Getting a Good Sleep Winter Camping

My first winter camping experience happened to be my first ski touring experience, an outdoor education trip into the Whistler backcountry for two nights when I was in high school. We were supplied with proper winter tents but brought regular three season sleeping bags and mats. I had the unfortunate luck of bringing a leaky inflatable mat so didn’t sleeping much the first night, but even after fixing the leak on the second night I found myself chilly.

For my first couple years of University I thought cold sleeping was an unavoidable part of winter camping. Even after investing in my own warm four season tent and a higher quality sleeping bag, I still got a chill overnight and couldn’t sleep well. It was only after going on a trip with a friend who brought both a foam and an inflatable sleeping mat did I realize that my crappy three season mat was to blame.

R-Value is a measure of insulation and is the standard way of comparing the warmth of various sleeping mattresses, a standard summer mat typically has an R-Value around 2 or 3. Since becoming aware of R-value I have used a double mat system, combining a summer Thermarest NeoAir air mattress with a foam Z-Lite pad, having a combined R-Value of 4.5. Even after switching to a floor-less and much less insulated pyramid style tarp tent, I have been able to consistently get a good night sleep. For a recent long distance ski traverse, I borrowed the winter specific Thermarest NeoAir XTherm Mattress, which weighs virtually the same as the summer version, but has an incredible R-Value of 6.9 by itself.

I understand that to many the importance having a high R-Value sleeping pad for winter camping is obvious. However I can vividly remember how shocked I was to remain so incredibly warm without adding yet another down jacket. It’s such a simple piece of advice: double up with your summer mats or invest in a good quality winter mat. It’s hard to hunt powder without a good night sleep.