I had high hopes for the evening but I had a hell of a long drive to get there. The thing about driving is, it gives you time to think.
My tried-and-true sleeping bag is a Big Agnes. (The model I bought is probably discontinued, link just goes to the brand.) It is, by far, the most comfortable backcountry sleeping bag I’ve ever had. But it’s a mummy bag, and mummy bags are usually something this side of strangulation as far as I’m concerned. The Big Agnes is MUCH roomier than most but it’s still not like a blanket on your bed. It has a unique (at least when I bought it) feature in that you inflate an air mattress (about 1 ½ inches thick) and insert it into a pocket in the bottom of the sleeping bag itself. It’s very cool and definitely better than a Thermarest pad. No air mattress is as nice as a real mattress but my Big Agnes is as nice as you can get for small size and moderate weight. I’ve had mine for several years and it has served me well.
However, now that I’ve already gone for the giant cot why not get myself a nicer sleeping bag/pad? And for that matter if I’ve got a cot big enough to almost be a full-size bed why not eschew mummy bags and get nice big square-shaped sleeping bag? Also, my Big Agnes is rated for 40° and the last time I slept in it the temperature was about 15°. I was miserably cold. The fact that I camped well beyond the specifications of my gear is not the fault of the sleeping bag, but it’s an experience I’d rather not repeat.
You can see where this is going can’t you?
Rather than my usual cheapskate method of trying to repurpose the gear I have; I changed plans and made a beeline for an outdoor supply shop. Part of the reason I chose to do this is that where I live it’s damn near impossible to buy a decent sleeping bag and I was near the city where I could browse a large selection.
In less time than it takes to say “burning cash” I’d bought a new sleeping pad and a new sleeping bag. In keeping with my “overland equipment” plan I bought big, heavy, and luxurious!
Check out the size of this ridiculous, monstrous, almost insanely comfortable pad:
It’s a TETON Sports Outfitter XXL Camp Pad. Don’t let the marketing drivel fool you. This is not lightweight. It is not small. It is way too big to be sitting on a pretty snowdrift with artistically arranged plaid pillows. (Who puts little pillows on snow?)
This thing is huge. It’s going to be in the trunk of your car and if you own a small car it’ll take up most of it. It’s HUGE. I have a huge truck so I have plenty of space. And besides that, why the hell should I suffer?
Did I mention that it’s 2 1/2″ thick and real padding? No shit! It’s 2 1/2 inches of “fuck backpacking I’m here to snore” comfort. Not some “inflate it and pretend that’s comfy” version of 2 1/2″. Damn it’s nice. Not all bed/mattress combos in houses are this comfy!
(Oddly, I felt guilty buying this luxury. Isn’t that weird? In a world full of snowflakes who get triggered if they hear a scary word, I was in the sporting goods store feeling decadent for buying a pad that’s more than “minimally adequate”. Go figure.)
Now came the question of the sleeping bag. Compared to expensive backcountry mummy bags an indulgent fluffy giant old-school square bag is actually pretty cheap. No kidding, like half the price or less of a good backpacking bag.) I was half a mind to get a bag rated for summertime (like 40° or something) but then I remembered the lesson of my last campout. Even though I intend to use it mostly for summer, I know how my luck plays out!
Check out this ridiculous, gorgeous, fluffy, indulgent, luxurious, sleeping bag:
Yeah, I know! I’m livin’ the dream! It’s a TETON Sports Celsius XL Sleeping Bag and (since the Dodge is doing the hauling instead of me) I went the extra mile (and only a few bucks more) to get the one with rated for ZERO degrees. (I have a backcountry bag rated for -40 and yes, I’ve used it in very cold nights, but the last several years I’ve gambled on my 40 degree Big Agnes because any -40 bag is going to be bulky. I figure zero is plenty for anything this side of ice fishing. It’s super conservative, and overkill, for canoeing.)
After years of sleeping on the ground, feeling every rock, rolling over pinecones, and worrying about every ounce that I carry, it was amazingly liberating just to buy whatever the hell I wanted. Worry about nothing but comfort and your whole world changes.
Oh yeah, it comes with a nice compression bag too. Bonus. Lot’s of nice little details indicating good quality. My only complaint was the color. It’s shit brown. My Big Agnes is “flaming gay pink”. Who picks out these colors? Regardless, color is irrelevant. I’m all about comfort on this trip.
Also, it was pretty cool that I can buy the same brand of all three things. I wanted them to fit together as a system. (At the time it was just an experiment, but I can report now that all three things really are perfectly matched; cot, bag, pad. They all fit together perfectly.)
It was like Christmastime!