The Kelty Galactic 30 takes the best features of the high-performance mummy and the traditional camping sleeping bag and blends them into one. Its rectangular shape is wide and non-restrictive, and it’s loaded with 550-fill duck down. These two features offer a near-perfect bag for campers desiring better-performing down insulation minus the cocooning nature of narrow mummy-shaped bags. The Galactic kept us warm down to 30 degrees Fahrenheit and maybe a touch colder.
Weighing just 2.9 pounds for a size long, the Galactic is very lightweight among the rectangular, traditional car-camping models. It’s not exactly built for backpacking, but it also packs down small enough that we would certainly consider it for short hike-in campsites if we didn’t have another option. Finally, the Kelty Galactic 30 is a more basic bag that offers a stand-out feature worth mentioning. The Galactic’s 550-down insulation sets it apart from the other bags on our list. Our two double-person bags scored almost evenly in this metric.
It’s ideal for families looking for a first-time sleeping bag, price-conscious buyers, or just about anyone looking to save a buck. Nothing on our list really compares to the Galactic regarding packed size or weight. However, those that did their best to compete are the Big Agnes Echo Park, REI Siesta Hooded, and The North Face Wawona Bed.
It also packs up much smaller and lighter than many of the sturdier bags in our review. The Polara is warm, has lots of features and options, and, importantly, it’s reasonably priced. Other advantageous features are useful loops, snaps, zippers, pockets, drawstrings, and a detachable fleece liner. The Polara is a combination of your favorite on-the-couch movie blanket and a hardcore, cold-weather camping bag.
We inspected everything from the zipper function to how well they rolled up. Generally, bags with the coolest additions received the best scores. However, even basic bags have features that are often missed, like recycled materials, cool colors, or unique insulation. I bought the zero degree bag and nearly froze to death. Day one, night one…the zipper tore and cord in hood broke.
He avidly gets after it at every opportunity, whether hiking, backpacking, or canyoneering. He also enjoys the open road and takes car-camping road trips whenever possible. Jason has hiked or backpacked throughout the Western U.S., including Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, California, Washington, Oregon, and Arizona. He more recently has turned his interest to exploring backwoods areas of the Deep South. In total, he has 20 years of experience and extensive knowledge of camping and backcountry gear, including sleeping bags and sleeping systems.
If you need more room than the Polara offers, the Big Agnes Echo Park 20 is much more spacious. If not, stick with the Polara’s versatility of offering three bags in one. Traditional camping sleeping bags are known to be a little big-boned, so packed size was not a complete deal-breaker for us. However, space is rarely unlimited, so we rated each bag according to its stowed size. We also factored each bag’s packed weight and the overall ease of stuffing it into its stuff sack.
Even better, it can be carried backpack style, which makes it super easy to transport — although we admittedly looked more like we were going paragliding than camping. I cannot believe that I wasted 160 dollars on some junk. By the time we got back from camping the next weekend three out of four sleeping bags had the zippers broken. ozark trail canopy I’m so disappointed with this product that I advise anyone buying sleeping bags not to even look at Ozark and buy Coleman instead. The frontrunners of our lineup are the Alps OutdoorZ Redwood, Teton Sports Polara 3-in-1, and REI Siesta Hooded 20. The Redwood’s value is sourced from its amazing warmth, size, and comfort.
You can buy an expensive bag if you think it will make you more hardcore, but I will gladly tell everyone how hardcore you are if you pay me to ozark trail chair do so. I was on a budget so I figured I would go with a less expensive bag. I got in the bag, tried to zip it and the zipper tore immediately.
Find the best sleeping bag/pad for your next outdoor adventure using our independent reviews and ratings. It is terribly heavy for backpacking and definitely not rated correctly. If you just can’t afford a better bag…DO NOT GO OUT IN COLD WEATHER OR YOU WILL REGRET IT. The only way you would sleep well in this bag is if you are under 5’5″ and very slender and use it summer nights or maybe push it to early fall. I would not recommend this product to anyone unless I wanted them to freeze and get a terrible night’s sleep. I nearly froze to death on the trail, and craftsmanship is garbage (to put it mildly).