Gear Review

Marmot Helium 15° Down Sleeping Bag

1. remarkably light — 2 lbs
2. legitimate temp rating
3. highly recommended

Marmot changed the game when they introduced the 'Helium', a major advance in ultra-light, ultra-compressible down bags.

The Helium puffs up like your favorite pillow, thanks to its 900-fill goose down, yet the whole bag weighs a meager two pounds.

The aptly-named Helium can thus easily shave a pound off your current sleeping bag, and its 15 degree temperature rating is legitimate—possibly even conservative.

This is an very warm bag.

Though the Helium comes with a half rather than full-length zipper, the bag features a relatively roomy cut for a mummy bag, making it a solid choice for sleepers (like me) who do a lot of tossing and turning.

Summer campers who like to sleep warm on chilly mountain nights will positively love the Helium's extra insulation.

Winter mountaineers will be pushing the envelop a bit with a 15° down bag, but for experienced users, the Helium is an excellent option for the lightest possible winter bag—especially for short tours, or in climates where dampness is not a factor.

I use the Helium as my primary winter bag, again, for short, fair-weather tours only.

For expeditions or hard core rain, I would of course switch to a synthetic bag, and so should you. For summer use in the mountains, I've migrated to the also outstanding Marmot Atom, though I do bring the Helium when I'm feeling the need for a little extra warmth and comfort.

The Helium's exterior is Quantum Pertex, now an endangered fabric, but still the best there is. Such high-end features make the Helium more expensive than you may like, but if weight and warmth are a concern, this bag is worth every penny.

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