Western Mountaineering Kodiak SDL

I tried a variety of cold-weather sleeping bags, North Face, Rab, Mountain Hardwear, etc. And now, I finally have a Western Mountaineering Kodiak SDL. When getting the bag out of the box the first thing you will notice is the workmanship. All stitchings are superb; not a loose thread!

You will also notice that the bag just "expands"; I have no doubts concerning the WM minumum 850 loft claim.

The real question of course is how this bag stands up to cold weather, and being a Gore Dryloft bag, to the elements.

I took the bag the first time out to Iceland in temperatures below freezing (-10 Celcius). Never felt I cold or notice any coldspots in the bag. The temperature rating of this bag is 0 F, so aproximately -20 Celcius.

Other things I noticed are the room in the bag; I have the 6 ft version, and it fits me perfectly (I am 1.80 m, athletic build) with lots of width to spare around shoulders, hips, and feet. The inner lining material is very comfortable and feels like silk. The bag has a draft tube along the zipper as well as a very comfortable down filled neck collar.

The Dryloft material does a perfect job keeping the down dry. I have used the bag in wet conditions and never had a problem. Although moisture build-up might take place on the inside of the Dryloft barrier (sweating)in warmer weather, I haven't noticed this particular problem. The bag has two zippers to regulate ventilation as well as continuous baffles that allow you to shift down from the top of the bag to the bottom depending on circumstances. I found this feature one of the strengths of this bag and I use this bag in temperatures anywhere between 0 to 30 F.

In short; a roomy, warm, top-notch sleeping bag that can be used in a wide range of temperatures. Highly recommended and if in 10 years I need a new sleeping bag I would, without doubt, buy a Western Mountaineering sleeping bag!