Bivy vs solo tent

[Kelli]

I'm looking to get either a bivy or a solo tent to lighten my pack weight. I will need something that is bug-proof and water-proof. What are the pros/cons of each, and are there any recommendations on brands/styles?

I think I have the bivys narrowed down to the Outdoor Research MicroNight or Aurora, but I haven't been sold on either of them yet. Anyone use them?

[Joshua Cocks]

My mate who is in the Army uses a Bivvy and loves them. Makes his pack sooooo much lighter and makes pack up simple. The negative was when we went for a hike, it poored down heavy, and he got drenched.

The other negative to a Bivvy is not getting away from all bugs. I like to enjoy a moment of sanity in my tent, reading a book, away from all the ants, leeches, spiders, snakes, mosquitoes...ect Can't really do that cramped in a Bivvy.

I go a 2kg featherlight tent. I love it. Pack up, weight and bulk are the negatives.

[Wade Vassey]

Hello Kelli
I personally am more of a tent guy and the good news is there are some tents that way as little as some of the bivys on the market like 16oz to 24oz. They can take a little getting use to and more practice setting up but the weight you save is awesome. The tents are a hybrid between signal and double walled tents. Most of them use trekking poles instead of poles with the option of a pole if you don’t want to use or have trekking poles. I own the Double Rainbow tent made by Tarptent and it is a two person tent that weights 40oz how great is that! There website is Tarptent.com and they have a lot of options to pick from. Also you can look into gossamergear.com but they have less and are a bit more expensive. There is also a good website called Backpackinglight.com for more ways to lighten up your pack weight. It costs $20 a year and is well worth it. Also if you go with a bivy you should get a tarp to setup over your it to keep out rain. I hope this helps and if you have any question please ask.

Wade

[James S]

hi keiil,
how are you doing? personally i think wisconsin's climate might be too humid and chance of prolonged or heavy rains to use just a bivy set up. there might be condensation, seepage issues. i think they are moisture resistant not waterproof. plus there will no way to cover up your gear. i agree with wade maybe if you want to go the bivy option get a tarp cover also. i agree with wade about tarptent and backbackinglight. i'm saving up to get one of tarptent newer models the scarp 2. check out black diamond's bivys. another site to check for gear reviews is nwhikers.net, you have to sign up, but its free, more geared to northwest hikers but still has a lot discussion on gear. hope this helps you out !! take care.

[dale]

Sorry, I have not used a Bivy. I always thought they were resundant, in that people would get the Bivy and then a sheet of tyvek for the base and throw in a tarp for incumbant weather. Doesn't that all add up to more than a single wall tent?

I am a tent guy.. The Tarptent's are very nice and I have the Rainshadow @ ~41oz. Although its sized for 3 people, I use it for 2 and gives tons of extra room. I made a Gossamar gear "The One" clone out of 1.1 oz silnylon and use it for any solo's. I like it because you can see out 360 degrees while laying down and it has a large beak/vestibule for stowing gear. It packs down to 4X4X12 and it's 27 oz with a tub floor (1.9 oz silnylon more robust) - and bug netting and stakes.

Good luck on your search. It's never all that easy, so many things to consider.

[Random Walker]

I have used a bivy,sleeping in the open under the stars is..., well there is nothing like it
Mine is an old REI gore-tex type and it always has condensation in the morning.
I do not believe that gore-tex breathes all that well in this application.
The MicroNight sounds interesting though Outdoor Research itself says:
"We don't classify Pertex® Endurance as waterproof."
I would look into a bivy made with an eVENT fabric like the Integral Designs products.

[John Smith]

Kelli,

Looking at a bivy I would suggest most people to look at the Black Diamond Light Sabre Bivy. It is very breathable but is not waterproof in a torrential downpour. It is reasonably priced and it can double as you sleeping bag stuff sack while hiking. You don't need to take your sleeping bag out of it when it is in your pack. All in all a very nice bivy, just don't expect miracles in non-stop heavy rain.

Bivies are nice because they allow fast simple set up in the field and minimize your exposure to the elements while getting your tent up. However, they are tight quarters and do not in my opinio allow the user anywhere near the freedom of movement that a tent does. If they are combined with a tarp then your flexibility goes way up but set up time is longer as well.

I like my bibler winter bivy 8oz coupled with a 5'x7 foot flat tarp made from spinnaker fabric and have a 3 foot x 7 foot ground cloth made from spinnaker fabric as well. Total weight for all of this is 16 oz or so. This allows me quite a bit of flexibility and the winter bivy is very very breathable but only water resistant.

As for a single wall tent I would suggest the Six Moon Designs Lunar Solo. It is very nice and weighs about 24oz. I like the single hiking pole set up.

If you have the money you might look at the Six Moon Designs Refuge X. A single wall two person tent at 16 oz total. However take special note of the warranty. Basically there isn't one.

Lots of choices out there but they all have pros and coons. Good luck and happy hiking.

john the xcar

[Kelli]

I've decided to go with a bivy sack, and a tarp if necessary when raining. I've also decided to go ultra-cheap, and make my own bivy and tarp. If anyone is interested in making their own bivy, I've found a great site that sells a sew-it-yourself bivy kit, complete with material and pattern, for $60 to $75. Thread (for some reason) is sold separately for $2. Check it out at www.rockywoods.com.

My kit just arrived in the mail. Weighing everything that came in the box (minus the box itself), without cutting any fabric yet, the total weight came to 19.25oz. After I put it together I'll post some pictures and the final weight.

[John Smith]

Kelli,

How did your project go? Do you have pictures?

[Kelli]

Haven't done the sewing yet. Hope to get to that finished by the end of this weekend. Will post pics when I'm done!

[gabriel]

Hey, Glad you made that choice! I'm going to use a bivy/tarp combo as well. The entire set up that I'm looking at weights 14 oz!! And, the bivy has a bug net. I would like to see pictures when your finished along with the weight.

[Joshua Cocks]

After hearing this I think I might try the Bivy Tarp Combo. I'm sick of my back hurting from carrying a tent and other heavier equipment.

[Kelli]

Here's the finished bivy. Got to use it one night on a WI River trip over Labor Day weekend. Temps during the day were beautiful - we went swimming in the river. Night time it cooled down fast though, and there was dense fog along the river by morning. Seeing as we slept on a sandbar in the river, fog was inevitable. The bivy worked nicely as far as getting in and out, and kept me a bit warmer with my "40 degree" sleeping bag. The fog was able to permeate right through the top layer of the bivy, and by morning the top of my sleeping bag was damp. Pulled it out in the morning to dry off a bit and everything was fine. I made a tarp to use with it while backpacking but didn't have it along on this trip. People in my group using tents also had condensation on the inside of their tents, so it wouldn't have mattered either way.