What does everyone sleep on?

Ian Mac said:

Hi group,
I am looking to upgrade my rather decrepid £4.99 sleeping mat with something
more comfortable and warm. Most of my camping is of the wild variety,
through all seasons so really do consider the insulation as a major factor
as I am a cold sleeper. It does seem a slightly difficult balance to meet
between insulation and weight, does anyone have their own solutions to this?
I have been looking at the Therm-a-rest mats, but am open to all
suggestions.
Thanks in advance for your help!
Ian

Thermarest, a camping life changing experience :-))
I have a regular 38mm full length 1kg jobbie but would go for a lighter
version if buying again for backpacking.
Graham

"Ian Mac" <No Spam> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hi group,
I am looking to upgrade my rather decrepid £4.99 sleeping mat with
something more comfortable and warm. Most of my camping is of the wild
variety, through all seasons so really do consider the insulation as a
major factor as I am a cold sleeper. It does seem a slightly difficult
balance to meet between insulation and weight, does anyone have their own
solutions to this? I have been looking at the Therm-a-rest mats, but am
open to all suggestions.
Thanks in advance for your help!
Ian

My back! ;-)

Thermarest usually now or my old yellow karrimat if I'm wild camping and
think it might be somewhere with rough ground. Sometimes I take both in
winter.

I've got a 3/4 length ultralight thermarest and I fill the missing 1/4 with
the bit of old karrimat I take to sit on while having my lunch.

On Tue, 10 May 2005 23:58:06 +0100, "Ian Mac" <No Spam> wrote:

A super size bed in the Caravan. More comfortable than the bed at home.
<smirk>

--
Dave F

Chris Street said:

Thermarest ultralight.

And another of those for me. I have a standard and an ultralite, both
full length. The UL gets used where weight and bulk are priority
points, otherwise the standard goes as it's a bit comfier.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

three quarter length thermarest is easier to store in your pack. Use
your rucksack to protest the lower half of your legs.
www.caledoniahilltreks.com

Ian Mac wrote:

[snip]

Quoted message said:

I have been looking at the Therm-a-rest mats, but am open to all
suggestions.

I have a Thermarest (bought in 1993 full-length full weight and survived
such niceties as a thru-hike on the AT). Beginning to think about
swapping it for an ultra-lite, but it still does me proud.

Chris Townsend did a review of sleeping mats in TGO Feb 2005 (p. 115).

Allan

The infamous was quoted in the papers as saying in <42813c6e$0$307
[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Hi group,
I am looking to upgrade my rather decrepid £4.99 sleeping mat with something
more comfortable and warm.

I recently bought a Multimat, similar idea to Thermarest but about £20
cheaper for a full length. Coffin shaped and it's apparently British
made. Comfortable and works well, it's also slightly lighter than the
Thermarest. It will get a full work out in a about 2 weeks time when I
am camping.
--
I see great shots, but the voices worry me...

www.CelticShadows.co.uk

"Chris Street" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Tue, 10 May 2005 23:58:06 +0100, Ian Mac wrote:
Thermarest ultralight. Used to have a rollup mat, then one fo them
corrugated Z-fold things, got a thermarest and never looked back.

Now, I would love to agree with everyone else but I just cannot get on with
them. Especially on slopes, I slide off them and spend most of the night
p*****d off because I have to keep re-adjusting my position. I use a ridge
rest - kind of hybrid roll mat with air ventilation - but I have to admit it
doesnt offer a lot of protection against the hard base. I always thought
the Z fold ones would be the best.

Rob

Rob Devereux said:

Now, I would love to agree with everyone else but I just cannot get on with
them. Especially on slopes, I slide off them and spend most of the night
p*****d off because I have to keep re-adjusting my position.

Wrap a towel around the mat. Your weight will keep it in place and the
extra friction against the ground and against you will stop most sliding.

I found this out in Norway, where level ground for camping along fjord
sides is at something of a premium, and it was a case of think of
something to do about it, sleep on the ground and/or don't get any sleep...

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

"Ian Mac" <No Spam> said...

Quoted message said:

I am looking to upgrade my rather decrepid £4.99 sleeping mat with something
more comfortable and warm.

Brrr, I don't blame you. Therm-A-Rest or equivalent is what
you want. Expensive, but worth every penny.
--
/
Fran O(<|={
\

Quoted message said:

Brrr, I don't blame you. Therm-A-Rest or equivalent is what
you want. Expensive, but worth every penny.

Thanks guys and gals. I have *plans* to do lots of camping and hiking, so I
suppose I will bite to bullet and go for it 🙂
Let's face it, 3 nights of avoiding B&B's and it is paid off!
Thanks again for the insight!
Ian!

--------------
www.themacdougalls.net

"Ian Mac" <No Spam> said...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Brrr, I don't blame you. Therm-A-Rest or equivalent is what
you want. Expensive, but worth every penny.

Thanks guys and gals. I have *plans* to do lots of camping and hiking, so I
suppose I will bite to bullet and go for it 🙂
Let's face it, 3 nights of avoiding B&B's and it is paid off!
Thanks again for the insight!
Ian!

I've got a selection of T-A-Rs (large family) and a
Highlander. The Highlander was cheaper but is heavier and
bulkier. If you're going to be backpacking you probably want
one of the lightweight mattresses which will cost you more
money but should be easier to carry. I'm just getting old: I
don't backpack and I like my comfort too much to want to
compromise ;-)

--
/
Fran O(<|={
\

"Rob Devereux" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Chris Street" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Tue, 10 May 2005 23:58:06 +0100, Ian Mac wrote:
Thermarest ultralight. Used to have a rollup mat, then one fo them
corrugated Z-fold things, got a thermarest and never looked back.

Now, I would love to agree with everyone else but I just cannot get on
with
them. Especially on slopes, I slide off them and spend most of the night
p*****d off because I have to keep re-adjusting my position. I use a
ridge
rest - kind of hybrid roll mat with air ventilation - but I have to admit
it
doesnt offer a lot of protection against the hard base. I always thought
the Z fold ones would be the best.

Rob

Despite being a fidgety sleeper I never have this problem....on my old style
standard mat....the green/brown one. Bit heavy to carry. The U/L does not
seem much less sticky though. Perhaps the newer ones are smoother?
Julie

"Ian Mac" <No Spam> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Brrr, I don't blame you. Therm-A-Rest or equivalent is what
you want. Expensive, but worth every penny.

Thanks guys and gals. I have *plans* to do lots of camping and hiking, so
I suppose I will bite to bullet and go for it 🙂
Let's face it, 3 nights of avoiding B&B's and it is paid off!
Thanks again for the insight!
Ian!

--------------
www.themacdougalls.net

I've had mine for about 12 + years......no problems at all.....I even store
it rolled tightly so it always has to be blown into a bit.....still no
mould!
Worth the money when you think of it as an investment...I even ditched the
airbeds when large tent camping as the T-A-R is much more comfy!
Julie

3/4 Thermorest - the lightest model (the new model - can't remember what it
is called now).

The new ones have a kind of pimpley surface which stops you sliding around
on your mat - an important new feature!

--
Andy Howell
Birmingham, UK

To mail simply put back the dots ...

On Tue, 10 May 2005 23:58:06 +0100, "Ian Mac" <No Spam> wrote:

Hi there,

Quoted message said:

I am looking to upgrade my rather decrepid £4.99 sleeping mat with something
more comfortable and warm. Most of my camping is of the wild variety,
through all seasons so really do consider the insulation as a major factor
as I am a cold sleeper. It does seem a slightly difficult balance to meet
between insulation and weight, does anyone have their own solutions to this?
I have been looking at the Therm-a-rest mats, but am open to all
suggestions.
Thanks in advance for your help!

Sorry to be a bit late but I've been away.

I use an Exped Down Air Mattress. It's bulkier and heavier than a
Thermarest, but it's the only thing I'm actually able to sleep on in a
tent, as otherwise my hips spend the night fighting with the ground.

It's an award-winning piece of kit - see http://tinyurl.com/3qwqj -
but if you don't actually have trouble sleeping on a thinner mattress
then it wouldn't be worth carrying the extra weight/size. For those of
us uncomfy or cold on T-Rests and similar, though, the Exped is a life
changing piece of equipment 🙂 I wild camp with mine all the time
now.

Good luck finding something that suits you 🙂

Best wishes,
--
,,
(**)PeeWiglet~~
/ \ / \ pee AT [guessthisbit].co.uk

On 21/5/05 13:51, in article [email hidden],

Peewiglet said:

I use an Exped Down Air Mattress. It's bulkier and heavier than a
Thermarest, but it's the only thing I'm actually able to sleep on in a
tent, as otherwise my hips spend the night fighting with the ground.

I use one of the new lightweight 3/4 Thermorests and find it very
comfortable and have used it in the UK winter without any problems.

.... But then I don't have PW's hips!

--
Andy Howell
Birmingham, UK

To mail simply put back the dots ...

On Tue, 24 May 2005 21:54:35 GMT, Andy Howell

andy.howellNOSPAM@ecotrendDOTorgDOTuk said:

On 21/5/05 13:51, in article [email hidden],

Peewiglet said:

I use an Exped Down Air Mattress. It's bulkier and heavier than a
Thermarest, but it's the only thing I'm actually able to sleep on in a
tent, as otherwise my hips spend the night fighting with the ground.

I use one of the new lightweight 3/4 Thermorests and find it very
comfortable and have used it in the UK winter without any problems.

... But then I don't have PW's hips!

Hey....watchit! Just what are you implying about my hips?!

;-)

Best wishes,
--
,,
(**)PeeHiplet~~
/ \ / \ pee AT [guessthisbit].co.uk

On Tue, 24 May 2005 21:54:35 GMT, Andy Howell

andy.howellNOSPAM@ecotrendDOTorgDOTuk said:

On 21/5/05 13:51, in article [email hidden],

Peewiglet said:

I use an Exped Down Air Mattress. It's bulkier and heavier than a
Thermarest, but it's the only thing I'm actually able to sleep on in a
tent, as otherwise my hips spend the night fighting with the ground.

I use one of the new lightweight 3/4 Thermorests and find it very
comfortable and have used it in the UK winter without any problems.

... But then I don't have PW's hips!

I've just bought the Thermarest ProLight 3 Short, to replace my aging
(and leaking) Thermarests. Light and compact, and very snug.

Jim