The North Face Tundra Sleeping Bag
May 20, 2008
This thing is a perfect example of why I started this blog. There is no reason anyone else should suffer with this sleeping bag and with this blog I’ve got the vehicle to get the word out. North Face, usually so dependable, must have designed and manufactured this bag on its annual Bring Your Crack To Work Day.
Now for the backstory (settle in, folks). I am a cold sleeper. So cold, in fact, that I carried a North Face Dark Star sleeping bag, rated as -40, for years and years. I don’t really travel or camp in -40 degree weather, so I was warm in that thing, to the point that I could unzip it and still be cozy and comfortable. I reasoned that since I was too warm in the Dark Star, I could safely dial back the temperature rating by getting a -20 bag, and then sleep in a cozy cocoon of perfect temperature regulation. The Dark Star is heavy, so by carrying the Tundra instead, I could ditch about 3 lbs of weight. Good plan, eh?
Terrible! Terrible plan. I got my first inkling of what I was in for on a multi day mountain bike trip. The first night we slept in a cabin, complete with a raging inferno of a wood stove. We headed to our bunks while the cabin was probably about 80 degrees inside. Once the wood stove consumed the remaining fuel and the temperature dropped, I COULD NOT stay warm in the Tundra. I’d estimate the temperature in the cabin dropped as low as 40 degrees, which shouldn’t have been a problem with a -20 bag. But it was a problem, and a big one. I shivered through the miserable night with the sinking feeling that my sleeping bag SUCKED and I was stuck with it for the rest of the trip. And that, dear readers, was the case.
Usually I don’t read other reviews before I post, because I want to keep my opinions unsullied by the experiences of others (my, that sounded pretentious). But this time I checked out some other reviews, because I know I sleep cold and maybe the problem was mine. But no, every other Tundra review I read mentioned that the temperature rating was overly optimistic to the point of being absurd. If you’re camping in someone’s spare room or on a friend’s couch, by all means, feel safe in the knowledge that you’ll be warm in the Tundra. But if you want to ever camp outside, look elsewhere for your protection from the elements. Or just carry it on summer trips, but this is one heavy, bulky summer sleeping bag. So if being cold at night AND carrying heavy, bulky stuff is your idea of a great time, the Tundra is for you. I already know it’s not for me. So, Tundra, I am kicking you to the curb with the sound knowledge that it’s not me, it’s YOU.
