I don’t care how much it weighs, I wouldn’t trade my Big Agnes QCore for anything. I’m itching to buy a new bag and leaning towards a quilt. For 3 season use I always used/use a Nightlight Torso length sleeping pad. It’s really thin though. That being said, I appreciate all the advantages cited for Thermarest. Equipped blogger Matt Heid is AMC's gear guru: He loves gear and he loves using it in the field. Otherwise I definitely lean towards something warmer. If you’re looking for the best deal on a winter pad, check out the 5.6 R-value REI Trekker ($70 – $80), though you’re trading price for a higher weight (40 – 51 ounces, depending on size). KEEN-FOOTWEAR: Take 20% off your next order over $100 Coupon Code: "20PercentKEEN2020" Thru 12/31. Maybe that guy couldn’t sleep on it either! I don’t know why someone can’t make a slightly thicker pad, say 1″-1.5″. I actually just sold my RidgeRest classic* to another hiker b/c it has always been too hard for me to use except as an underpad in the winter. Multimat – a UK company that produces a wide variety of CCF pads, but only a subset are distributed in the US. REI | Moosejaw | Amazon | Sunny Sports, Check for the latest price at: If you are smaller in size or sleep cold, the women’s version of the XLite has slightly smaller dimensions and a higher R value for more insulation from the ground. See comments on https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/101106/. In particular, I recommend the combination of one inflatable pad for comfort and one closed-cell foam pad for versatility. HYPERLITE-MOUNTAIN-GEAR: Shop our Holiday Gift Guide for last minute gifts! Best sleeping pad for winter camping: Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XTherm Best 3-season sleeping pads: Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite and NEMO Tensor Insulated Best summer sleeping pads… © Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved. The Z-rest is quite a bit softer and I can use it alone if I need to but I usually bring an inflatable b/c it’s more comfy. 3. It’s not going to provide much if any noticeable insulating value, but at the price and less than 3 oz, I have a couple and I always take one with me. They’re not an open-cell foam, but they’re heavier & bulkier. Camping sleeping pads vary in price depending on the type, size, thickness, and degree of insulation offered. The Ridge Rest alone isn’t quite enough. Still though, an indispensable piece of gear for me. Winter-worthy pads also tend to be extra thick and cushy to provide all that warmth, which can translate to a comfy night’s sleep that you might not otherwise enjoy. My closed-cell go-to for years has been the Therm-a-Rest ZLite ($35 -$45, 14 ounces for a full-length, 2.2 – 2.6 R-value). Quite comfy. I use a short length of this for: sitpad, insulation booster, and tent surfing prevention. R-values are additive, so stacking two pads on top of each other provides an R-value that is more or less the sum of their individual R-values. This is my preferred method, and one that is easier for intermittent winter campers who already have a summer-weight pad on hand. Why do they all have to be so thin? It’s been a year or so since I’ve seen them, but they’re still out there. We’ll take a quick look at both, but we’ll first review a technical specification crucial to understanding the effectiveness of a cold-weather sleeping pad: R-values. A pad with a 5+ R-value (or you can add a foam pad under your air pad) is great for cold sleepers or sleeping on snow. And putting under my NeoAir to protect it from the desert floor. They can also get pretty pricey, with some options approaching the $200 mark and beyond. Check for the latest price at: Winter camping involves a lot more gear than three-season camping. The dimples compress and then you’re on a pretty thin pad. My first backpacking pad was the blue foam pad. They also make it in other thicknesses with a similar naming scheme. But more importantly, this setup gives you the flexibility to use the closed-cell pad for around camp, under-your-butt use without fear of puncturing it with the many sharp objects—crampons, ice axes, and the like—that usually populate a winter camp. (a) a better mechanism to find a leak efficiently in the field or Inflatable pads use higher tech, pricier materials and are also more complex to manufacture. I wouldn’t use it by itself. For winter camping, you generally want an R-value of at least 5, while three-season campers only need an R-value of 2 or more for most conditions. * My old blue closed-cell foam pad has been chopped up to provide extra padding for the shoulder straps of my very old external-frame pack. If you want to carry multi-purpose gear to save weight, you’re hard on gear or want to save money, closed-cell sleeping pads provide many advantages over inflatable and self-inflating pads. OSPREY-PACKS: Holiday Sale Markdowns! I’ve seen estimates online that put it around R-0.5, which is about the right ballpark if its at all like building insulation foam which is typically R-4 to R-5 per inch. Winter camping usually means sleeping on snow, which means you’re going to need a winter sleeping pad setup that blocks the cold beneath you from stealing away precious body heat. I haven’t had to sleep on the ground yet, so this is an untested theory. Save 20%-50% on Popular Backpacks including All Archeon Models, Day Packs, Ski Packs, Ariel, Aether, Levity, Lumina, Talon, Tempest, Viva, Volt, Mutant, Xenith, and Xena Backpacks, Travel Packs and Bags. AmericanMade Full Size 2 Foam Pad . The alternative to buying a winter-specific sleeping pad is to double up two sleeping pads to create sufficient insulation beneath you. Milliard Tri Folding. If you can use one piece of gear multiple ways, you can reduce the number of items you carry, the size of your backpack, and the overall weight of your gear. The thicker it gets, the better it can insulate you from the cold. The pad can also withstand the long haul and give you the freedom to rest on any terrain. Stoic Clutch Air Mat. I’ve used one by itself in the summer a few times. POWERLIX Sleeping Pad - Ultralight Inflatable Sleeping Mat, Ultimate for Camping, Backpacking, Hiki… You should find an even ground to lay the pad … 2 other high-quality ccf producers I would suggest are: Oware – their 1/2″ Plastazote pads are great bang for your buck. See More Reviews. You don’t have to blow them up before use or struggle to deflate and pack them each morning. Ooops – I replied to the wrong comment. Your email address will not be published. Foam Sleeping Pad Pros. Buy the Sleep Better Iso-Cool memory foam mattress topper with Outlast … The down mummy I have is rarely zipped until it’s 35 or cooler out. Can’t tell you how many Thermarest pads of various types have come and gone in that time. The 375 stands for 0.375 inches. Every sleeping pad system has an R-value, which measures how much insulation a pad provides to fend off the cold coming from the ground beneath you. Ultralight Backpacking. Find lightweight sleeping pads in all sizes so that you can enjoy the convenience your Coleman … Whether you're backpacking with a few friends or camping with the entire family, having the right gear is incredibly important. Granted, foam pads aren’t for everyone. The Gossamer Gear Thinlight Foam Insulation Pad is the sleeping pad of your minimalist dreams. So if you are only looking for a mattress for summer camping, go for the thin ones. I love my old Peak 1 pack sooooo much. 171 sold. An accordion pad is also what I use in place of a creeper when I have to crawl under one of my vehicles. Better Habitat CertiPUR-US SleepReady Memory Foam Floor & Camping Mattress. Sleeping Pad Weight. Some folks push those tiny pads into pretty cold temps, but I’ve never tried it on anything other than a warm summer night. *embarrassed face*, You should mention external frame backpacks they can be doable for a lot of people… one of the problems with external frame backpacks is that a lot of people don’t know how to pack an external frame backpack. $19.99. Thickness: 0.5" … I couldn’t sleep on it alone, either, because at 1/8 inch, it’s not really providing any noticeable cushion. Backpacking the White Mountain 4000 Footers Guidebook, Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Foam Sleeping Pad Review, https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/101106/, 1,000 Reasons to Explore the Uinta Mountains, Gear Tech Interview with Hyperlite Mountain Gear Co-founder, Mike St. Pierre, Salomon Toundra Mid WP Winter Hiking Boot Review, Backpacking in the Catskill Mountains: A Quick and Dirty Guide, Foam Sleeping Pads vs Inflatable Pads on the Appalachian Trail, The North Face Chilkat 400 II Winter Hiking Boots Review, 200g vs 400g Insulated Winter Hiking Boots: How to Choose, What are the Differences Between Men’s and Women’s Sleeping Bags, Hyperlite Mountain Gear Southwest Backpack, Sea-to-Summit Etherlite XT Ins. Oware’s 1/2″ thick pad is quite comfy, and if you get the 40″ wide, you can double it up for 1″ thickness. The second is to invest in a single pad that’s sufficiently warm for winter use. However age is creeping on me and the thicker self-inflating pads and the likes are looking more and more appealing….perhaps it’s time to get both a new bag and pad! Free shipping. Considerations: This mattress pad gets most of its cooling ability from the mattress pad cover, not the pad itself. I think its best used for a full-length pad under a foam or inflatable torso pad, to protect the 2nd pad and give your lower legs/feet some insulation. It makes a comfy and dry lunchtime seat for when sitting on sub-freezing temperature rocks loses its appeal. One of the cornerstones of ultralight backpacking philosophy is the use of multi-purpose gear. They’re narrow enough to fit well in the hammock. Notably, these pads … It’s 1/8″ thick and for a given material, R-value is proportional to thickness (excluding egg crate patterns to trap air pockets, reflective coatings, etc etc). Ultralight Foam Sleeping Pads: Benefits and Advantages. 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