Isle Royale Forums

I'm currently looking to replace my old bulky Coleman sleeping pad and have had issues with previous open cell pads developing holes during my adventures. So I was wondering what some of your preferences are for the island? Maybe pros and cons?

Sleeping pads have come a long way. I recently dropped big bucks on a neo-air after using a 3/4 thermorest for a decade. I'v been meaning to write an official review and post it, but I guess I will do a quick one now.

I used it for 16 days last fall and never had a problem with leakage and/or noise. It provided me with the best sleeping pad I have EVER used.

I was very paranoid of poking a hole in it and brought a patch kit. I used it exactly as I used my previous thermorest which includes folding it into a square for a padded chair on logs or picnic tables and I used it as a back pad on my backpack (I have a GV4 wich does not have a pad built into it) which rests against my tent poles. I did use it with the pillow cover that was made for the thermorest (which fits fine) which provides an additional layer of protection when using it on logs, etc.

Like I said, it provided me the best padding I have ever had while backpacking. It was also lighter than my thermorest. It is however, pricey. Mayber literally worth it weight in gold
But, I will never go without it again and think it was worth every penny.

Thanks for the help. I'm looking into maybe the Nemo Astro.

Just got a Nemo Astro Insulated, but only have 1 night on it. So far, so good . What drew me away from the NeoAir was the noise I heard from the tent next to me one night, when I shared a campsite last summer. Couldn't figure out what it was, then found out in the morning that they had a couple of NeoAirs. The one thing about the Nemo is the built in "pillow" which is really just a bump at the end. But I really didn't care for it with the air pillow I have so I'll probably flip it around and have the bump at the feet. My daughter likes the bump with her air pillow though, and I imagine it's great if you're using clothing under the head.

After trying out several pads at a store, my favorite was the Exped UL7, but got a deal on the Nemo for 60 vs 160 for the Exped and just couldn't justify the difference.

Like MikeT posted above, I've used an open-cell pad my enitre backpacking career. I've never had a problem. And the one time someone in my group *DID* have a problem with their open-cell pad, it was easily fixed in the field (submerge it in water, look for air bubbles, dry off, apply patch).

Also like MikeT, I now use the NeoAir 3/4 pad. It's probably one of the best investments I've made...packs small (as small as a Nalgene), is super lightweight, and hella comfortable. Highly recommended.

When I first started hiking IR, I used a Ridgerest. Worked great and was light. No issues with it deflating in the middle of the night. I bought a Thermarest Light and have been using that for backpacking. When kayaking, I use a Thermarest 2" waffle foam inflateable (something LE) that is heaven on the wood floors of the shelters. I would like to try some of the newer pads, not willing to spend the $$$ though.

Definitely open cell if by open cell that suggests inflatable. I have tried a series of pads. The Thermarest Prolite, ThermaRest Z-Lite, Thermarest Neoair, all of the Big Agnes inflatable pads, all of the Exped pads, and finally I stumbled upon the Neoair Trekker.

The Prolite and Z-lite pads just did not offer enough thickness and support for me.

I did not like the vertical baffles of the Big Agnes pads.

The Exped weighed too much, and again, I did not care for the vertical baffles.

The original NeoAir did not feel durable enough to sustain being slept on over a rough surface as soon as I saw it. Sure enough my assumptions where correct, and while my pad did not have any issues, my girlfriend's developed a slow leak. While we wouldn't find ourselves waking up on the ground while using it, if the leak got any worse, that definitely would have been the case. The original NeoAir were also noisy. Bad if you do not want to wake your partner up when you have to go to the bathroom at night. Furthermore, while I am only 5'7, I still appreciate a wide mat. Unfortunately, if I wanted a 25 inch wide mat, I had to buy a 78 inch pad (X-Large). That extra length that I had no use for cost me in weight and in extra money. It was funny because I didn't even care for the regular sized mats at 70 inches. Besides them only being 20 inches wide, 70 inches was much too large for my needs. But that aside, 20 inch wide mats just do not cut it for me. I need some rolling space and that 5 extra inches save me.

The NeoAir Trekker was heavenly. It was more durable than the original Neoair. It was not made of the same noisy material as the original Neoair. And most importantly, it was offered in a wide small verison. 47X25!!! It I was inventing a pad for my specific needs, I would have invented this pad. In fact, this was the pad I had always wanted, but no company offered such a size. The NeoAir had a 47X20, but again that just was not wide enough for me. Do my feet hand off of it? Yes, but my knees to the top of my head have something to rest on, so I am a happy campers. It is super light too.

They recently came out with something called the NeoAir Xlite, and while it has a higher R-value on it that does the NeoAir Trekker, it does not look durable. I have seen one and I could see my hand threw it. It looks to puncture prone to me. And alas, it is not offered in a small 25 inch wide version. If you want the extra width, you will have to get the extra length to go along with it. That means more weight and more money.

My NeoAir Trekker is $99 and 16ozs. It falls under the $100 threshold before tax and it is in the 1 pound range. Is there lighter pads out there. Yes, but not once that meet my exact specifications and not ones that cost the same or less than my bad. I cannot justify paying more money for something that is lighter, but does not meet my custom preferences. I'd gladly pay twice the amount my pad cost me if it meet my custom preferences and weighed half as much. But I think this much is obvious by now

I have used the Thermarest Ridgerest for years: my experience on ISRO was that the Ridgerest was comfortable when used on the ground but that it was uncomfortable in the shelters (it does little to pad one's hips and shoulders). It is lightweight compared to other pads out there. As it is a closed cell pad and it does not inflate, there is no puncture possibility.

I used my REI dividend and the recent REI 20% off sale to get a good deal on a NeoAir all season. The All Season comes with a patch kit and a stuff sack that doubles as an inflation device (my initial view is that this is a gimmick). I tried on my deck with my sleeping bag on a recent 20 degree night. It was plush. I could feel the reflection of body heat when I shifted positions (instant cold spot). It provides lots of support and padding to my hips and shoulders. I did place it on my Ridgerest pad (my deck is more of a sharp splinter hazard than the shelters), and it would be a good idea to be very compulsive about making sure that there are no puncture hazards (a deflated NeoAir provides no padding). The downside that I can see with the NeoAir is that on warm nights it could get uncomfortably hot to use. The NeoAir weighs about the same as the Ridgerest but is considerably less bulky (it takes up the space of a Nalgene 32oz bottle).

I cannot recommend purchasing the NeoAir unless it is both on sale and you have a REI dividend or the like to use. There are other lightweight pads for less money out there (you may want to check out forums like WhiteBlaze for discussions on this subject).

*cough* hammock *cough*

backpackingZombie wrote:*cough* hammock *cough*

Right. I made the mistake of mentioning the word "hammock" to the ranger when we registered at St. Joseph Peninsula State Park in FL and was told, "You do know that you are not allowed to tie anything to the trees?" Went out and repacked my pack with a sleeping pad. Hammocks are great, when and where you can use them. Unfortunately, that's not everywhere.

I used to be able to curl up and sleep on a rock. As I've aged it's become harder and harder to get comfortable to sleep. I have a Big Agnes air mattress which works OK but is a tad heavy. I just invested $125 in a Neo Air. Mostly just to shave a few ounces off the pack weight.

DonNewcomb wrote:

backpackingZombie wrote:*cough* hammock *cough*

Right. I made the mistake of mentioning the word "hammock" to the ranger when we registered at St. Joseph Peninsula State Park in FL and was told, "You do know that you are not allowed to tie anything to the trees?" Went out and repacked my pack with a sleeping pad. Hammocks are great, when and where you can use them. Unfortunately, that's not everywhere.

I used to be able to curl up and sleep on a rock. As I've aged it's become harder and harder to get comfortable to sleep. I have a Big Agnes air mattress which works OK but is a tad heavy. I just invested $125 in a Neo Air. Mostly just to shave a few ounces off the pack weight.

Yeah, I've had the same thing happen to me too. sucks.

Now I don't offer up describing my sleeping arrangements.