Trad Gang

After many years of sleeping on a flimsy cot at deer camp, I am thinking about investing in either a good cot and pad or air mattress to sleep on this fall.  Gander mountain carries a nice air mattress (wetzal Queen sized) however I am affraid an air mattress will be a little chilly on the cold ground. What do you guys use while camping?

My wife and I each have our own rope beds!

  !!!!!Re-size pix please!!!!!

Cabelas XL cot with pad and tree for hanging you stuff...handy and comfortable.

Kapellmeister,

I slept on a rope bed all the time at our farm in West Virginia. Loved it.

In camp I just use a self inflating backpacking pad (I believe it is a thermarest) and a Northface rabbits foot mummy bag.

I usually use a ThermaRest pad. But I bought a Big Agnes insulated air mattress and thing it will be even better. It's light, small, and very comfortable!

Kapellmeister
Is that a pyramid tent you have there?  What size is it?  Also, where can I buy or find plans for a rope bed?

I have a queen size bed in my truck camper.  
 (http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc157/pactac/camper1.jpg)

When I was still tent camping I had a cot and would put a thermarest on it to block the cold.

My right side...sorry I couldn't resist.

If not too cold I sleep on an accordian-style cot -- I can't remember the name but very common. If it is cold I get closer to the ground to keep air from circulating under me.  Then it is a foam pad.

on my queen size bed in our camper. Mike

QuoteOriginally posted by Scioto:
Kapellmeister
Is that a pyramid tent you have there?  What size is it?  Also, where can I buy or find plans for a rope bed?

No, not a pyramid... it's actually a "Museum" wedge tent from Tentsmiths... typical wedge design but 10x14 feet plus a 5 ft. bell and 8 ft. high at the ridge.  Getting a little cramped as my kids are getting older... they'll soon move into their own wedge tents.  A friend of mine made the beds for me with no plans per se... he just patterned them after one that he had seen.  I think I've seen some plans online, though... do a "Google" search.  Here's another shot of the tent from outside.

I use a therma-rest on the ground most of the time when I am in a tent.

Slumberjack XL cot and a 3" thermarest pad on top.  Too old to be sleepin' on the ground.

Cabela's Alaskan Guide model cot and a Costco fold-up pad when I'm truck camping. Sleep like a baby between nature runs.

Thermarest pad when canoe camping. I don't sleep good anymore w/ that skimpy pad between me and hard ground.

I see on the ground, in a 3 man tent. I have a walmart sleeping bag rated to like 32 degrees and I use some of the quilts that my grandma made and they keep me plenty warm. But if that is not enough I usually have Ben my lab/huskie mix with me and he will sleep next to me if I let him. Ty

U.S. Army cot with a Cabela's cot pad...

I think you need to resize those pictures or they will disappear !
ChuckC

Huge-mo Coleman air mattress, wool blanket on that, sleeping bag and assorted sheepskins.

Killdeer

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v249/Killdeer/Hunting%20and%20Camp/2007%20November%20Hunt/Img_5065Suffering600.jpg)

Killdeer that looks real cosy and plenty of room

When camping with my wife we sleep on a slim queen size mattress in a pop-up.

When camping with our son in scouts I sleep on the ground.  

Both tend to hurt.

I can sleep on concrete if all is quiet. But, I built a bed in my van. I use several layers of pad over plywood. Sleep like a rock most of the time. Never get wet in the van!

An OLD canvas and wood Army cot and a canvas bedroll with several inches of memory foam.  Nice and comfy....


Jeremy

Same as Killy, I take a huge goosedown comforter that I throw over the sleeping bag when it gets really cold. Those big air mattresses are better sleeping than the bed at home . Only problem I have is , Its hard to get up in the morning. Cold mountain air, warm sleeping bag and comfortable bed. Thats living man!!!!!

usually just my sleeping bag no pad no tent. times in the tee-pee ive used an old stretcher keeps me about four inches off the ground,but usually i just throw down some old burlap bags with a wool blanket and sleep on top of that in my sleeping bag .

Tuning your bedroll is just as important as tuning your bow.


Both should create a feeling of warmth, comfort, and joy.


Everything's right with the world when your in your bedroll, because you're hunting or fishing. Creates a pavlovian "Happy Sleeping" response that reinforces itself everytime you go somewhere.

I use a Rolla Cot with a 1 1/2" therma rest.
I like the rolla  cot due to it's toughness and it only has 4 legs ( better for uneven ground)
You can ajust how much cup it has for your therma rest.

Kathy, I love that pic of you roughing it  :thumbsup:

A large comfy Cabelas cot and a really great sleeping bag-can't wait!   :archer:

Cheap cot, cheap pad, luxurious down sleeping bag (military surplus) and I have a cozy fleece warm weather sleeping bag tucked inside of the down bag for really cold weather.  December in Iowa in a tent is not for the timid.

Recently this...

(http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff187/GingivitisKahn/eno.jpg)

If I'm in my tent, I use a Thermarest pad then my -40 sleeping bag.

If I'm fortunate enough to have my camper "which is rare because of the 30' size" I'll sleep in the Queen bed.

Not as nice in the pic department, but very similar set up to what Killdeer uses.... queen size air mattress, couple of furniture pads for insulation against cold, fitted sheet, top sheet, down sleeping bag.
  (http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/Smithtent375.jpg)  

In the last couple of years I've been using a Cabela's tent cot and find it to be very weather tight and comfy.

Have an old army cot too. Sleeping bag or quilts depending on the weather.......Randy

Check out the disc-o cot from Cabelas. It stacks as bunk bed and you will find no stronger or better cot. Can be used as two seperate cots and also comes in a single model but Cabelas do not sell single model. Do search for disc-o cot. Originally designed and used for military and medical use. Not a back packing cot by anymeans but definatley the toughest/strongest cot going. They do not squeak or make any noises.

This is my father's birthday present a couple of years ago, I have used it and it works great.

 (http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/6614/picture001jl.th.jpg) (http://img841.imageshack.us/i/picture001jl.jpg/)

Uploaded with  ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

I really like the hamack and rainfly.  I bet I would have used the heck out of it in the past.  Nowdays if I slept in a hamack for a night I doubt I'd be able to walk upright the next day.

Full length Therma rest when canoeing/jeep camping a thin 3/4 length one when backpacking both on top of a tarp

And Killie has been giving ME a hard time about wanting to stay in a hotel room....  

This was brought up on the "other site."  My response was don't camp.  Drive.  Camp only if your hunting ground is inaccessible by vehicle.  I did it as a kid, but I grew out of spending nights without a bathroom.

hennesy hammock

sleeping bag

You will freeze sleeping on an air mattress in Ohio.  Cots will freeze you in a tent too.  I have used both.  One other poster mentioned the Big Agnes.  I have one of those too.  It's the best camping investment I have ever made.  I got the biggest pad they make and it folds and rolls up to roughly the size of a quart jar.  It's insulated, is 2.5" thick when inflated.  It's awesome.  A friend of mine has a thermarest.  He took one look at my Big Agnes, laid on it for a couple minutes and ordered one as soon as we broke camp.  Combine that with a good bag, and you'll be ready to roll out and hunt the next morning.  My pad and my North Face Goliath 0 degree bag make for a great nights sleep.

twin bed in the camper at the deer lease, on a self inflating at scout camps, but the older I get the harder it is becoming.

An 8 inch thick foam queen size mattress with a 4 inch memory foam on top and I could still feel that darn bean or was it a pea?   :)

On the ground it's a TR Ridgerest with a 3/4 length Big Agnes IAC (mentioned a couple times on here).  It's just awesome for a great nights sleep without a lot of weight and bulk.

My emergency kit has a TR Prolite small (only 1" thick, barely) and a small chunk of foam to cover the rest of the length.  Not my preferred mattress choice, but if I'm using it I've got bigger issues than comfort.

Killy's setup just looks COMFORTABLE!  I'd never make it into the woods in the morning with that setup.

An old boy scout cot until it ripped this last trip.  I had to use two closed cell pads, a 1" foam pad and a 3/4 length Thermarest and a sleeping bag.  Not too bad for these 66 year old bones.

We use the tall blow-up mattresses. We used to use the short ones but I got tired of sitting on the floor of the tent while trying to put my boots and socks on. Two twin size fit in our 10X10 tent fine with plenty of other room for gear.

Lisa made cool blankets to put under the fitted sheets. She took a wool blanket and folded it in-two. Sandwiched in-between is one of those crinckely space blankets. Then she sewed around the edge and accross the middle.

We tried just using the space blankets but they were too noisey and slid around. With these "insulating pads" they stay put and work great. We then just put a flannel fitted sheet on the mattress and cover up with our heavy sleeping bags.

We have used this set-up down to temps in the single digits (with a small heater in the tent).

OkKeith

Tom, Tom, Tom...
My equipment has lasted me for years and years. Not only is the nearest motel ten miles away, they charge a hefty fee every night. There is no fire pit there, either, and it never gets truly dark, what with the lights in the parking lot. No owls or coyotes to sing you to sleep.

So, if you can live like this in a tent, why even consider a motel?
Oh, and I have camped in this rig to fifteen below.

Killdeer   :campfire:

I have spent over a month in the forest; sleeping on an army cot with a sleeping pad; and a sleeping bag. I have a canvas sleeping bag canvas cover- which I highly recommend.
I like cots and sleeping pads - and probably will stick with that system; as I have pack animals to carry tent; sleeping bags and cots back in without much effort.
 Cots and sleeping pads ( seems to keep the cold out) have made many many nights with a great nights sleep.

LOL Killy - you really look comfortable in your set up - almost regal - does your husband feed you grapes ?    :goldtooth:  

I don't think I really enjoyed sleeping out until I started using the cot and pad.

 Everyone pick a spot when you shoot this year: and forever.

                    brian

Killdeer,
Which specific Coleman mattress do you have...or recommend, rather?
I can enjoy sleeping in the outdoors when it's cool out, but in the summer I've just gotta have me some A/C.

QuoteOriginally posted by Friends call me Pac:
I really like the hamack and rainfly.  I bet I would have used the heck out of it in the past.  Nowdays if I slept in a hamack for a night I doubt I'd be able to walk upright the next day.

I thought that too, but if you lay diagonally in them, you can get a very flat night's rest.  I know some folks that sleep in them specifically because they can be so much more comfie than other options.  Heh - some even get rid of their beds and sleep in them at home - I'm not there yet.

My husband does NOT feed me grapes.    :readit:

The mattress is a big-mo size but not the double-tall type. I AM roughing it, remember. I like Coleman because the valve works so easily with the air pump. No more hurry-up-and-get-the-pump-off-and-get-the-plug-in-the-opening-for-heaven's-sake! Just push the pump into the valve and it is shut, and then take the pump out.

I bet this would be warmer with that Big Agnes pad that was being discussed earlier. The sheepskins are a big plus.

Killdeer~always tweaking.   :thumbsup:

I'm with bcorn.

Hennessey Hammock.

I also use a queen size Coleman air matress with two large sleeping bags that zip together to form a queen sized bag.  It is a very comfy setup.  I hate getting all tangled up in a regular bag every time I turn.

Thermarest pad or a Coleman air up queen size mattress if the wifey's goin

A Slumberjack cot. In cold weather I use an old sleeping bag for a mattress to insulate against the cold. Jim

Air mattress with US Army issue multi component sleeping bag.  If it is really cold out I sleep with a fleece blanket under the bag to keep the cold off.

double wide cot and a double wide sleeping bag... with moving blankets or horse blankets on top and bottom for warmth! Has suited me fine for many trips!