Air mattresses, camping cots and thermarest pads for a good night's sleep

You've spent your hard-earned dollars on a top-of-the-line sleeping bag and you're still uncomfortable and cold.  You wrapped yourself in luxury by adding a silk sleeping bag liner, but you're still uncomfortable and cold.  What to do?  Head for the nearest motel bed...or maybe...you can bring the motel bed to you. 

Camping cots and air mattresses are essential accessories  ensuring warmth and comfort.   This is done by both removing your contact with the hard ground and also insulating you from the its cold surface.  Its impossible for your body to heat the earth which is what you're trying to do if you lay directly on it. This doesn't give your sleeping bag a chance to work and the result is, you're cold.  Then there are rocks, pebbles, leaves and needles which at first may not be noticed but take their affect on your body upon waking.  Another benefit of adding a barrier between the ground and you is that you are protecting your sleeping bag from moisture, dirt  and any irregularities that might cause damage.  

A camping cot is a portable bed that may not be the solution for ultralight backpacking or hiking, but is a perfect for camping.   Camping cots come in a variety of designs and materials.  The most common collapse or fold into a relatively compact space.  These are manufactured with an aluminum tubing frame with attached nylon material that acts as a mattress as it is stretched across the structure when it is opened and locked in position.  The camping cot can be an excellent investment if the majority of your outdoor activities do not require packing it around a lot because it can double as an extra bed at the house for family or friends. 

Camping air mattresses in their original design are a bit heavy and bulky to be packing and unless you have the time, patience and good set of lungs, you'll need an air pump to inflate them.   Essentially a set of tubes connected together the air mattress can be an alternative if space is limited and a camping cot is not an option.   Camping by the lake?  They double as a great floating lounge too.  The latest and probably the most popular air mattress today is the self-inflating.  These are lightweight, do not require a pump and have become a hiking and backpacking favorite.  Prior to self-inflating air mattresses the only other option a hiker had was the closed-cell foam pad.  Closed cell foam pads are still available and might be slightly lighter, but can't match the self-inflating air mattresses for comfort or size when compacted.  Companies such as Thermarest ® specialize in self-inflating camping air mattresses.