User Review: Outdoor Research Deluxe Bivy

Outdoor Research Deluxe Bivy
Above: The current Deluxe Bivy, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed June 12, 1997 by Joel Dobson

Rating:
Design: 3 Season
Sleeps: 1
Ease of Setup: Very easy
Weight: 1 lb, 9 oz
Price Paid: $240

This is a great product. It's gore-tex with sealed seams. It has well designed mosquito netting so you can be snug inside the bivy and stare straight up at the starry sky while being bug-free and comfy. Accomodates a 3 season bag very well occupied by a 6' 1" man (me). For sleeping pads I use a 3/4 length thermarest on top of a Cascade Designs Z-Rest so I've got both of them and my bag in the bivy.... no problem. I especially like the velcro tie-downs on the interior that hold your sleep pad(s) in place. Also the bivy is staked at head and foot so it stays put. Claustrophobia?? No. Warm?? Just fine.

Here's something to think about: the bivy seems to lower the range of my sleeping bag by about 10 degrees. By adding a silk bag liner I get another 5-10 degrees. My bag is itself a 30/40 degree bag so I can be very flexible in my heating or cooling on a trip.

To bivy or not to bivy: I can't help you there... all I can say is that if you want to keep the weight down (way, way down) while remaining comfortable and bug-free, but are willing to have to go to the trouble of hanging all your gear, then this bivy is the one to buy. Is it watertight? Well, I haven't needed to find out, but does Gore-tex work? If so, then this bivy will be as watertight as a tent.

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