That $180 sleeping pad that left me on cold ground in the Sierras

I dropped $180 on an inflatable pad for my JMT trip last August. First night near Tuolumne Meadows, I woke up at 2am flat on the dirt, freezing my butt off. Patched it twice with the included kit but it kept leaking at the seam. Meanwhile my buddy's $40 foam pad from Target worked the whole 10 days. Anyone else have a high end piece of gear totally fail on them mid route?

3 comments

3 Comments

laurar381d ago

OH MAN that SUCKS. I did something similar with a $250 sleeping bag that was supposed to be "expedition grade" and I woke up the first night shivering so bad I thought I was gonna break my teeth. The zipper literally split open at 2am in the Winds. So there I am, trying to hold the bag closed with my knees and a rolled up fleece while my buddy on his Costco special slept like a BABY. I swear sometimes the fancy gear is just fancier disappointment.

nora_park7222h ago

My $200 REI bag kept me warm through a Montana blizzard, so maybe you just got a dud?

patricia_singh8112h ago

Nah I gotta disagree a little. A good inflatable pad is worth it if you do your research. I've had a Therm-a-Rest for years and it's been fine through a lot of rough nights. Sounds like you just got a lemon or maybe it was a bad batch of glue. Sucks when it happens but I wouldn't write off all expensive gear because of one bad pad.