Personally, I would go with the 20 degree bags. In May in the mountains it still very early spring and can still get pretty cold. I find it a lot easier to vent a bag, than it is trying to add in more layers to get warm -- especially when many folks are carrying fewer layers as the weather warms up.

On another note, regardless if someone sleeps warm or sleeps cold, I find that the physical exertion during the day can alter how well one sleeps warmth wise.

you need to buy a 30 degree bag.

just kidding.

i can tell you what i would take. i tend to sleep cold.

i would take one of the 20 degree bags. if it gets too hot unzip it and use it as a blanket.

i have a couple anecdotal stories. i left on my thru the last weekend in april with my 20 degree cats meow (synthetic). not too terribly far from mid may. day time temps in the 70s. 4 days later i was uncomfortably cold for several nights. when i reached the gsmnp it got cold enough during the day to have snow flurries (nothing stuck). again, another couple uncomfortable nites.

when i reached gettysburg in the summer it was very hot. i came across a dollar store and bought a bed sheet and mailed my bag ahead to the next town. worked great. when i reached town i mailed it ahead again to the next town. a cold front came thru. i was cold again for a couple nites. i was sooo happy when i was reunited with my bag.

i think its better to carry a bag that is 10 degrees too hot than one that is 10 degrees too cold. at least it is for me.

i think i bought a couple of the light years for the kids. great deal through steep and cheap. but when they arrived i discovered the zipper only went down to the hip. so i returned them. paid postage to get em. paid postage to send em back. thats the only thing i've ever bought from steep and cheap. my fault for not researching better.

15º Big Agnes.

Starting May 15th, I would go with the Kelty light year 40*.

If March I would go with the 20*. (I actually have both of those in my closet now)

I would err on the warm side and take the 20.

I did a reverse of that trip in 2013. Started at trail Days and went south. Coldest night was May 24 at Overmountain shelter low was 25 degrees, comfortable in my 20 degree quilt. One week later I was roasting. Met my sister at Fontana Dam to hike for a week, when she went home I traded her for her 32 degree bag. Still too hot, when I got home I built a 40 degree quilt for southern trips. Perfect this year starting May 20th heading north from Dicks Creek Gap.

Big difference between mid-May and March or April. Koltrain to Maine started early May with the 40* Kelty I sold him (was my son's), and he made it Maine with it.

Sandy, what's your 40 degree weigh and is it synthetic or down?

I only carry down. The 40 comes in at 1 lb. on the nose and contains 10.5 ozs. of 850 FP Drydown. It was built from a kit by Thru-hiker.com with 1 and 1/4 inch horizontal baffles and a footbox. I carry a separate hood from Z-Packs and use an Xtherm or All-season Neo-Air under it.

I stripped out a layer of climashield out of one of my synthetic quilts and was wondering what kind of rating it might have now. It weighs 19 ozs. Thinking about using it for summer. My other is down at 22ozs.

I figured out my ratings by using them in the backyard with a thermometer in my tent. I wanted to be sure they really worked for me. All the EN ratings in the world don't matter if you feel uncomfortable and can't sleep well.

I noticed on my wife's 40* bag that that is the rating for men. The women using the same bag was rated around 50* I think....

But if your bag is down AND you have good insulation like a down jacket to put on to help Incase it gets cold, I'd take the forty. Otherwise the 20*. .... Sounds like you need a 30* bag or quilt

i'm one of the 20 degree people.

my thinking was that 4 out 5 times the 40 is going to be just fine. the other time you're gonna wish you had the 20.

so whatta do? play the odds and take the 40? or be safe and take the 20. i take the 20 every time.

TrafficJam wrote:

I know we have sleeping bag threads but specifically, what would you use in GA, heading NOBO, around May 15th?

I have a Kelty light year 40*, a Kelty light year 20*, a Cat's Meow 20*, a Big Agnes 15*, and a Reactor Thermolite liner.

My girl doesn't get cold like I do.

I can't imagine the the Kelty 40 is more than a lb. heavier than the BA 15 degree, and for that reason alone I'd go with the lower rated bag. I sure wouldn't want to be on a mountain when a freak late winter early spring cold front comes threw and hangs on for a few days, gonna be some cold nights.

I would take the lightest of the 15-20 bags.... test me in this and let me know if I'm proved wrong...whichever is taken will be the wrong one.