at Ipsut Creek Campground (when it was still a drive in) somewhere around midnight. I had started at Longmire and proceeded CCW, through Sunrise, past Mowich Lake and then Ipsut. I found an empty spot and laid down on a picnic table with all my clothes and rain gear on. This was not comfortable or warm, to say the least. Finally, around 4 AM, the cold was making me shiver so I got back to ambulation and finished the hike, stumbling into Longmire in a stupor. So the simplest method is just to lay down somewhere with your clothes on, but probably the most miserable.

Most of my transits of the Wonderland have been 3 day affairs, so seldom have I toted a tent. Bivies are my go to method and I’ve used various systems throughout the years.

*The zpacks 3 oz pocket tarp, custom Arc Slim pack, and Poncho/Groundsheet on a Glacier Peak circumnavigation*

THE ZEE: About 10 years ago I used a custom breathable Cuben half bag made by ZPacks (about 6 ozs) and an Xtra Large long breathable Cuben jacket (5.7 ozs), also made by ZPacks. For a pad I used a ZRest, cut in half, and put my pack under my feet/legs. The jacket was roomy enough to put my arms inside and I was toasty enough, wearing a down jacket (5 ozs). But crawling into this setup was laborious, and getting up to pee was a pain.

*Custom made ZPacks WPB Cuben half bag on NeoAir XLite on ZPacks poncho/groundsheet: 2013*

THE LIGHT: Many times I’ve used my ZPacks poncho/groundsheet as a groundsheet (5.7 ozs), a Borah Gear Cuben bivy (4.7 ozs) and an EE 50 degree quilt (9 ozs). I also carried the first iteration of the ZPacks Pocket Tarp, which was made of the whisper thin Cuben (yeah, I know its now Dyneema Composite Fabrics, but back then it was Cuben) coming in at 3 ozs, plus another ounce for stakes. This was merely in case of unexpected weather. I can use whatever pad I need in this configuration

THE LIGHTEST: A pad (various, but probably the Gossamer Gear 4 oz tri fold foam/NLA), the Mountain Laurel Designs bag liner as a bivy (3 ozs), and clothing (various).

*OR Wilderness Cover with Nunatak Akula Half Bag and Skaha Apex Pullover*

THE OR: It’s on the heavier side (24 ozs/NLA-does not show up on the OR site), but the OR Wilderness Cover is heavy duty enough to throw on the ground with no worries of a ground sheet (assuming relatively dry ground), and doubles as rain gear. It’s also roomy enough to put any of my pads inside along with a quilt or bag. This would pair well with my Feathered Friends 35 degree Rock Wren (about 1.5 pounds/NLA), which can be used standing as the bottom opens and has arm holes with zippers and a hood. Despite the weight, this combo has advantages…I put on the Rock Wren, I throw down whatever pad on the opened Wilderness Cover, lie down and zip up. Pretty convenient.

*Nunatak Nova bivy (right) with nested Nano 40 degree quilt*

THE NUNATAK: This may be the easiest one and ranks high for this year’s Wonderland. I throw down a ZRest, either the full length (bulky) or the half length, then crawl into my Nunatak Nova 50 degree bivy/(NLA). I’ve tried this with an XLite pad but the slippery factor is high, I’d be falling off that pad all night. Plus the Nova is not roomy enough for a blow up pad inside, and the material requires some kind of ground protection…7D Robic weather resistant fabric, so needs some TLC but sheds light mist and moisture. However, this is not appropriate for outright rain. PART II: I also have the option of the Nunatak Skaha Apex Pullover (12ozs/NLA) with Nunatak Akula half bag (12 ozs/NLA) on top of the ZRest, perhaps utilizing my B4 bag for bug and upper body protection (2 ozs). However, the half bag does have a Robic material hood so only my face would be exposed while prone.

*Feathered Friends Rock Wren in an open bivy, Mt. Rainier’s Wonderland Trail*

THE TIMMER: Another contender for ease of use…I can roll the entire system up for immediate employment (see last photo) and just crawl in (after blowing up the NeoAir XLite NXT Short/11.5 ozs). Plus, it’s an all weather shelter. Bivy: custom Borah Gear eVent Cuben bivy (9 ozs; fully waterproof)/Timmermade custom Alpha Direct Overbag (8 ozs). I would supplement this with the Timmermade Alpha Direct 4004 hooded sweater (7 ozs).

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS: I’m willing to sacrifice some weight for ease of use and less fiddling. On full bore outings like a 3 day WT, I’m on my feet for upwards of 17 hours per day. When I’m ready to crash I don’t want to spend precious minutes setting up; even blowing up a pad is a pain. Another big factor is weather; the advantage of fastpacking the WT in 3 days or less is the luxury of going when the weather forecast is good. This year, if my training continues as planned, I may be able to pull off a 48 hour trip. In that case I’ll be packing as little as possible and looking to rest for probably 4-7 hours one time.

I’m not thinking of trying another trip like in 1999, that was too much suffering. But for just a little more weight, I can take along a throw down rest system that will keep me comfortable and warm enough to get some precious sleep.

LIST OF MY POSSIBLE COMPONENTS: (NLA=No Longer Available)

BIVIES/SHELTER: ZPacks WPB half bag (6 ozs/NLA) /// Borah Gear Cuben bivy (4.5 ozs with side zip) /// Borah Gear custom eVent Bivy w/Cuben bottom (9 ozs/NLA) /// Nunatak Nova 50 degree insulated bivy (15 ozs/NLA) /// OR Wilderness Cover (24 ozs/NLA) /// Mountain Laurel Designs bag liner (I have used this once as a bivy - 3 ozs) /// Nunatak Akula half bag (12 ozs/NLA) /// My B4 bag (2 ozs)

PADS: no pad, just duff (yes, I have done this - 0 ozs) MLD 1/8 inch foam (6 ozs) /// ZRest half pad (7 ozs) /// ZRest full pad (15 ozs) /// NeoAir XLite (15 ozs) /// NeoAir XLite NXT Short (11.5 ozs) /// Gossamer Gear tri-fold foam pad (4 ozs/NLA))

SLEEP CLOTHING SUPPLEMENT: Timmermade Alpha Direct 4004 hooded sweater (7 ozs) /// Borah Gear down sweater (5 ozs/NLA) /// Nunatak Skaha Apex Pullover (12 ozs/NLA) /// Nunatak JMT Hooded Jacket (7.8 ozs/NLA)

*Complete rest system/full protection: custom Borah Gear Cuben/eVent bivy (9 ozs)/NeoAir XLite NXT short (66” - 11.5 ozs/Timmermade Alpha Direct 4004 Overbag (8 ozs) = 28.5 ozs total throwdown weight*

So much depends on my overall health, conditioning and weather. If the forecast is warm, I can skip a bag and just use the MLD bag liner over clothing. Transits later in the season would require warmer and more robust shelter/sleep to be prudent. If I’m in top form, I can get away with much less if I’m only going to rest once, spending the majority of my time on my feet…sorta like an ultra, but slower (my last ultra was Western States in 2001). Final decisions will be made when the stars align for timing and the state of my overall conditioning, which is progressing well. Note: this year’s progression and thoughts are specifically on my 68/35 blog.

From the Nunatak website: Our Apex synthetic insulated products are no more. We are too small a company to wrangle all these different offerings and guarantee superior designs all at the same time. So only down from here on out.

I was waiting to do a write up on the Nunatak Nova insulated bivy and Nano liner quilt combo, but the point has become moot. I certainly understand that the company is adapting to a changing marketplace along with the difficulties stemming from COVID. However, I can talk about the Nano quilt (“liner” has been removed from the description as there’s nothing to line anymore). After using the discontinued Nova insulated bivy with an EE quilt on the Inca Trail, I ordered the 40 degree Nano quilt to nest inside this bivy. This chart, now deleted, shows how the combo would work:

*My 50 degree insulated Nova (10C) with 40 degree Nano (4C) equates to 25 degrees F coverage (-4C)*

Indeed I found the combo, used on backpacking trips to Yosemite and Sequoia this summer, to be toasty (caveat, temperatures never got below mid 30’s F). An important feature I found was that the fit was so good that no straps or methods of retention were needed for the nested Nano quilt, despite constant side to side turning during the night. The quilt stayed put. When it was warmer I unzipped the Nova center zip and left my head outside with a light balaclava, or nothing at all. So much for the moot point.

The Nano quilt is still produced, and my 40 degree iteration was used on a 3 day Wonderland Trail trip without the Nova. I employed a Borah 4.7 oz bivy mainly to keep the mice and bugs out of my bag, as the weather forecast was excellent. Although I also carried my JMT Sweater (also discontinued) it never got chilly enough to wear as a supplement to my sleep system. I was concerned that the 15 to 16 hour days, covering in excess of 30 miles per day and 22,000 feet of elevation overall, would render my old bod lacking in the heat production department when crashing at 10 PM every evening. Luckily, no chills came my way and on my last evening, once I fell asleep on top of a picnic table, I didn’t awake until 4:40 AM, feeling refreshed enough to get going (my alarm was set for 5). The Nano stuffs easily into a small sack, lofts amazingly well for such a light package, has an excellent hand and drapes well. This may be due to the fact that I’ve only used the Nano inside the Nova or the Borah bivy, which probably plays an essential part in keeping the quilt in place. Per my usual experience with Nunatak products, I think the 40 degree Nano is conservatively rated….it looks about twice as lofty as my old EE 50 degree sewn through quilt. I also used the Nova/Nano combo on an open bivy above 6000 feet on the Northern Loop Trail (Mt. Rainier National Park).

*Nunatak Nova insulated bivy, now discontinued*

I must say that Nunatak’s decision, from a selfish standpoint, is disappointing. Strategically combining the down quilts with the Apex synthetics (including the jackets) make an excellent system, and the Nova insulated bivy is a marvelous piece of equipment in and of itself. I don’t spend many nights out per year, but when I do 90 percent of the time it will be an open bivy. I purchased the prototype zPacks Plexamid two years ago and have yet to use it. Shelters only come into play for me in iffy weather….which I avoid on shorter trips thru planning (however, I always carry a tarp for emergencies or unforeseen weather).

Now for the shout out….I have purchased a number of items from this company, which now make up my insulated tops and sleep systems. Without exception, every item is meticulously sewn and conservatively rated; inquiries were always addressed promptly with outstanding customer service. Plus everything is made here in the US. There is always something Nunatak in my pack, for good reason. Certainly not inexpensive, but I don’t think you can ever go wrong with a Nunatak purchase. Disclaimer: everything I have purchased has been full price.

Throw Down Sleep Systems

Nunatak shout out (with Nano 40 degree quilt review)