Question for those who camp

[FZ1Oakville]

Bring an air mattress -- definatly recommended

[dirtbag]

Didn't know what a "Big Agnes" was so I googled it. There seems to be a lot of poor reviews due to leaks and loosing air pressure over night.

[Ash]

Didn't know what a "Big Agnes" was so I googled it. There seems to be a lot of poor reviews due to leaks and loosing air pressure over night.

One of the first batches had some quality control issues with the valve. I haven't heard of many problems with recent ones.

[bgfa]

First time I went camping on the bike I bought one of those foam pads because I was too cheap to pay for an air mattress- mistake, at least for me. After riding all day, it's nice to have a comfortable, good night's sleep.

After consultation with a hardcore camping friend, I went to Mountain Equipment and bought:

Big Agnes Insulated Air Core 25x78x2.5 very comfortable. Also picked up the bag that can blow it up and use as a stuff sack too. Takes about 1/3rd the space of the foam:
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_d...=1279222356447

MEC Oasis 2 long sleeping bag. Light, warm, and only available in a Mango colour that will scare away any bear:
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_d...=1279222452172

Thermarest pillow.Very comfortable. I highly recommend this.Packs really tight but expands quite a bit in a few minutes. Can't stand air pillows myself:
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_d...=1279221046159

Outdoor Research Dry Sack 15 Litre.Who wants to put on wet clothes:
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_d...=1279222552643

No I don't work for MEC, but I own stock...one share

[WoBblyCaT]

self-inflating mattress from MEC with a small foam pillow. They both pack up pretty small. I use the same on canoe trips where size and weight of your gear is important too.

[Flywheel]

Cheapie McDoodle air mattress from CT. Twenty bucks, less on sale. It's flocked for grip on one side and is wide enough for the average man. I found many foam/self inflating mats too narrow for comfort.

The only downside is the air valve: it's specific to the provided bellows foot pump, which is bulky. A Schrader valve would allow the use of my portable compressor.

The trick to air mattress longevity is mentioned in the instructions--don't over pressurize them. Just enough air to suspend you above the ground is ideal. Mine is now three years old.

[CruisnGrrl]

used to stealth camp with the bicycle, small tent just big enough for 2 of us (no gear), a stove that was used when it was too wet to fire, a grill that could be put over a fire. light pots and pans, thermarest and a great sleeping bag. it was great experience.

[homme de fer]

Didn't know what a "Big Agnes" was so I googled it. There seems to be a lot of poor reviews due to leaks and loosing air pressure over night.

I was worried about this as well but MEC has a great return policy. I blew the mattress up Monday night, layed on it for about an hour while reading a book then put about 50 pounds of weight on the mattress to see if it would leak. Tried it last night and it doesn't seem to have lost any air.

[dankyyz]

Thermorest Pro-lite 4. Very light, very thin, extremely comfortable and is covered with a material that is not slippery at all. It stays where I put it and my sleeping bag doesn't slide off of it.
I used to have a Luxury Camp model that was a thick, heavy POS. I'd slide off of it part way through the night. I don't miss is at all.

Same. And instead of a tent i use one of these.

http://hennessyhammock.com/

WAYY more comfortable. No rocks/pinecones in your back. Goes up in 5 minutes. Packs down like a pair of jeans.

[inreb]

Same. And instead of a tent i use one of these.

http://hennessyhammock.com/

WAYY more comfortable. No rocks/pinecones in your back. Goes up in 5 minutes. Packs down like a pair of jeans.

Have you any experience with this in Provincial Parks? I gave up tring to run small laundry lines because the park workers keep taking them down. .

[Barneycanoe]

Thermarest - + Thermarest Pillow.

We have six Thermarests after an unpleasant experience with another manufacturer.

[Riceburner]

Been using Thermarests for longer than I've been riding.

[SiNNeR]

Same. And instead of a tent i use one of these.

http://hennessyhammock.com/

WAYY more comfortable. No rocks/pinecones in your back. Goes up in 5 minutes. Packs down like a pair of jeans.

+100

the BEST camping tool i ever bought..

[Flywheel]

Okay, what's the deal with the HHs? How does you back feel in the morning? I've read quite a bit about them, but remain a bit skeptical. Can you suspend it between a post and motorcycle, or is that asking too much?

[dankyyz]

Why do you remain skeptical?

Your back feels amazing in the AM. It's not for everyone. A buddy once commented that he felt claustro in it.

If you are bike camping there is nothing to beat it. The one trick is to keep your back insulated via a thermorest. For comfort and ease of sleeping in ANY forest you cant beat it.

And no. You do need two trees, or something VERY solid like a truck. You pull the main line pretty tight.

You can also hang socks and shirts and such on the line under the tarp, to dry things out.

You should try one.

D

[SiNNeR]

Why do you remain skeptical?

Your back feels amazing in the AM.

You should try one.

D

its true, i feel better waking up in that then my bed,

Im tryin to get the wife to agree on hanging a hammock in the master bed room.. not going over so well thou..

[El Zilcho]

Your back feels amazing in the AM. It's not for everyone.

I like sleeping on my stomach or lying on a side, so I highly doubt that I would feel amazing in the morning after a night in a hammock...

[dankyyz]

I like sleeping on my stomach or lying on a side, so I highly doubt that I would feel amazing in the morning after a night in a hammock...

You can kinda sleep on your side. Ish.

You might be surprised. It's very supportive, and as a result you dont toss/turn very much.

It only takes about 5 minutes to put up, so it's great for roadside catnaps as well.

[theshnizzle]

This is my first year of camping by myself and I am kinda using trial and error with my gear. I bought an Ozark Trail 2 person tent at Wal-mart, goes up easy but a bit bigger than I want to carry.

I also have a Thermo-rest pad but I want to get a smaller one. (Going to MEC this week will be checking out the Big Agnes pad) I have just bougt a MSR tiny stove ( pocket rocket) than you screw into the little canister of fuel

And bought a medium sized Thermaarest compressible pillow, I had one of the smaller ones from Canadian Tire but just didn't cut it.

A small lightweight sleeping bag and a fleece bag liner. I did order last week a Big Agnes solo tent from REI in the states,can't wait to pick it up. Next on the list is a stackable cookset from MEC for about 30.00 bucks.

Pot, cup,spoon all stacks into a stuff sack that doubles as a washbasin.

I wanted a free standing tent, I want to be able to move it around if I want. Hard to find here in Canada though for less than 300.00, unfortunately.

I am slowly finding out what works FOR ME and what doesnt. Like I want a good pillow and am willing to sacrifice a little space for one. A tent that packs really small. Multi purpose items.

I just use soft bags for now, I will be upgrading to hard bags next year I think. What I like about the soft bags are all the tie down points.

I considered a HH, but I think I am to creeped out sleeping by myself in the woods. I like to be in an open spot where I can see who or what is coming! My bf had to camp in the middle of a field last week in Quebec,nothing around him to put a Hammock, what do you do then?

All in all, it seems to be trial and error. I can see that it's prolly going to take me this season to get the right stuff, I think.

[inreb]

I wanted a free standing tent, I want to be able to move it around if I want. Hard to find here in Canada though for less than 300.00, unfortunately.

Aren't they all free standing? Maybe I don't understand the terminology. Anyway, I picked up the MEC Wanderer2 this spring for a bit over$200. So far so good. Comes in two versions. One is all screen for the hot weather, that's the one I got. Lucky move.