Trying a mesh bivy was inspired by the Snugpak Traveller sleeping bag I bought last year for warm summer nights (and froze in). I’ve now found something which is more versatile for bivying in the average Irish summer.
A mesh bivy doesn’t have to be a pricey purchase, but its a good one nonetheless. It bridges the gap between midge protection and temperature management, without having to be zipped up in a tent on lovely (but fading) summer night – to me, that always feels like such a waste… I have all winter to hang out a tent! If it forecasts rain, just add a tarp to keep the lovely breezy, open surrounding.
This bivy is by Lixada from Aliexpress and about the cheapest one I could find at only €20. It is a simple set up: a siliconised ground sheet which can be pegged at all four corners with a white no-see-um mesh over the entire upper.
To enter, there’s a 2/3 length YKK zipper along the top spine. To pull the mesh off your face there’s an easy to operate toggle and guy line (which can be tied to a pole or tree) that can be slackened for entering and exiting.
All this fits in a slightly-bigger-than fist sized stuff sack… and weighs 252g. It does an excellent job at keeping away midges – the whole night I only found three inside with me (they just get in some how, its a guaranteed inevitable).
The only thing it leaves to be desired is perhaps it could be a bit bigger and wider. Although it is completely open, it manages to portray the feeling of claustrophobia by the morning, and there is a slight danger that the mesh could be ruined along the bottom while moving around.
OUTDOORSY GIRL 
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