Mountain Equipment Glacier 500

One of Mountain Equipment's all rounder sleeping bags designed to tackle a wide range of conditions. It does what is says on the tin, keeps you warm when it is cold, however it does have a few drawbacks that would make me consider going for something else.

Lets start with the basics. 

With an extreme temperature rating of -21 degrees Celsius/ -6 degrees F, Comfort rating of 2 degrees Celsius/ 36 degrees F and a "Good nights sleep rating of -8 degrees Celsius/ 18 degrees F. This bag is going to suit a wide variety of outdoor goers. I can personally vouch for the good night sleep rating and have been very comfortable in this bag (no liner) at -10 degrees C. 

Obviously different people sleep at different temperatures and I would put myself on the warm side of the scale. However after extensive use of the bag I have found that the down has moved round and is now far more concentrated on the front of the bag than the back which has led to it getting less and less efficient at keeping me warm due to the cold coming in through the base of the tent/mat (Thermarest Z Lite)

That being said the other features designed to keep you warm are very good! The collar of the sleeping bag can be made very tight and is very good at stopping any drafts coming in and letting any heat out. The hood is pretty standard with nothing really of note but does the job as you would expect. Finally, it has a water resistant outer which for down is pretty key. I have got the bag damp a number of times and haven't noticed any drop in performance so can only assume that it is working!

Now for size. I am 6ft 1 and the fit is roomy, with plenty of shoulder space as well as foot space which i am a particular fan of. This makes the bag for me a lot more comfortable as i move around a fair bit when I sleep but do not feel constricted by the bag at all.

However if you want a speedy escape from the bag this is greatly hindered by the zip. Two folds of fabric and down are used to insulate the zip so that no heat is lost. However this is constantly getting caught in the zip if you try to undo it from the inside. This can be very frustrating and is not like the normal Mountain Equipment zip quality!

It weighs 1160g with a fill of 500g so is pretty light and easy to carry. Along with this it comes with a compression sack and a net bag for storage when in use and when not. The compression sack works really well and is a typical dry bag fold and clip design. This along with another dry bag over the top works very well at keeping it dry and compressed. Always lofts pretty well after storage but as mentioned above the movement of the down is a definite issue!

All in all a pretty solid bag, although it has not held up as well as desired. For a bag of this price, 320 pounds, you would expect it to stand up to the test of time a fair bit longer. That being said it has kept me warm and comfortable consistently through some cold nights.

Hope this is helpful :) 

Will