Dutch "Woobie" Poncho liner, surplus

The lightweight poncho liner, or "Woobie," was designed by the US military as a replacement for the wool blanket during the Vietnam War. Compared to the blanket, this is a lot lighter, a bit warmer, dries faster, and can be squeezed into a pretty small space. These are Dutch army surplus copies of the US model.

• Like a blanket, but made of thin, polyester-filled nylon
• Tie-cords all around
• Packs smaller than a football

How the Woobie works

The perfect blanket for summer use. Originally used in the Vietnam War, this became the standard-issue sleeping gear for hot climates or general summer use. It is mostly meant to be used in conjunction with the rain poncho as a liner. The process is very simple: tie the liner to the grommets of the poncho, then button the poncho so it resembles a tube. Get in and sleep. The US Army states that the lowest manageable temperature is about +10°C (50°F). The poncho liners are still used and loved in the US Army. The strings on these might be a tad differently placed than on some ponchos, but you'll find them in the corners anyway.

Tips for use

These go well with any NATO poncho with grommets on the sides (US, German, British, of course, Dutch and Mil-Tec poncho will also work).

With a little work, you could make this a nice liner bag for your sleeping bag - it's probably roughly about one season more to your bag's temperature rating. In other words, a light summer bag would still work a bit later on and a three-season bag would become a pretty serious winter bag. We haven't tried this in real life, so this is purely hypothetical, but at least it shouldn't make the bag colder!

Condition

The examples we picked at random were in OK shape. Some tie cords can be missing but these are very easily replaced.