My old sleeping pad was fine for years until I camped on actual rocks

Used that basic foam pad for like 5 years and thought it was fine. Took it out to Joshua Tree last spring and woke up feeling like I'd been hit by a truck. The ground there was so uneven and hard I could feel every little pebble through the pad. Finally broke down and bought a 3 inch inflatable one after that trip. Anybody else have a piece of gear that suddenly stopped working for them after a change in terrain?

2 comments

2 Comments

tessa_kelly1mo ago

Did you go with a self inflating one or a full air pad? I made the switch after a trip to the Sierra Nevadas where every root felt like a knife in my back and it changed everything for me.

the_dakota1mo ago

Wait hold on, five years on the same foam pad? That's wild. I think I'd lose my mind after like three nights on one of those things, but I guess if you're mostly camping on soft ground or in a hammock it works. Man, Joshua Tree is no joke either, that place has some of the most unforgiving ground I've ever tried to sleep on. It's like the rocks there are personally offended you're trying to get comfortable on top of them. That inflatable upgrade probably felt like sleeping on a cloud compared to what you had before.