Mountain Hardwear Bozeman 0 °F Sleeping Bag Review

I recently purchased the Mountain Hardwear Bozeman 0 °F sleeping bag (check price on Amazon) to replace one of my bags that was wearing out. The Bozeman is filled with synthetic insulation and weighs in at 5 pounds 7 ounces. Some features include a double-sided zipper to prevent snagging, ThermalQ insulation which maintains loft while being very compressible, and a contoured draft collar to keep the warm air inside the bag. Mountain Hardwear recommends the Bozeman for climbing, hiking, and backpacking. The temperature rating is determined by the European Norm testing standard.

Testing the Mountain Hardwear Bozeman

To test the Bozeman, I took it on a winter camping trip. I slept on a tarp laid on top of the snow with another tarp for a roof. Between me and the tarp was the Klymit Insulated Static V pad. My shelter did not hold any heat. I didn’t have a thermometer with me, but the forecasted overnight low was in the high 20s.

Size and Bulk

The first thing I noticed about the Bozeman was its size. It is quite bulky. The ThermalQ insulation is designed to offer maximum compression while maintaining loft. However, my wife has a different 0 °F bag (the Teton Sports Leef), which is much more compressible. The stuff sack (not compression sack) that comes with the Bozeman doesn’t do it any favors. There are no compression straps and the stuff sack drawstring has a hard time staying closed. The microfleece patch (not a full lining) is comfortable as a pillow, but that’s about it. If you’re looking for a backpacking bag look elsewhere. There are other bags with similar specs at the same price point that weigh less and aren’t as bulky.

Design and Performance

Overall, the bag is very well designed. It has a nice, roomy mummy bag cut. The hood is very well designed. It forms very well to the head and the slit lines up nicely with your eyes. You don’t need to do a lot of cinching on the drawstring to get the hood to wrap around your head to keep you warm. I stayed warm all night in the Bozeman. I slept without socks on and my feet were warm all night.

The anti-snag zipper is a nice touch. The bag was easy to zip and unzip without snagging. However, I did find the zipper slider separated from the teeth easily. After getting out to visit the trees in the middle of the night I had trouble getting the zipper closed and had to pull the teeth back into the slider. I’m also not a fan of the cinch system for the hood and baffle. There is one drawstring that tightens the hood and baffles simultaneously. I prefer independent adjustment. Often I like to tighten the chest/neck baffle but leave the hood loose. There is no option to do that with the Bozeman.

For any sleeping bag, the most important factor is that it keeps you warm when it should. I didn’t test the Bozeman down to its 0 °F lower limit temperature, but was plenty comfortable below 30 °F. I have no reason to believe the Bozeman won’t perform as stated by its tested temperature rating.

Summary

The Bozeman is a solid sleeping bag. Despite the manufacturer’s claims, it’s not going to be a great option when the situation requires packability. Overall, the Bozeman is comfortable and has a nice design. I’ve primarily given it a 3-star rating because of its bulk.

Would I Recommend It?

I would recommend the Mountain Hardwear Bozeman sleeping bag for camping in the shoulder seasons and the winter. Despite Mountain Hardwear’s recommended uses of climbing and backpacking, I think you can find sleeping bags with similar performance that are lighter and more packable at the same price point.