The Sierra Designs Frontcountry Bed is not your usual sleeping bag. Sierra Designs introduced the Backcountry Bed around three years ago and the Frontcountry Bed shares the same overall design. The differences between these two are right there in the name. Where the Backcountry Bed is kept light, the Frontcountry Bed a heavier and bulkier but in general it is less expensive.
My test bag is the Sierra Designs Frontcountry Bed Synthetic 30 degree large. It is zipperless, rectangular in shape, and has an oval opening in the top. A comforter type blanket covers the opening a lot like the tongue of a shoe. The blanket is attached to the body of the bag at the bottom and you are able to wrap it around or toss it off as needed. If your feet get too hot, you can stick them out of the foot end of the bag. An opening built into the bag uses overlapping layers. All you have to do is draw your feet up a little, find the flap, and stick your feet out to cool down. The opening is easy to find and I haven‘t had any problems with accidentally sticking my feet out.
The Frontcountry Bed in size large is really roomy. I am about an inch over 6 feet and have pretty broad shoulders. There is plenty of room to toss and turn and I don‘t feel restricted in the bag at all. The blanket section is big enough to seal off the entire opening and is plenty wide for me to sleep on my side. Little hand pockets in the top of the blanket help with tucking it around.
A pad sleeve is on the upper half of the bottom of the Sierra Designs Frontcountry Bed. This half-length pad is great because it holds you onto the pad but allows your feet to kick around unrestricted. The sleeve is adjustable to fit various size sleeping pads. From the ultra-comfortable large and thick pads to the more moderately sized, the sleeve will fit just about anything.
The shell material is a 40D nylon/ 20D poly plain weave that feels very sturdy. The liner material is a bit softer 50D polyester taffeta. You don‘t have to worry about rowdy kids damaging anything. Sierra Designs gives a temperature rating of 27 degrees Fahrenheit, with an EN comfort limit of 37 degrees. They say this bag fits people up to 6 feet 6 inches tall. The trail weight is 5 pounds 12 ounces. The stuff sack measures 12 inches wide by 22 inches long.
The Frontcountry Bed is available in a variety of sizes and they even have Frontcountry Beds for two. You can get the bag with 600 fill power DriDown insulation or synthetic fill. This is a great sleeping bag for car camping, base camp, canoeing or anything like that. The bag is too big to really carry for backpacking, although you are allowed to take anything you like out on the trail. That‘s part of the rules. The MSRP on the test bag is $149.95. Take a look at these great bags at www.sierradesigns.com.
Mark
Thanks to Sierra Designs for sending out a test sample for testing and review. We have to watch our budget around here just like you do and it is a real privilege to be able to pass along information on products like this. Hopefully these honest reviews benefit everyone.