20 Degree Sleeping Bag
Among camping gear, sleeping bags hold a place of importance. In fact any camping trip would be a great deal uncomfortable if it were not for sleeping bags. In the past, there were not many features in sleeping bags. All sleeping bags were the same and there was not much of a choice in the market of sleeping bags. But today if you take the time to go through the outdoor sports stores, you would find a number of different sleeping bags with different features. This article focuses on one type of sleeping bags, namely 20 degree sleeping bags.
If you are someone who has not had much experience in buying sleeping bags you might wonder what 20 degree sleeping bags are. The phrase ‘20 degrees’ means that the sleeping bag would keep the user warm at a minimum temperature of 20 degrees. Maximum comfort for the user cannot be guaranteed for temperatures below 20 degrees when a person is using a 20 degree sleeping bag.
When you are shopping for your 20 degree sleeping bag the first thing that you should think of is your comfort. You will, after all, be spending the whole night inside it, or longer if your camping trip extends to a few days. Therefore comfort is an important factor when choosing a 20 degree sleeping bag. In order for the sleeping bag to be comfortable it should be made from good quality material such as goose down. In addition to goose down, sleeping bags also come with synthetic padding. Most people opt for goose down as it is compressible and light. But the downside of using goose down sleeping bags is that they are not water resistant and allergy free. When goose down gets wet, it loses all its heat insulating properties. Therefore unless you are sure that you are not going to camp at any damp or wet location, you are better off with a synthetic 20 degree sleeping bag.
The shape of the sleeping bag is also important to ensure that your camping trip is comfortable. 20 degree sleeping bags come in rectangular shapes and curved shapes. Curved sleeping bags, which are often referred to as ‘mommy sleeping bags’, do not leave any extra space inside the sleeping bag. They fit snugly to the body because of their curvy shape. Because of this ‘mommy sleeping bags’ are more heat insulating than rectangular ones. 20 degree sleeping bags of rectangular shape have more room inside them. Because of the air spaces, they can sometimes be too cold for some people.
20 degree sleeping bags come in various sizes. Check for the size of the sleeping bag and make sure that you can fit into it comfortably before you buy it. The last thing you would want is for half of your body to stick out of the sleeping bag because you have mistakenly bought a sleeping bag designed for kids.