Camp Bedding

The kind of bedding you need for camping depends on many factors.   If you're camping in an RV you'll generally have more choices for comfort and familiarity than for tent camping.  Ordinary sheets, blankets, quilts, and comforters are usually adequate in an RV and can give you home-like comfort and familiarity.  If you are only staying in full hookup campgrounds you could even use electric blankets.  There are a few 12-volt electric blankets if you really need one while boondocking -- and have a big enough battery bank to handle it.  Sleeping bags can be used for convenience or added warmth in an RV.  While you can use ordinary bedding when tent camping, it usually isn't very convenient, is easily soiled, and often isn't warm enough.   Sleeping bags are the preferred option for tent camping.  Loose bedding can result in parts of your body getting out from under the covers.  At home or in an RV that is usually a minor irritation.  Sleeping in a tent, it can spoil your whole night. Sleeping bags eliminate this problem.   But some people get claustrophobic if they're confined.   "Mummy" style (form fitting) sleeping bags are particularly confining

Sleeping bags are typically rated by temperature ranges.   "Summer" bags are designed for temperatures above +35°F.   So-called "3-season" bags (implying spring, summer, and fall) are rated for +10F to +35°F.  Cold weather bags are for -10°F to +10°F.  Winter/extreme bags are rated for below -10°F.  The temperature rating is intended to indicate the lowest temperature at which the average sleeper will remain warm.   If you're a "cold" sleeper you may need extra insulation.  On the other hand, if you tend to kick the covers off at home, you may need a lighter bag or leave your bag unzipped.  Keep in mind that wind will speed heat loss.  The wind chill factor indicates how cold the air will feel on bare, exposed skin.   The higher the wind speed, the colder it will feel.  If you're snug in your sleeping bag you won't have exposed skin so wind chill isn't as noticeable, but wind will affect the ability of the bag to keep you warm since any breeze will continually bring cool air to absorb heat from the sleeping bag.  It would be wise to consider expected wind chill factor when choosing the right sleeping bag.   By the way, temperature ratings are not an exact science.  They are usually specified based on having the bags tested by company employees and are very subjective.

In really cold weather you can double up sleeping bags for extra warmth.   For one snow camping trip I unzipped a pair of old sleeping bags and put one on the floor of the tent underneath our sleeping bags and the second one spread out over both sleeping bags and we stayed very comfortable all night with temperatures down into the low 20's.  Be careful piling extra heavy blankets or sleeping bags on top of your primary sleeping bag; it can compress the loft and you'll end up with a net result that leaves you cold.  Of course you can just put one sleeping bag inside another if you find one isn't keeping you warm enough.  Sometimes just adding a sleeping bag liner will do the job.   Sharing a sleeping bag with another person is also a way to keep warmer.  Zip two rectangular bags together (this won't work with "mummy" bags).  With two bodies contributing the heat in one enclosed space, you'll both be warmer than you would be in individual bags.

Sleeping bag liners are separate items you can add to increase comfort, warmth, and to protect the sleeping bag. They can add 8° to 15F° protection.   On warm nights you might use just the liner. Liners are an inexpensive and easy way to increase the warmth of your sleeping bag without the expense of upgrading to a heavier bag.  They also give you flexibility to adjust the warmth much like dressing in layers in cold weather.   Liners can be easily removed and washed, like sheets on your bed at home, saving the cost and inconvenience of having your sleeping bags dry cleaned.

Blankets and quilts are a readily available and inexpensive way to add warmth.   Usually you can just lay them over your sleeping bag but if you need a lot more warmth you might wrap yourself up in one before crawling into your bag.   In really cold winter weather I used two extra sleeping bags: one beneath us to insulate us from the snow-covered ground beneath the tent and one spread out over two campers.  Covering two campers with one blanket, quilt, or sleeping bag helps share and conserve heat.

Sleeping pads do more than disguise those annoying pebbles and twigs beneath you.   They provide insulation so you don't lose precious body heat to the cold ground.  Consider them essential, not a luxury.   Use them even when sleeping on cots to preserve body heat.   Cold air circulating beneath the relatively thin fabric of the cot will suck the heat right out of you.

Electric blankets may be an option in RVs in cold weather.   Of course you'll need an adequate source of power to operate them.  No problem if you're camping where you have an electrical hook up or have an inverter and massive battery banks.  Not so useful for boondocking because you shoudn't run the generator all night, but you could use them to pre-warm your bed.  There are also 12-volt versions available, if you have a strong enough battery bank to power them.

Sleeping bag designs.   Most sleeping bags employ a rectangular design.   It provides the most room and two bags can usually be zipped together for couples who are used to sleeping together.  Semi-rectangular bags are a bit more tapered, sometimes to the point of being nicknamed "mummy" bags. Sleeping bags may also be gender specific.  Women's sleeping bags may be narrower in the shoulder, wider in the hips, and have extra insulation at the upper body and the foot.  Bags may include a hood that can be gathered around the head in cold weather.  Some have attached pillows or a pillow pocket to hold your clothes and serve as a pillow.  If you're used to putting an arm under your pillow you'll want to use a separate pillow.  Remember, the more comfortable and familiar you can make your bedding, the better you will rest.

Sheets are not usually used in sleeping bags, although a sleeping bag liner is kind of like a sheet and adds a little warmth and is easier to clean than the sleeping bag.  The beds in an RV are often made up just like your bed at home, but due to unique sizes of the mattresses in some RVs you may need special sheets to get the right fit.  Sheets should be washed regularly, just like at home, perhaps more often because of increased dust, dirt, and body moisture present during camping.   It is a good idea to have several sets of sheets -- enough to last the whole trip unless you have access to laundry facilities in the campground or in your RV.   In a pinch  you could wash them out in a wash basin or sink and hang them out to dry.

Choosing a sleeping bag.  Choose a bag designed for temperatures a bit colder than you expect to experience.  If you're expecting near freezing temperatures, get a 20°F bag. If it turns out to be too warm you can always unzip it for additional ventilation to make you comfortable.   If you get one that isn't warm enough, there won't be much you an do about it once you're in camp.   As a precaution, always bring along a few extra blankets or quilts.  Wool blankets are very warm and very durable. Synthetics are often light weight and fluffy and not as scratchy as wool, but in most cases they won't keep you as warm as wool will.  Wool also has the unique property of retaining its insulation value when it gets wet. If you're using the blankets over your sleeping bag, it won't matter if they're scratchy and wool will keep you warmer.  Surplus Army blankets are always good for this.

Pillows may be critical for getting a good night's sleep for some people.   If you have room to bring along your favorite pillows or can duplicate them in your RV or camping supplies, you'll be more comfortable than making do with inferior pillows or stuffing your clothing in the pillow pouch of a sleeping bag.  Because pillows can be rather bulky, many people opt for compact substitutes when tent camping or even in an RV.   If that works for you, go for it.   But if you can't get a good night's sleep or experience pain or discomfort or just can't get comfortable in bed due to the wrong pillow, making room for ones that work is a good use of space.

Storage.  For travel, especially when hiking or backpacking, you want to compress your bag as much as possible.  This is not a good thing to do for long term storage.   It permanently compresses the insulation.   I about froze in a 10°F sleeping bag in 32°F weather after it had been stored tightly packed for a season.  The once-lofty fluff inside was all but gone!   If you can, unroll your sleeping bags and hang them up between trips.  This will allow them to dry thoroughly and to restore loft to the insulation.  Sometimes running them through a "fluff" cycle in your clothes dryer will restore loft. If worse comes to worse, send your bag(s) to the dry cleaner for professional cleaning and restoration.   Like parkas, some sleeping bags may indicate they can be machine washed, but personal experience has shown that to be less than satisfactory.   Machine washing resulted in badly clumped insulation that made the item nearly useless.

Cots and mattresses.   A folding camp cot can increase your sleeping comfort over sleeping on the ground in your tent.  You'll still want a sleeping pad or mattress on the cot.  Air mattresses are the easiest to transport and the pressure can be adjusted to just the firmness you want.  RV mattresses are often thinner and offer less support than your home mattress.   If you find this is the case you may want to upgrade your RV mattress.  After all, about 1/3 of the time you spend in your RV will be in bed and you might as well be comfortable!

Another option is a "cowboy bedroll".  Cowboys had to be able to carry everything they needed for months at a time on their saddles or in their saddle bags.  A cowboy bedroll is a mostly waterproof bed made of heavy canvas and warm blankets.  Start with a piece of canvas a few feet longer than you are tall and about 9' wide.  When you put it together, you lay blankets or quilts on the canvas, then fold it over in thirds.  That way you have double everything on top to keep you warm. The extra length is folded over your head to protect your face from rain or dew. A cowboy bedroll is simple and takes up little space. It can keep you dry at night, but doesn't provide the dressing room or protected storage a tent would.  You may still want a  foam sleeping pad under your cowboy bedroll for comfort and warmth.

Survival bedding is going to be harder to come by.   If you find yourself in a survival situation you will want to make yourself as warm and comfortable a bed as you can.  You probably won't have a sleeping bag with you in a surivival situation.   Pine boughs or pine needles, leaves and grass an be used to build a makeshift mattress.   Not only will it be softer than sleeping on the ground, it will help insulate you from cold and possible damp ground.  Lacking any blankets to keep you warm, you may have to again use debris to cover your body.  Of course if you have any dry coats, blankets, or upholstery from a stranded vehicle you can use that to cover you and help keep you warm.  Even cardboard or newspapers will add insulation in an emergency.  You might be surprised how much heat your body alone will generate -- if you can keep it from escaping.  A good item to carry for emergencies when venturing into the wild is an "emergency sleeping bag" or "space blanket".  They are made of aluminized mylar and are said to retain up to 80% of body heat.  They fold up into a packet about the size of a handkerchief so they are very light weight and take up little room in pack or pocket.  I keep one in the tool kit on my dirt bike in case I get stranded somewhere overnight or in bad weather.

Sleep tight!