sleeping pads

“I guess I need a better sleeping pad, because on my lightweight thermorest I seemed to be awake all night. I would lay on one side till pain drove me to turn to the other side, or to my back. About every hour I would cycle through the 3 positions and be back at the starting position, fully awake at every turn. What are some comfortable and light weight alternatives? Any raves on sleeping pads out there?”

“I love my big agnes inflatable.”

“ditto”

“HAMMOCK!!!!!! That THE alternative!!”

“I picked up a Hennesey Expedition, .. hope to break it out this Fall. Hopefully it'll be warm enough not to need to haul a pad too.”

“Exped DAM”

“One of the nicest hammocks around is the "Bridge". They are easy to make and very comfortable. I have my HH Safari and two Bridge hammocks with a third under construction.”

“Cookie it's wise to ALWAYS take a pad!”

“Pads and Hennesseys do not always play well together.”

“if you must sleep on the ground and are a side sleeper then i highly recommend the exped downmat 7... i use the 3/4 length pad. it is outstanding in the winter, comfortable enough for a slide sleeper, and very light. it's basically an inflatable pad with feathers for insulation.

i love my hennesy hammock -but- it does take some practice to sleep warm in if you camp in cold weather. that said, with my jacks'r better quilt & underquilt i have had some darn cozy winter camping.”

“will do Spam, thanks!

Don't mind taking it one bit with all the weight i'm saving without a tent, especially the 1st time out.”

“... oh and the exped downmat 7 3/4 length pad works VERY WELL in the hennesy hammock. it's just the right length. the full length downmat 7 is too long.”

“good to know yogisan”

“bear get into your food yet? :)”

“sounds like the potatoe man is alittle wimpy, maybe he should just stay at the motel 6, lol”

“not yet.... I do like that ursack tho.... It is just what I was looking for...
course I don't hang it so as to play tetherball by the hammock either.”

“yogi, no way can I afford a $300 quilt. Geeze- louise!”

“they can be DIY and save some bucks.

Flamingo was warm down to the mid 40's with a DIY underquilt and an inflatable pad in a DIY bridge.
last edited: 8/25/08 5:52:15 PM”

“the Army taught me how to sew, but not how to sew a whole quilt. Plus, the sewing kit only has a limited amount of string.”

“Sounds to me like you do some of the same sleeping moves that I do. What bothers you the most bob, hips, lower back?

My hips dig in, my arm/down-side hand falls asleep, and my lower back complains a lot. I know from hospital stays that the therapists are keen on using pillows for leverage/support in critical areas: like between the knees when laying on your side and under your knees when laying on your back, kind-a making a hammock/cradle to relieve lower back pressure points. You won't lay so flat that way, on the hard, stiff, ground. So, what I've been doing lately is using stuff sacks with rain gear and extra clothes between my knees and my pack to get my knees separated or up a bit. It's not perfect, but it does help me. I don't wake up nearly as much as I have before I started this way of support.”

“let's try that again - it's the explorer ultralite a-sym
so no DAM now?”

“I have been warm in the teens in my hammock with a t-rest 3/4 under my butt. Of course I was wearing exped weight long johns, a hat, and thick socks.

My butt and toes tend to be what get cold in a hammock, and the pad under me pushed down far enough to be under my feet seems to do the trick. Those quilts look too fancy for me. If I get too chilly I just fill a Nalgene with boiling water, wrap it up in something and throw it down at the bottom of my bag.”

“What is the common denominator of your butt and your toes that makes them cold?
last edited: 8/25/08 6:27:17 PM”

“i have two quilts... the shenandoah summer quilt and the old rag mountain winter quilt.

i use both quilts on their own when is sleep on the ground. the winter quilt is easily good down to zero. the summer quilt down to high 30s.

when i sleep in the hammock i use one or the other quilt down to cool weather. when it gets really cold (down to teens) i use both... the summer quilt as an "underquilt" and the winter quilt inside the hammock.

it's a versatile system. a lot of people have a winter-weight and summer-weight sleeping bag. i just have quilts.

i love the freedom of being able to move around under my quilt without being mummied in. in the hammock it's like being back in the womb... amazing for winter camping.

i have the winter camping setup... foam sheet, under-cover, over cover with that "stovepipe" hole (or whatever it's called). it's a good setup.”

“That super shelter looks like a good system.”

“in the hammock it's like being back in the womb...

do you ever wake yourself up kicking the inside of your hammock? You can pee in there, you know.”

“I think I compress my sleeping bag the most under my butt, and I think my toes get cold because they're toes?”

“ok, just so long as there is no funny business”

“I had the same problem with my Thermarest.I bought a Jackwolfskin sleeping pad and the difference was incredible .


http://www.trailspace.com/gear/jack-wolfskin/”

“just do like a lot of bpers do and slam a hand full of sleeping pills before you go to bed”

“Tater has a Big Agnes air core, I think, and he loves it. I like my thermarest prolite 4....I can no longer sleep on my thermarest z lite because the same thing happens to me--fall asleep on one side only to wake up an hour later to roll over becuase of the pain in my hip and so on and so forth all night long....I'm too young for that!”

“Iceburg, when you have half the peak/trip list that I do, then you can call me a wimp. Old yes, wimp no. Precision, I tried to get a stuff sac under my knees on the last trip, and will work on getting one the right size and width for that purpose. I didn't think about one between the knees, but that is a good idea.

Sounds like I should look at the Big Agnes and the Exped. I'll be in Seattle over labor day, so it sounds like a trip to the REI mother store might be in order.

I usually camp in places where there are no or not many trees, so I don't think a hammock would work. I might get in one while at REI, just to try them out. Thanks for the advice.”

“This thread gave me an idea. My new sleeping pad will be:


It is a multi-use, paint tarp. I will collect some leaves from the woods and spread them on the ground. My tent will be placed over the leaves and the plastic paint-tarp will lie folded inside the tent. It should prevent the ground moisture from getting to my sleeping bag.

In the shelters along the AT, I already just spread my sleeping bag on the platform. No monstrous sleeping pad for this ancient backpacker!

idaho bob - Consume a little less caffeine during the day and evening and you'll likely sleep better.”

“side sleepers are cursed as backpackers.

i envy those that can sleep on their backs.

i have tried to learn to sleep on my back while backpacking, but it's tough. i get lower back pain. what i found helped was if i kept my knees bent. i'll put my backpack under my knees so they are bent somewhat. it works rather well and often i can sleep throught he night. anyway, if you are a side sleeper and can learn to sleep on your back i think you will find that even the most modest sleeping pads will work well.”

“I might be able to sleep on my back if I get something under my knees. nowslimmer, it that works for you, more power to you! I need some cushioning.”

“The last few short hiking and car camping trips I used a Big Agnes/Thermarest combo. It's pretty comfy. The Thermarest on top seemed to keep the noise down a little. (I think using the Big Agnes alone is noisy) I still have a rough time sleeping on my back (it feels like my back is constantly arched) but sleeping on my side is great. Another thing I've tried with decent results is elevating my pads (with my boots and other things) near my head. It was a little more comfortable sleeping on my back that way.”

“When backpacking, for a pillow I frequently use one of my boots.”

“when patching up a sleeping pad, are you supposed to put the rough side or the smooth side of the patch down?”

“read the instructions”

“oh im sorry i didnt mean to bother you with a backpacking question on a john mc cain-terry schaivo forum

anyways, i cant find the instructions”

“Rough - it's rough to make good contact with the glue.”

“thats what i figured”

“If you are talking about the fabric side, it goes up smooth side to pad. Been there done it.”

“it goes up smooth side to pad

what?”

“The fabric side of the patch is outer part of the patch. The smooth side goes to the pad.

You are using Therma rest patches with the hot glue, correct? That's the one I used and carry on all my trips. Dropped a knife and it stuck mine. Has held for over 8 years.”

“i have some, but i didnt use the hot glue. i used the other stuff that was more like superglue. why would you put the smooth side to the pad? what y2 said seemed to make more sense to me”

“don't they make a glue just for sleeping pads”

“seems like the patch would have the plastic on the side that recieves the glue”

“You cheap ass go buy another pad!!! LOL!”

“two words:

duct tape”