The Alpinist Mountain Standards reviews apply Alpinist's tradition of excellence and authenticity to gear reviews by providing unbiased, candid feedback and anecdotal commentary to equipment tested (hard) in the field. Our panel is comprised of climbers who use the gear every day as part of their work and play. Only the gear they would actually buy themselves, at retail price, qualifies for the Alpinist Mountain Standards award. The five-star rating system is as follows: No Stars = Piece of junk. One Star = Below average. Two Stars = Average. Three Stars = Above average. Four Stars = Pretty dang good. Five Stars = Nearly perfect. An Alpinist Mountain Standards award-winner. The reviewer would buy this piece themselves. Review Panel Aimee Barnes Chris Brazeau Larry Goldie Angela Hawse Sarah Hueniken Julia Niles John Race Will Stanhope Jon Walsh Jed Workman Editorial and Guest Reviewers |
 Marmot Lithium Sleeping BagPosted on: November 14, 2005 
MSRP: $450-$475 I am psyched that winter is on its way, so I can start using the Marmot Lithium Sleeping Bag again. Before I received this sack, I had been using a negative 20-degree option lined with a waterproof shell, from a leading competitor. When I first tried the Lithium from Marmot, I was amazed at how warm it kept me, at almost 2 pounds less in weight. Yeah, yeah, yeah…this is not your choice for Denali, or for Everest for that matter, but for the majority of winter trips I do here in the lower forty eight, you can't beat it. At 2 pounds, 8 ounces, the Lithium bag is barely noticeable in your pack and compresses nicely due to the 900-fill goose down. The velcro-free face closure is a cool feature as well, and very comfortable. |
