stretchers vs. self inflating mats

You must have a very good self inflating mattress. I can feel the cold ground on a "$80 on special self inflating mattresses", that I don't feel on a stretcher off the ground. My self inflaters partially deflate overnight though.

Never had the opportunity to test a Thermarest brand though and my 90kg would result in a lot more deflation than a child would. You have to ask are your kids squirmers, would they wriggle off a self inflating mattress during the night.
Not crossed the Simpson, but have travelled to Dalhousie and central Oz in July though, on nights down to -3. My teenage kids slept on stretchers.

Deflating a self inflating mattress takes longer than packing up a strecher, though setting up the reverse is true. Occupy about the same amount of space.

Gday,
I dont reckon you can beat swags if your going to be setting and packing up so often.
My kids use stretchers if we're setting up for a couple of nights , but if its just 1 night they use swags.

Cheers

Gooday Taps ; i use a self inflating mattress in my swag ,as i have crook back , works well , so kids should have no problems . i send about $ 80 on it . but as mentioned it WILL get very cold that time of year . when i camped up there i would make shore i had plenty under me , a extra mattress i would think would work well .
good luck

My wife and I use self inflating mattresses and find them comfortable enough to have taken them around Oz on our big lap. Our Roman sleeping bags (-5 degrees) have loops at the back that can go over the mattress and thereby 'tie' the bag to the mattress, so that you do not slide off. This may help with the wrigglers.

I am unsure what you meant by the Oztent 'tag-along'. My RV4 has the peaked extensions and side panels, and when that is put up will fit another 4 adults in some form of comfort. They may prove to be an option.

Jack

Having used both I'd go with the stretchers BUT make sure the OzTent floor is strong enough that the stretcher legs won't puncture it.

Hi Taps,

I use stretcher beds in my RV5 (only 2 though). They are far superior to self inflating mattress IMHO and I get up in the morning and actually feel like Id had a decent nights sleep lol.

The stretchers dont damage the floor of the RV5 but I do put mats down to be sure to be sure

Cheers Wilko

With 5 in the family you will always have a lot of gear to assemble and dismantle.My wife and I with a six year old travel the bush often usually only one nighter stops which can be painful but we use stretchers and Roman self inflators and we all sleep well. the stretchers are the type that you hold either end and push them together and thats it put in the bag and away you go. Its the matresses that take the time to deflate.

regards.......jeff

Taps,

In my opinion in think a good quality self inflating mattress would be a far better insulator than a stretcher however, the stretcher would be more comfortable.

Also you should not be looking for the mattress or stretcher to keep you warm, the sleeping bag should do that.

We do a bit of light weight camping and hiking and have slept in a tent at Cradle Mt in -5 temp with good sleeping bags and ultra thin Thermarests and slept like a log.

Maybe you can do a mix with you and the Boss on stretchers and the kids on self inflating mattresses. If you wear them out during the day they will usually sleep through a cyclone.

I don't agree with one of the other posters regarding packing up a self inflating mattress. If you pull the plug a few minutes before you get up they will already be deflated and you can roll them up in a few seconds.

I'd definately go with a GOOD QUALITY self-inflating mattress. I was 'sold' when the sales guy asked me for my set of car keys which he placed under the mattress and then asked me to lie on the mattress and tell him where the keys were! Couldn't! We've camped across the Simpson when below freezing at night and outback Qld in similar temps and with a good sleeping bag had no problems at all. They are smaller and lighter than a stretcher and only take moments to rollup in the morning and even less to rollout at night.

HI

no. 1 -Try these.
Exped SynMat 7 PUMP DLX Sleeping Mat

http://www.summitgear.com.au/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=6_150

Best thing I ever bought for camping.
R value of 4.9. - If you hunt round Google you'll find that you need close to R5 to stop body heat loss to the ground. Sleeping bag is a secondary.
There is nothing else on the market (including thermarest) which comes clsoe to these snuggly mattresses.
And you can get away with a lighter sleeping bag if you use a well insulated mattress.

no.2 - thermals.

enjoy !
Rich

Taps,

I have found that when using stretchers in the cold you also need an insulating layer underneath you. Astretcher by itself will not keep you warm. So I see your choices as being either, an insulating matt only or a stretcher with an insulating matt.

I have both and use them as the need arises. If I want to do lightweithg camping, to save on space, and am not camping in one place for long, I use my thermarest. If we are staying longer (usually during the queensland summer) I put the kids on a stretcher and we use a double foam mattress.

The stretcher for the kids has it's advantages. One is that they don't roll out of bed. The second is that you can put some gear underneath the stretcher if you're short of storage space in the tent. If we were going somewhere cold I would buy those blue, roll-up sleeping matts that you can buy for $10-15 (as thermarests a fairly expensive). Before the thermarest days, I used those for hiking and they were more than adequate.

The problems with stretchers is that they are heavy, bulky to pack, and I find it longer to put them up and down then the thermarest.

The good things about the thermarests is that they are light and folg into the size of a large coffe mug. ...and they're warm and comfortable (to me anyway). I bought my thermrest about '92 or 93 and it's just now showing signs of old age. It doesn't inflate as quickly now and needs an extra four or five breaths to top it up. (these breaths also put moisture into the matt and increase its pseed of degredation) However, I feel I have got my money's worth of all those years.

If you can't afford a thermarest, which are now around the $200-$250 mark, then I'd go for the blue $10 matts I mentioned before. My experience has shown me that everything else in between those two is rubbish and a waste of your money.

Having said that, I just recently bought a Mountain Designs self inflating matt. It was the last one of the previous year's model at their factory outlet store so it was only $35 (usually about $100 i think). I thought I'd give it a go. When I asked the guy working there how they comapre to a thermrest he semed to give me an honest reply. He said "It won't last as long". The kids have used the matt last weekend, but I haven't had a chance so I can't give you any info on its comfort level. The kids did wriggle off the matts which would be a pain if it was cold. The old thermarest were quite slippery but I think the new ones have an antislip top. Not sure if this helps with the kids staying on them. Maybe some strategically placed luggage will help them to stay on. I find the blue matts a lot less slippery.

Sorry for the long winded answer but there you have it.

R.

Hi Taps, we are going to the Simpson desert with 4 of our kids in July and we are taking the Oztent RV-5 plus the tagalong for it. The 6 of us are sleeping on self inflating double beds (3 in total). We have good quality sleeping bags but to save on luggage we will be taking thermals instead of coats and will sleep in the thermals if need be. If we are still cold we will sleep with all the clothes we have on. I am focussing on keeping our load as light as possible and as compact as possible. I realise the self inflating mattresses will take up a huge amount of room in the pack rack but they are so damn comfortable it will be worth it. We are going to take a 75ltr bladder that will fit behind the back seat for water. We have had a long range fuel tank fitted to our patrol but am not sure yet whether or not we will still have to carry jerry cans for fuel. We won't be taking a fridge or esky as there is no room and we are removing one of the rear seats as our 5th child is not coming. We may see you out there!