Hello and Question (Sleeping Bag for Timberline - Mt. Hood)

[thodgson]

Hello all,
Planning my first visit to Oregon. Joining two other Oregonians on a four night hike on the Timberline trail around Mount Hood in September 2016.

Looking to purchase a new sleeping bag, but unsure what temps I should expect at night. Don't want to get something too warm and end up sweating all night. Don't want to go to the other end and end up freezing. What have you used? What should I expect?

Any other recommendations for this hike are welcome.

Thanks!
Tim

[retired jerry]

Good choice of date, I've done that a few times, I might see you

Low temps might be freezing. 40 F more likely. Any sleeping bag should be fine.

[thodgson]

Thank you for your reply and suggestion. I am looking at a few different sleeping bags rated 30-39, and wasn't sure if I needed to go with 20-29. I'd rather go 30-39 so I get more summer use out of it in my area (Pennsylvania).

How you'll find me on the trail: I'm the youngest (40 yo) of the group and was welcomed as the "Sherpa".

[retired jerry]

lots of "old" people on trail, I'm 62

[Aimless]

Many sleeping bag ratings are rather bogus. Those which us the EN ratings are at least consistently rated from one maker to the next, but other than people who sleep on the warm side, the rating still tends to be somewhat overstated. I understand your desire not to have too warm a bag for summer use in Pennsylvania, so your best option might be to bring enough warm clothes to wear inside your 30-39 degree bag, if it turns out the bag isn't enough. An important component of not getting cold at night is insulation from the ground, so don't bring an uninsulated air pad. Bring an insulated one.