A Good Night Sleep

Over the years I’ve had my share of restless nights trying to sleep in the outdoors. With the topic of shelter aside (I’ll talk about shelter another time) there are few other factors to influence your nights slumber than what’s under your sleeping bag.

Some of it may be a factor of age. As a young teenager backpacking in the Sierra Nevada I could get a good night sleep with my bag directly on a granite slab. These days most everything feels like that granite slab in the wee hours of the night. I’ve gone through a number of mattresses, pads and whatever over the years.

The air mattress. I’ve noticed a lot of newer campers use these. I think that is simply because that’s what they sell in the department store camping section. Remember, just because they sell that doesn’t mean you need it. When the rechargeable inflation pumps became available a few years back my friend  recommended I try it. So I bought the kit. They are OK. I’m not real fond of the rolly-polly feel. It does take up a lot of room in my small 2 man tent I use for light trips. Then it sprung a leak. I awoke in the middle of the night with memories of cold hard granite. Not good. When I got home I repaired the leak. Then I made the mistake of taking it on my next trip. It was fall and we were at higher altitude. It got down to 26 degrees at night. Waking up at night with my bottom side very cold and my top side nice and warm I quickly blamed myself for not knowing better. That big mass of air in the mattress simply got cold during the course of the night. Yet another restless night.

The cot. Good for the longer trip when you’re taking lots of gear. But they are too bulky for the light trip. A couple of things I’ve learned. Get the right size. Cot frames differ. Some styles only have frame members down the sides. Others have a frame all the way around. If your feet and head are touching the frame it will bother you during the night. If its narrow and you like to spread out like I do the side rails can be uncomfortable. You could get one that’s plenty big but you could find that it takes up too much room. My good friend brought one on a trip one winter. Being a base camp, cold weather trip we figured we’d live large. Brought my six man, four season tent. His cot practically covered all the real estate inside. When he sat on it his feet didn’t even touch the ground. I told him it was big enough to conduct aircraft operations on. After our trip he returned the “aircraft carrier” for a smaller version.

If the weather is cold (or could get cold) you will need some insulation under your sleeping bag. Even with the best cold weather bags the pressure points were your body presses down will compact the insulation to near nothing. You will soon feel all that cold air under your cot. Use a high density foam pad like I do. Even a blanket or cheap/old sleeping bag would help. The less it compresses the better insulator.

Foam pads. I’ve got several of these and have used then for many, many years. There are several types and there is one that would match your personal preferences. They are great for backpacking or light car trips. Well, any camping trip for that matter. They perform relatively the same year-round. They don’t leak, they are inherently good insulators and are very, very durable. Do your research and try them out for size. There are variations for any type of camping and they run the scale as far as pricing. They make a good choice for a good night sleep. 

Hybrid foam pads. No these don’t have anything to do with fuel economy! These are the next level of the good ‘ol foam pad. General known as self-inflating sleeping pads or mattresses. They are foam with a tough, durable and air-tight outer layer. The pad is unrolled and allowed to “breath in” for several minutes. It expands into a thicker more comfortable pad than the regular foam pad. I even give it a few puffs to firm it up some more before closing the valve. When breaking camp the air is pushed out by rolling it up then closing the valve. This compressed package saves storage space.  I’ve never had “contact” with the ground with this pad. 

The one I use is a Therm-a-Rest Luxury Camp. They even make one that is really comfortable. I’ve had it for about six or seven years and I love it. It is what I reach for when I’m packing. It has never let me down (no pun intended). I’ll admit it is not cheap. Shop around. Find a store where you can try it out. They come in various sizes too. I kinda felt I was splurging when I bought mine. Not now. Worth every cent I paid.

Campsite Lighting

Use a lantern.

Simple solution.

How about using a good lantern. Even better.

So just what makes a good lantern? I can still remember camping with my family as a young boy. Pouring (and spilling) the white gas into the old green lantern. Then pumping the tank till my arm was tired. Watching my dad trying to light it while my mom insisted I was too close should it explode. A Good memory but maybe not a good lantern. Actually I still have that old lantern up in the rafters.

Propane has been a big improvement in lanterns. Clean, no spills, reasonably safe. I’ve got several of them. I don’t think any of them are good. One has no fine adjustment for intensity. It’s either blinding bright or practically off. The one that has a nice fine adjustment squeals like a steam boiler about to bust its rivets. Always have to remember to have extra mantles. Because the ones on the lantern don’t fare well on a rough jeep trail. My fat old fingers aren’t as deft as they used to be when tying them on. Don’t even bother with those “clip-on” type mantles. Then there is the broken glass. When I broke the glass on my favorite propane lantern I bought some fine stainless steel mesh and fabricated a replacement. Works great!

My propane lanterns and propane stoves share the same drawback. Those little green, overpriced, always goes empty before the coffee pot comes to a boil propane fuel canisters. More than once I thought I had packed several only to learn I’d be eating cold food and not have coffee in the morning. (Some parts of the desert southwest do not have enough downwood to build a cooking fire). Bought a small 2 gal propane tank that holds enough for a good week. Great for the long weekend trips when there are a bunch of us. But I find it is too big for solo trips in the jeep. Granted with the “hose tree” it will run both the stove and lantern. But that whole ensemble takes up a lot of precious space in an old Jeep.

I have an electric lantern. An older one with big batteries and an incandescent bulb. It has no soul. It gives off a weak, cold glow. Barely useful, except inside the tent, like when my son is camping with me. Now LED lights are great. They use far less current than incandescent bulbs so your battery lasts longer. But I don’t like them for lanterns. However they are great for flashlights. Best flashlight I’ve ever had is a tiny little Sure-Fire.

When I was going through the “bring it all” phase of camping I used a voltage inverter to power a 2 foot fluorescent lamp hung under the 10’X10’ “kitchen” canopy and a few compact fluorescent fixtures elsewhere. Worked great, lots of light for the entire compound. The passing airliners could probably see us!

Last winter I spent 5 days driving solo in the Sonora Desert in my Jeep. I intentionally left the lantern at home. I brought my little Sure-Fire flashlight and an old mini-mag AA flashlight with red filter over the lens. I never really used either of them. Simply didn’t turn them on. I’d get my dinner prepared before it got really dark. Without the flashlights or lanterns to contract my pupils I didn’t need them. There was less than half a moon and even when it set the starlight alone was enough to see. It’s a very enjoyable time to take a hike. Of course with a full moon and eyes adjusted for at least 30 minutes one could easily read the a newspaper by moonlight. When sailing offshore at night it is the rule. No lights on deck and only red light below deck.

I now regularly practice the low-light campsite routine and find the outdoor experience to be much more enjoyable. It is far different than a bright well lit campsite where you can’t see anything but darkness beyond the lanterns cast.

So…. campsite lighting? Forget the lantern, use your eyes. A simpler solution

Access to Our Public Lands

Well I might as well go ahead and get it out there. Yea, it’s a real hot button issue for some. But then some people will always have issues.

I am a firm believer in preservation. Although creating a wilderness area only limits the access to a very few. The remainder will never see it. Then after a generation or so it will be forgotten, even fewer will care about its importance. And that will be the next step in losing it all forever, apathy.

 

Now based on the fact that I often travel in the backcountry in a jeep, people might identify me as an off-roader. I try to disassociate myself from the bulk of that group as many are a bad example of how to use, and keep using, our public lands. It’s not a case of loving it to death but simple, self-centered ignorance. I always practice ideals like “tread lightly” and “leave no trace”.

So you’ve probably figured out by now that I’m not a zealot. Just a middle of the road guy…. a regular Joe. But I think there are many of you out there like me. You love to spend your free time outdoors. You want to maintain that freedom. You want to be a good steward of our public lands. And maybe along the way you just might enlighten some others to your viewpoint.

Welcome

I hope you find your visit here worth your time. I was inspired to create this site by a friend new to camping. While discussing, around a campfire of course, places to go camping we agreed that there is not much of value available on the internet. Not to say there aren’t some good sites. Actually some very good sites exist.

This site is intended to be about the whole outdoor experience. It is of course slanted towards my preferences. However, it is my intent that everyone should find something of value here.

So…. what are my preferences? I avoid National Parks. They are beautiful places but way too many people for me. As for regular campgrounds, I detest having to make reservations or show up days early to get a decent campsite. Then only to have some gigantic RV run a generator around the clock.

So where does that leave me? Why in some of the best spots there are. Some will disagree for many reasons. That’s OK…. It’s just not me. I’ve tried everything from backpacking (still enjoy it on occasion) to RVing. I have found myself searching for that perfect balance. If you prefer to drive to your destination, camp in reasonable comfort and privacy and truly enjoy the outdoors then you’re like me.

So place you chair around the campfire, grab your favorite beverage and let’s talk about getting out and enjoying our great outdoors.