NEMO Astro Air Short

This non-self inflating sleeping pad/ mattress is light, packable and about as comfortable as a sleeping pad can get for its size and weight.

I won the Nemo Astro Air a few months ago from this site — Thanks guys..and gals — and chose the short version of the pad because I like hanging my feet off the end. I still use my MSR self inflating pad under my tent. Old habits are hard to break plus it still gives my feet something soft to rest on.

When I received this pad I was super excited to get it open and use the included inflatable hand pump, sold separately, to see if it was all Nemo had cracked it up to be. I know I'm reviewing the pad here, but boy was I disappointed in this thing. Not only is this pump ineffective (200 plus pumps to fill) but it yanks out the plastic connector to the pad whenever you try to release it. Thankfully the plastic piece can be forced back into place without destroying the whole thing.

Now that being said it only took me a few good deep breaths to fill this pad. Not only is this quicker but a hell-of-a-lot easier then trying to use the "pump". I'm fairly certain Nemo knows this but also knows people will buy into the hype. I say buy the pad and leave the pump alone.

This pad is great! I've been using it in the 100 acres of woods in my backyard. It's easy to fill, deep, super durable and soft. That's right. Soft. It feels good against my skin anyway. I have an old inflatable Big Agnes I bought when I first started hiking and this thing would rub your skin off if you didn't put a sheet over it but Nemo's Astro Air is comfortable and needs no covering. 

Packing it away is as easy as filling it up. It packs down smaller than any pad I've seen of the same size and doesn't weigh any more. Definitely a good buy for someone who is into ultra light hiking but doesn't want to sacrifice any comfort.

If you don't like inflatables because you hate the extra weight and time it takes to fill, you will become a convert after trying this pad. Nemo really came through with this one. I will surely be using it on most of my trips if not all of my winter trips due to the distance it keeps my body from the frigid earth underneath my tent.

-Happy Trails-