How do you sleep well in a tent?
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Come along to the amazing Summer Moot (21st July - 2nd August), a festival of bushcrafting and camping in a beautiful woodland PLEASE CLICK HERE for more information.
Get a cheap fleece blanket (sometimes they sell the in Aldi or suchlike) With it, make a cover for your thermorest. That way your bag won't slide off the mat at night, it won't slip off the groundsheet, and if it's really warm, you can sleep directly on the mat, using your bag as a duvet.
Use a pillow - I've got one of those foam filled jobbies. Use the off cuts from the blanket to make a cover for that as well. I avoid using rolled up jumpers and suchlike as I find that they are either too hard, not the right height etc etc.
Get a pee bottle and use that at night rather than getting boots on and venturing forth.
Do not drink the contents of the pee bottle.
And I've saved the best for last. Before putting down your camping mat, make a shallow 'trench' along a line where your hips will rest so that your back remains straight when you're lying on your side. Believe me, it works wonders. Variations include trenches for knees and shoulders......
I picked up that last tip from Spike Milligan.
Use a pillow - I've got one of those foam filled jobbies. Use the off cuts from the blanket to make a cover for that as well. I avoid using rolled up jumpers and suchlike as I find that they are either too hard, not the right height etc etc.
Get a pee bottle and use that at night rather than getting boots on and venturing forth.
Do not drink the contents of the pee bottle.
And I've saved the best for last. Before putting down your camping mat, make a shallow 'trench' along a line where your hips will rest so that your back remains straight when you're lying on your side. Believe me, it works wonders. Variations include trenches for knees and shoulders......
I picked up that last tip from Spike Milligan.
jimbo75
Settler
I've just accepted that I shall never be as comfortable in a tent as I am in a bed & so enjoy the experience of 'roughing it'
You could always try slipping some leaf litter or other vegetation under the ground sheet so your boney bits after pressing into your sleeping mat have something soft to dig into
I agree, this does help a bit with comfort and also about going to sleep when you are tired. I tend to rise very early when camping so by about 10pm I'm ready to drop anyway!! Unless I am fishing, I avoid alcohol as it makes me feel very cold and of course has the added annoyance of having to go pee in the middle of the night. During fishing, the sleep times are regulated by whats on the hook so I tend to have a wee nip whenever the fancy takes me!!
Cold is the thing that made me feel most uncomfortable when I started camping but a good insulated roll mat sorted that and I think the leaves add to this - maybe trapping air? Not sure but I do seem to be a bit more warm and comfy.
i sometimes do the tent bit (instead of the hammock) when im out night shooting so i can sleep with the rifle,its a bit dangerous in the hammock as you might imagine,the grass or ferns etc under the tent in the right places does it for me,combined with the three quarter therarest mat,not to hard!!!!!
Im the same mate, except it's just my knees that wake up killing me!! I use a foam mat and a three quarter self inflating one on top! I am however thinking about getting one of these -
http://www.highlander-outdoor.com/partnumber.asp?cid=29570&pnid=301598
For the price it's gotta be worth a punt!!
Cheers
Steve
Sent from my SK17i using Tapatalk 2
http://www.highlander-outdoor.com/partnumber.asp?cid=29570&pnid=301598
For the price it's gotta be worth a punt!!
Cheers
Steve
Sent from my SK17i using Tapatalk 2
lie on your side, pillow between your knees, i saw that tip on this website sometime and i even do it in bed, it has improved my level of comfort so much i can't tell you.
Seconded.
I had a motorcycle accident 5 years back breaking every bone in the right side of my body. When receovering (and every night since) I sleep with a long side-sleepers pillow which I cuddle into and the end of it seperates my knees.
For the tent, I use a drybag which traps the air and does the same job.
I recently purchased a very comfy Aerobed Pakmat (no affiliation etc), which is superb. Down side is the weight, so I'm now purchasing Exped Synmat to leighten my load.
I did a brief Youtube vid on the Aerobed here.
I do find that the first night I have a rubbish nights sleep but from then on it's easier. I'll go to whatever lengths I need to to ensure I can still get out!
Good Luck!
For me, main problem is confines of sleeping bag. I sprawl in bed and find it hard to do in a bag!
Best answer is to be knackered when you go to bed - I slept like a log at Lowe Alpine Mountain Marathon (LAMM) on short/thin closed-cell mat and in Tesco's down bag at 6 degrees C!
Best answer is to be knackered when you go to bed - I slept like a log at Lowe Alpine Mountain Marathon (LAMM) on short/thin closed-cell mat and in Tesco's down bag at 6 degrees C!
It always takes me a few nights to get used to a tent's sleep... Even then I never really get used to it. I think it's because, like the OP, I've always over-inflated my thermarest. I was suprised when the Bloke said "you only need it half way you know... " I tried it and it was so much more comfier (more comfier.. more comfy..). Plus I'm a cold sleeper so I'm a lost cause really Good thing hammocks are super comfy ^^
Good thing hammocks are super comfy ^^
Being tired, not drinking too much (if any...) tea or coffee before bed, being warm and dry - I find all these help make for a good night's kip. The main difficulty is the idea of being "IN a tent". Many have pointed to the massive advantages of sleeping under a tarp - I can only agree; I would also add that I am 100% guaranteed a great night's sleep when in my hammock beneath the tarp. Alternatively, a closed cell foam mat with a partially inflated air mat thing make for blissful slumber...
Or, you could take a page from the Italian Duke of Abruzzi- he had porters take along a full size bed with him when he tried to climb K2 in Pakistan at the turn of the last century...
Geo
Geo
i think that sleeping in a tent in a garden would be equall to being asked to sleep on the floor of your lounge on the same mat system, thermarest, closed cell, ridgerest etc. Its not gona be enjoyable. Picture this. Carrying the tent in the rain along with food and water for between 9-15 miles. Pitch it at the end of the day get your food into you slip into dry clothes slide down into your sleeping bag with a hot chochey listen to the rain on the fly and i bet you a dollar you will strugle to keep your eyes open and have one of the best memorable sleeps ever what ever ground mat you use.
