After previously testing out my Enigma 10F down to 24.5F I was excited to see last Thursday’s forecasted low of 18F. Actually there were two lows, 18F at 11PM and another stretch of 18F from 6AM to 8AM. Unfortunately I just missed them both, I was too late getting set up and then when I woke up at 5:30AM and had to use the bathroom I decided that I might as well come inside since I didn’t think I could fall back asleep. The good news is that our new tested low is 21.5F:
This is a screenshot for the companion app to the Kestrel Drop D1 thermometer, which is amazing.
Notes:
- After an hour in the tent I was borderline comfortable (I wasn’t cold, but I wasn’t nice and toasty) so I tossed on my Mountain Hardwear Ghost Whisperer puffy jacket and Acorn Versafit fleece socks. Problem solved! After that I passed out and slept peacefully for five and a half hours.
- I normally wear the Acorns instead of my hiking socks but this time I decided to throw them on over my Drymax socks. It was snug, but not tight to the point where it was reducing warmth. I think removing the socks during three seasons is a better option but I was concerned that in sub-freezing temps they would be obnoxiously cold and/or frozen when putting them on again in the morning.
- When temps are in the twenties my face gets uncomfortably cold. I had a Buff around my neck and I pulled it up over my nose at first and then all the way over my eyes later. Over the nose was just fine, over the eyes was… weird. I’m not sure how folks deal with this issue – a sleep mask with a soft back? One more thing to research…
- The Gossamer Gear polycryo ground cloth is just a hair too narrow at 40 inches wide. On paper, sure, a centered 25-inch wide sleeping pad leaves 7.5 inches of leeway on each side for the quilt to drape without touching snow. Unfortunately in the real world polycryo gets crazy wrinkled and is hard to fully flatten, and centering your pad on a clear piece of plastic in relative darkness can get fussy. To address this I’ve ordered the large size which clocks in at 72 inches wide, almost double the medium size. I think 48 inches should be plenty so I’ll most likely end up trimming it down a bit.
- The X-Mid 1P tent continues to amaze. The steep walls shed show like a champ – I listened for an hour as big clumps of snow fell off the trees overhead and onto the tent whenever the wind picked up, no issues. Snow buildup overnight was minimal and just bopping the tent walls from the inside is enough to get most of it off.