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My new sleeping pad popped on the first night of a Boundary Waters trip
I saved up for a fancy inflatable pad, the kind that packs down super small. The box said it was tough and could handle rough ground. I was so excited to use it on a canoe trip up in Minnesota last month. Got it all set up on a clear spot by the lake, went to sleep, and woke up on the hard ground. A tiny pine needle must have poked a hole right through it. I spent the rest of the night on my folded-up rain jacket. Learned that 'lightweight' sometimes just means 'thin and easy to break'. What's a good, truly tough pad that won't leave me sore?
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cora_west53mo ago
...and my buddy Dave had almost the same thing happen with his new pad on a Boundary Waters trip a couple years back. He was so careful clearing the spot too, but a tiny little stick that looked harmless did the trick. He ended up cutting the trip short by a day because his back was just killing him from sleeping on the canoe seat. He finally gave up and got a thick foam pad like the one laurablack mentioned, and he says it's been worth the extra bulk. Can't beat being able to just toss it down anywhere without worrying.
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laurablack6mo ago
Ugh the "lightweight means thin and easy to break" thing is so real lol. I had a fancy pad get wrecked by a single, pointy little twig in Utah. It sounded like a balloon popping and I was just done. I switched to a Therm-a-Rest Z Lite foam pad. It's bulky but you can literally throw it on sharp rocks and nothing happens. Slept on gravel with it once and was fine.
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wells.evan6mo ago
That pop sound is the worst. Like your whole trip just deflated. I started putting my thin pad inside my pack, not strapped outside. Adds a layer between it and the world. Still have to watch where you sit down though.
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