Product Review of my Big Agnes Lulu Sleeping Bag

December 9th, 2010 Posted by Rachel. Published under Gear + Product Review. 1 Comment.

Jessica seems to have some sixth sense as to when REI is having a sale and we ended up there a while back during one.  As a result I gravitated to the sleeping bags knowing that I needed one, and ended up with a kind of strange one.

The Big Agnes Lulu (along with a few other of theirs) doesn’t have insulation on the bottom.  Instead, there’s a pocket for a sleeping pad.  And then their sleeping pads they recommend for it are nice and thick, insulated even.

While at REI, I got in the short Lulu and thought it was a perfect fit.  A little bit of foot room, a few inches for my head and it zipped right up.

But.  Lesson learned.  Try it with a pillow AND a sleeping pad inside…it changes the whole shape of the sleeping bag and it is not adequate for a year as my bed on bike tour.

First off, Big Agnes and REI recommend using the square pad, not the mummy pad.  I do think having the square one is good, and it fits pretty good (not as good as I’d like but I think that the bag shrank in the wash).  But the square one really asks a lot of the fabric, so my few inches of space?  Gone.

Secondly, pillows are big, even camping ones take up more space than one would guess.

And finally, I can’t even zip it up fully with the highly comfy but very thick pad inserted.  All of which has gotten me to go out and buy the regular length instead.

Now, why may you ask, didn’t I look for a different style or type with so many cons?  Because it’s warm and I really do like having a sleeve for the sleeping pad so that it doesn’t disappear out from under me at night.  It’s also a mummy sack, but it doesn’t narrow until basically my feet, which is good for my birthing hips.  And once I do find a pillow I like, there’s a little sack for the pillow so it won’t wander off at night either.

I’m planning on trying out the regular length bag this weekend as a mini home camp-out, so I’ll give you an update soon!

And of course, please comment below about your choice for sleeping bag and pad!