I hate inflatable sleeping pads. Unless you are willing to spend a lot of money on them they are cold and uncomfortable. I can’t help but thinking that expensive mats are going to be like expensive sunglasses. I’ll spend the money and promptly lose or scratch the damn things while my cheap ones last forever. I will also admit that despite years of dancing I’m klutzy when I walk. So I’m always worried that I’m going to put a hole in my mat. This fear is multiplied by the fact that my backpack is kind of narrow, because I’m small, so it doesn’t easily fit most mats along with the other gear that I have to stow on the inside so I tend to have to carry them on the outside of my pack.
So here I am stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place. If I spend the money to actually buy a comfortable mat I’m going to pop it, and if I don’t I don’t get very good sleep, not to mention being sore and grumpy in the morning which is not exactly a great way to start your second/third/n+1 day of hiking (math jokes are awesome).
The Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest Sleeping pad is a pretty decent compromise. It’s quite durable since it’s a foam mat. I was skeptical about how effective the metallic finish would be at reflecting heat, but it works pretty well and I run cold in general. It’s also pretty light and I can carry it on the outside of my pack without fretting about every stray branch that hits it or every time I set my pack down.
It is not the plushest sleeping pad, I have to sleep on my back or my hips hurt from pressure on my bones. I also have a bit of a sway back, so sleeping on a flat surface on my back all night tends to lead to some lower back pain in the morning, which is usually walked off pretty quickly. It would take a fairly plush mat, either foam or inflatable to counteract that anyway though.
So here I am stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place. If I spend the money to actually buy a comfortable mat I’m going to pop it, and if I don’t I don’t get very good sleep, not to mention being sore and grumpy in the morning which is not exactly a great way to start your second/third/n+1 day of hiking (math jokes are awesome).
The Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest Sleeping pad is a pretty decent compromise. It’s quite durable since it’s a foam mat. I was skeptical about how effective the metallic finish would be at reflecting heat, but it works pretty well and I run cold in general. It’s also pretty light and I can carry it on the outside of my pack without fretting about every stray branch that hits it or every time I set my pack down.
It is not the plushest sleeping pad, I have to sleep on my back or my hips hurt from pressure on my bones. I also have a bit of a sway back, so sleeping on a flat surface on my back all night tends to lead to some lower back pain in the morning, which is usually walked off pretty quickly. It would take a fairly plush mat, either foam or inflatable to counteract that anyway though.
Overall it’s a pretty good product, especially since price-wise it’s very reasonable and I’m pretty happy with it. At some point I might invest in a thicker foam pad, especially for when weight is less of an issue, but for now it’s working just fine.
Specs
Packed size 8x20 inches
LxW 72x20/183x51cm
Thickness.62inches/1.5cm
Weight 14oz/0.4kg
Packed size 8x20 inches
LxW 72x20/183x51cm
Thickness.62inches/1.5cm
Weight 14oz/0.4kg
$19.95-$39.95 (depending on size) via REI
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