First Use, Cross Mountain Bag

By D.L. Tooley Ranked #458 - 55 to 30 Degree Synthetic Bags September 5, 2003

I bought the Cross Mountain for a solo, 7 day, open canoe descent of the Middle Fork of the Salmon River (late season, low water), which I have just completed. I used the Cross Mountain in a variety of conditions and it performed well - including holding my sleeping pad in place while being used in a hammock. Do be aware that this is not a mummy type bag - and plan your purchase accordingly. At 6'2" I usually purchase the long version of a bag, as I did here - however as this bag is only meant to cover you to the shoulder this length was way too much. In addition it will probably be tough to find a full length, 78" pad. I used the Long Cross Mountain with a standard 3/4 length pad and it worked fine - save for some cold toes when used with the hammock. The foot room though was ample enough to lift my feet onto the pad. Because of the larger size of the bag some of the weight savings are lost. However as a part of a system that is designed for comfort as well as backcountry efficiency it is great. Sizing of the bag may need work, as above. In addition the semi-mummy/semi rectangular shape of the bag gives you more extra room at the feet than needed and perhaps a bit less at the shoulder than you need when combining the bag with an inner mummy. A long compression stuff sack - as long as the sleep pad is wide - would be a good addition allowing you to store the sleep system outside of your pack with a little bit more functional convenience.

View Details: Big Agnes Cross Mountain Sleeping Bag: 40 Degree Polarguard 3D

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