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Reddit Reviews
I prefer the quasar sleep pad to the STS option - but that’s a personal preference thing. Sleeping bag or quilt definitely isn’t something to skimp on. When I first started, I bought a sub 150 sleeping bag and quickly found out its “rating” wasn’t even close. Wife and I were in the same boat years ago. We went “cheap ish” with gear and quickly realized we wanted to upgrade certain things. Looking back - we wished we just went with the good gear from the get go (of course, if funds allow) - because we ended up rebuying the gear we actually wanted shortly after, and spent money on the “cheaper” gear that we didn’t like that then felt like a waste. We would have saved money if we just bought the nicer kit in the beginning.
sea to summit has hybrid inflatable/foam pads. I have a comfort si that is around 4 r value.
Sea to summit inflatable foam sleeping pad, believe me it's worth it, I won't waste my money on these
I had the Sea to Summit Comfort Plus SI Insulated for a while, though unfortunately, it did get punctured on my last trip. I am currently researching what to replace it with. My one qualm with the Sea to Summit was that it was relatively heavy, so I might switch it up, but I don't know if it's worth sacrificing the comfort for the weight. If I don't get the Comfort Plus again, I'll probably go with the Nemo Tensor All-Season Ultralight, which is supposed to be quite comfortable, but almost half the weight. My primary source for researching all of my backpacking gear is Outdoor Gear Lab. Their reviews and comparisons are very well done.
I have started using a Sea to Summit comfort plus si. It’s heavy for backpacking but I decided the weight penalty was worth it for better sleep. My inflatable pads all slept cold and were all noisy. It has been on closeout so likely still good deals can be had on it. (I used a coupon from REI for mine)
I’m a side sleeper as well and I stopped using my Nemo tensor so much because of the potato chip bag noise effects heh. This past winter, I’ve used the Sea to Summit comfort plus. It is easily the most comfortable pad I’ve ever used for side sleeping. And inflates and deflates easily. Highly recommend!
I'm a big fan of the sea to summit pads. If I was buying now I'd buy the comfort plus. 6'5" 250ish side/stomach sleeper
I have the Sea To Summit comfort plus. It’s nice and thick and not too heavy.
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