Outdoor Research Alpine Bivy

Pros: Really light, completely water proof, packs small, bug screen is a nice touch. Cons: Pole does not stay up so the bivy collapses on your face, stake loops are too small (fine for low altitude & soft ground, but not great for alpine bivys or deadmanning), not breathable at low altitude & when it's warm outside. I took this for some extended trips through the Adirondacks and it was great. The pole does nothing to keep it open though, so you don't really get the stargazing experience one would expect with the bug screen. I've spent some storms in it and was as comfortable as one can be in a bivy, but the goretex doesn't really breath when it's warm so you get some serious condensation buildup. All in all a great light weight solution for soloing in the mountains - I'm taking it out for a season on colorado's 14ers.

We have just completed a 3 month stint around NZ on the push bikes, combined with a Sea To Summit Overhang tarp shelter our bivvys have been working a treat. They did arrive with some minor delamination bubbles, particularly around the entry which we intend to deliberate on with Outdoor Research, apart from this they were of exceptional quality. They definitely hold the rain, snow and frost out in the most appalling conditions and providing the pegging loops are used top and bottom to open the bag up to allow condensation to escape they stay dry inside also :) I have found a trick for keeping the hood right back so you can just use the fly, you work all the fabric back up and over the pole till the hood is inside out (can b a litttle tight but do it bits at a time like putting a tyre back on a rim) then just pull enough back over to zip up fly. Attach a carabiner to the loop and run a occy strap down to a peg on the ground. For full weather protection without dying of suffocation, place your boots covered by a waterproof bag directly in front of your bivvy, zip your fly all the way up and pull the under section slightly back so the outside can drip straight to the ground and then drop the top section down and over your boots slightly, no probs! Be careful not to damage the pole sleeve by shoving too hard, it may pop through the far end, as my partners did! Turn them inside out regularly and air, avoid leaving damp in bag, we aired ours out regularly and they still have a little mold. any questions just email us at bacterialbalance@hotmail.com i hope this helps potential buyers cheers

I picked up one of these from an REI garage sale to complete my trail running overnight setup. It packs down extremely tiny and is truly waterproof (weathered a couple downpours). If you have a warm sleeping bag then this is the perfect shell. My only qualm is the same as the other guy said; it's difficult to hold open both the netting and/or the waterproof flap that goes over the head when you want open air... I had to modify mine with some velcro so it would stay put as I moved around at night.

Travelled through the French Pyrenees for 23 days with it, absolutely great, it held fast through thunderstorms and extreme winds. Takes 2 minutes to put up and to pack away. Also, because it doesn't matter how lousy you put it up, you can put it on any piece of stony cramped swampy more-or-less flat two-square-meter piece of land, which is fantastic when bivouacing. One drawback is the moisture, some wetness forms on the inside but it's very managable if you sleep with your head as close to the opening as possible. Second slight drawback is that rain forms puddles on your fabric if you don't lie with your legs stretched, though probably the gore-tex won't leak anyway. Two suggestions: first one is to use tape and some rope to make a system that keeps the closed netting standing up by tying it to the little loop on top of the pole. Otherwise the head cover keeps falling down. Second suggestion is to keep some air-space open by putting your shoes (if they are water-proof) with the toes out of the tent and with the tent cover over the opening of the shoes. Otherwise the air space is difficult to keep open and you get moisture inside. If the next version could have an easier way to fasten the netting and to keep an air-space open, it would be perfect!

Light and compact, I also like the straps that hold a sleeping pad in place. be sure you have the opening pointing away from the wind or your heat will just be sucked out!