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Bivy Sacks - Making Them Yourself
By Steve Gillman, Thu Dec 8th
If you have ever looked at bivy sacks in catalogs or online, youknow they can be claustrophobic and expensive. I can't help youmuch with the first, except to say that you'll get used to it.The expensive part, though, I have a solution for. I didn't want to spend $200 for a nice bivy, so I bought an"emergency bivy" for $20. It was basically a large plastic bag.I tested it on a rainy night, with a small umbrella over myhead. I tried not to breath in the bag, but I still thought I'dbe soaked by the condensation, like all the books warn. In themorning I was surprizingly dry. Later, when I lost my bivy, it occurred to me that if it wasbasically a large plastic bag, why pay $20 or $200 to replaceit? I got out two extra large garbage bags and duct-taped themtogether. After cutting open one end, I had a three-foot byseven-foot bivy sack. It weighed just four ounces.
Now, if you have looked at bivies before,
you know that none arethat light. Even my "emergency bivy" weighed twice as much. Itwas a bit tougher, but then I use my four-ounce bivies asdisposables. They are good for a week of nights if you'recareful. At less than a dollar each, it doesn't hurt to throwthem away at the end of a trip.Like most bivy sacks, it will leave you a little damp in themorning. It is best used in dry enviroments, although I usedmine in Michigan without any real problems. In any case, you'lldry out in a few minutes once you start hiking, and you'll getin the habit of taking a break to lay your sleeping bag in thesun to dry any dampness.
There's our lesson on making ultralight bivy sacks. Four ounces,and they fit in your pocket. This isn't my only disposablelightweight
gear by the way, but that's anotherstory.
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