When it comes to backpacking, there are two main options for sleeping – bivy sacks and tents. Both have their pros and cons, so it’s important to know what you’re looking for before making a decision. Here’s a quick breakdown of the differences between bivy sacks and tents, to help you choose the best option for your next backpacking trip.
Bivy Sack vs Tents are both made use of for camping. When going with exterior activities, individuals constantly wonder which of these 2 they must take. There is no appropriate response, however the standards detailed next need to aid you make the best choice.
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One-person tent vs bivy sack: which is best for you?
Bivy Sacks
Cons:
- Get wet during the night. The sacks can, however, get treated with hydrophobic products to minimize wetness.
- Unpleasant to oversleep. The area is small and some people feel claustrophobic in them.
- Things have to be left outside when you sleep as there isn’t enough storage room. Pets as well as rain can harm such personal belongings.
- They require to be dried frequently
Pros:
- Lightweight. Aside from simply just a tarp, a Bivy Sack will provide you with the lightest weight shelter and will take up the least room in your pack. Most Bivy sacks weigh anywhere between 7 ounces to 2 pounds and pack down to the size of a water bottle.
- Great For “Roughing It”. BIVY sacks are perfect for the solo traveler who is more concerned with their performance on the trail than worrying about sleeping arrangements. Stressing about comfort while you sleep on a backpacking trip completely defeats the purpose of backpacking. You’ve already made the commitment to sacrifice most 21st century conveniences, if you’re worried about being uncomfortable while you sleep, you might be in for quite a few surprises.
- They’re Comfortable! Let’s not forget, there are quite a few very comfortable Bivy sacks on the market. Just because they’re small, doesn’t mean they’re any less comfortable. As Bivy sacks become more popular in the mainstream, companies are doing more and more to pack as much comfort and innovation into the design of these lightweight sleeping compartments to give you the most comfortable night’s sleep possible. With advancements like highly breathable Gore-Tex for increased circulation, straps for sleeping pads and loops for staking, Bivy sacks like the Outdoor Research Alpine Bivy are comparable in size to any one person tents.
- Backpacking Performance. Aside from sleeping, Bivy sacks get most of their benefit while you’re actually on the trail. Less weight will be physically less exhausting and allow you to travel longer distances and keep you more satisfied while hiking. Also less soreness for the duration of your trip. There’s a reason why extreme athletes choose Bivy sacks as their preferred sleeping arrangement and that’s because of their convenience and their smaller footprint while packed away in your backpack.
Outdoors tents
Pros:
- Are comfortable as they have even more area
- If you use a two-person or three-person camping tent, the weight is significantly reduced in comparison to bivy sacks on a per person basis
- Are cheaper than bivy sacks on an each basis when you use multi-person tents
- Don’t get wet or damp as a result of condensation
- Don’t require drying
- Have sufficient room for the storage of products
Cons:
- Typically larger and also bulkier than bivy sacks
- Need you to locate a suitable camping spot. Also, setting up and evacuating take time.
Weight and Room
Bivy sacks and outdoors tents are both really light, particularly the modern-day styles. Still, there is a significant distinction in between bivy sacks and tents when it come to weight. Bivy sacks don’t need poles or any other structures, indicating they have less material. Due to their smaller sized dimension, they are also simpler to suit your backpack.
In actual figures, camping tents are about two times as hefty as bivy sacks.
Comfort
Being extremely small, you shouldn’t expect much room for motion in a bivy sack. As a result of the minimal room, condensation normally builds up in the sack, as well as this makes the sack damp and also awkward.
To decrease the dampness, you can pick to get synthetic outdoor camping sacks or opt for the pricey types that are extra breathable. Making use of hydrophobic treatment additionally helps.
With outdoors tents, you can sit down and carry out other activities. You can save your things in tents, yet this will be an aggravation with bivy sacks. Although bivy sacks heat up faster than outdoors tents, they are a whole lot much less comfy.
In the case of bad weather, bivy sacks can be extremely claustrophobic. Camping tents are more comfortable in such situations.
Expense
Outdoors tents are much cheaper than bivy sacks. There are numerous selections of camping tents to select from, however decent single-person camping tents are priced from $150. You can get multiple individual camping tents to reduce the price also better.
Ease
With bivy sacks, you will certainly be able to rest anywhere. You don’t need to locate a suitable place to sleep in them. With outdoors tents, this will be a problem given that you require to find a much larger location to set up the structure. If you like to check out places that have not been well-explored or documented, you might want to take into consideration bring a bivy sack.
Stealth is also enhanced with bivy sacks. You can establish it up quick, as well as packing up is likewise extremely simple. When visiting places that are possibly dangerous, such sacks may be far better choices.
On the other side, you can not bring your items into a bivy sack, as well as this will certainly reveal them to components in the wild. Rainfall and even pets can ruin your residential property. In addition, bivy sacks have to be dried every 2 or 3 days, and this makes them inconvenient in camps that last for greater than a few days.
Final thought
Tents, as well as bivy sacks, are excellent for trekking and camping. Selecting Bivy Sack vs Tents should be based on your particular circumstance. To cover it up, bivy sacks are optimal in cases where you need to reduce baggage size. They are additionally excellent if the location has a scarcity of outdoor camping areas. A tent would be the most effective option for camps that include more than one person as well as where the location is known to be safe and packed with spots to establish camping tents.
We also recommend preparing one of the best extreme cold weather tents, just in case you want to camp in a cold place.