ProView – Sierra Designs Get Down Sleeping Bag

Imagine you’re getting in late from a long day out in the wilderness. You’re exhausted and ready to hit the sack. What matters to you in that moment: a sleeping bag with all the bells and whistles, or simply comfort and warmth? If you chose the second option, then this is the bag for you, and you’ll lose less sleep once you hear about the price.

When I first started spending time outdoors, sleeping was always the worst part of the trips. I usually really struggle to get comfortable, and I can’t stay warm. I was always too cheap to invest money into an expensive sleeping bag. I usually ended up sleeping in my down jacket or heating up water bottles to keep warm through the night, waking up freezing cold. Being a canyoneering and climbing guide, this was always a pain in the butt to do after a long day out. I have more recently realized that you don’t need to break the bank to have a good, warm night’s sleep. Introducing the Sierra Designs Get Down 20 Degree sleeping bag. It’s the best bag I’ve seen for under $200.

Specs

Weighing in at 2 lb 3 oz and stuffing down to 7.5 x 15 inches, it’s a great all-around bag, whether your backpacking, car camping, or just trying to stay warm between climbs at the crag. Featuring Sierra Designs 550 fill power DriDown™ that is PFC-free and is certified to the Responsible Down Standard, that is baffled to keep an even spread of the down. It has a nylon ripstop shell and a super soft liner. It also has a hood cinch and an anti-snag zipper. It comes with a mesh bag for long-term storage and a nylon stuff sack.

Design

The first thing I noticed about this bag is the fact that they have shortened the zipper. Instead of extending down the whole length of the bag, it stops at about halfway. This reduces the amount of cold air being let in by the lack of insulation where the zipper would run on normal sleeping bags. This could be considered a downside if you are someone who likes to stick their feet out at the bottom of the bag or completely unzip their bag and turn it into a blanket. Aside from this, it’s a pretty standard mummy sleeping bag design. The dark green design looks cool against the backdrop of the forest. The white stripe looks slick but also may start to look dirty pretty easily if you’re not careful. The bag also has a “hand pocket” to give more of a blanket feel when sleeping on your side. As someone who moves around a bit in their sleep, this feature seems pretty useless to me. I wish they had put a zippered pocket for your phone or headlamp instead. The bag feels durable aside from some really thin drawstrings on the hood, stuff sack, and mesh bag.

Fit

Being a smaller guy (5’7 and 130 lbs), it’s hard for me to judge fit when every bag I’ve owned has felt spacious. Lucky for me, on extremely cold nights I get to share my bag with my doggo (she likes to keep my feet warm). Usually this is kind of a tight fit, but with this bag, it felt a little bit more spacious. The hood is large enough to fit a small camp pillow, and still cinch around my face nicely.

The Final Word

The Sierra Designs Get Down 20 Degree sleeping bag is a perfect example of simple but effective. While it doesn’t boast any spectacular features, it doesn’t use flashy features and beef up the price. Instead, it focuses on the essentials. In my opinion, the best products are the simple yet effective ones. 

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