no sleeping bag in warmer climate

I am doing a 3 day trip next weekend in Ark. The temps at night should be around 70. I am thinking about leaving my sleeping bag at home. Its a 30 degree down bag. Going to bring a sheet instead. should lighten my load about a pounds. The sleeping bag is probably too warm for 70 degrees. Just looking for other opinion

I've done that in Ohio, except I brought a light fleece blanket. It worked OK, but nowadays I bring a 45-degree down quilt - lighter, and a little extra margin in case the forecast is wrong.

Speaking of which: where is that 70 degree prediction centered? Usually, that's a prediction for a nearby town. Depending on such things as elevation you'll be at relative to that town, exposure to wind, any rain predicted, or microclimates that you might encounter if you camp by a creek, that 70-degree low may actually end up being 60, or even 55. (Bill S: please chime in here, since you have direct experience in those locales.)

I'd probably give it a try at a car campground before going out in the boonies - if it doesn't work, you hop in the car and drive home (or better yet, pull out the sleeping bag you stuck in the car, just in case.)

Let us know how it works.

the town is about 40 miles away. Its in the mountains. I will be in the lower elevations near the stream bed. I wish/ hope its in the 50's lol That would be great. The trail is Windings Stair Trail and I will be camping next to the Little Missouri river

Probably not applicable to where you are, but I froze my butt off once sleeping along a stream bed. There was a weather station on top of the ridge just a couple miles away 1000 feet up. I was watching it for a month before the trip and it never dropped below 40. Predictions for that weekend were similar. I took my gear that was good to freezing, but it dropped into the low 20's at night. Woke up to a layer of ice on the stream. I never took into consideration that down in the valley it gets much less sun. Here in California sun is everything.

I heard you can buy a cheap lightweight down blanket at Costco if you are member. That might be the perfect thing for this trip.

The Costco Packable Down Throws were nice when you could get them, but now, they are very hard to find. They weigh a pound, are supposed to be 700 fill power down and are probably good for 20 degrees additional temperature. My 50 Degree F quilt will go to freezing with one as a liner. If you want to find out more about the throw, the full description is:

Double Black Diamond Packable Down Throw

I looked for the throw a few days ago. They are 20 bucks at Costco if they still sell them. There is someone selling them on amazon for 140 dollars. Pft!! I thought a woobie might be a good option but they are 2lbs. My down sleeping bag is 1lb 10oz

I'm trying to think back to when I lived in Oklahoma. I certainly remember some summer nights being very very warm, to the extent you wouldn't even want a sheet. However I also remember that cold fronts could move in quickly and drop the temperature 20 degrees in a few hours. I'd be slightly leery of bringing just a sheet, but it depends how warm you sleep as well. I think if it were 65, I'd already be slightly uncomfortable with just a thin sheet, much less below 60.

You could get a fleece sleeping bag liner that might be warmer that weighs around half a pound (using weights quoted by REI) and probably would get you below 60. Of course they also seem to be unreasonably expensive. If you have a fleece blanket lying around you might be able to MYOG a quick quilt by cutting out a piece and sewing up a quick footbox... I can't imagine it would weight more than a pound...

Here in Illinois, it is generally very warm and I would just want a thin sheet to cover up with. Last night was an exception as it got down to 56 F here. I find it harder to cope with heat than with cold and have several liners that I can use with my quilt. I took a microfiber fitted sheet and removed the elastic to make a liner. I put a drawstring in the channel across the bottom and hemmed the top. It works, but this sheet is heavy, close to a pound. Polyester, for some reason is just heavy, but it feels better than nylon. I've also got a 100 wt. fleece bag with no zipper, just a footbox. It's comfortable down to the mid sixties, but heavy and bulky. I've also taken to using a pack towel over my pad to absorb sweat. I've tried a poncho liner, but it is too thin for anything but mild weather. One of the best things that I've tried for cool weather is the military Modular Sleep System green patrol sleeping bag. They are cheap and good down to about 50 F. All of these liners add up to bulk and weight when you are trying not to overheat. Most times, I'll default to my 50 F quilt and the microfiber liner. I don't enjoy sleeping out in warm humid weather. I'd rather be somewhere in the arid west where it cools off at night.

The closest town is Mena and it say 74 now at night but Mena isnt in the mountains. I will be in the mountains, in a canyon next to a stream. I am hoping it is going to be cooler. I dont know how humid Ark gets. I live in Houston which is probably the most humid city in the US

I live in Alabama, so I'm in an area that's perhaps a little warmer than Arkansas, though not much.

I take my woobie (a.k.a. poncho liner). It' stuffs down pretty small in my backpack, especially compared to my down and synthetic cold weather sleeping bags. It's warm enough for late spring through early fall trips in the southeastern US. Paired with a poncho, it's a very versatile shelter system. I didn't serve in the military, so I bought one online from a surplus store. I see why soldiers and Marines love their woobies so much.

Barring that, one of those fleece sleeping bag liners or even just a sheet is a great thing. I personally would go with a queen or king size sheet just so I had more options, though it would definitely be heavier than a twin.

Just my two cents.

70 deg. is a little low for a sheet, for me anyway. Here in Texas I've used a sheet in my hammock when the temps hang in the 80s and above, at night. Works great! Skeeters bite through sheets so make sure you either have netting or repellent.