Sea to Summit Comfort Plus

Supremely comfortable.

Comfort: This is with no doubt the most comfortable pad I have ever used. It simply feels like a nice mattress.

Size: I have the Regular Tapered and at my 172 cm (5'8") with relatively wide shoulders it is plenty wide enough to easily lie on my back with my arms to my sides and roll around (I am a side sleeper).

Inflation: The pad has two independent air chambers and this offers two main advantages. First, you can adjust the pad very easily, and second, it has a lot of built-in insurance in case of a leak. I generally inflate the bottom chamber close to max, and the top relatively soft. This gives great insulation from the bottom and a sleep-in-the-cloud feeling.

Inflation is fast by mouth thanks to the great valves, but you can also use the Air Stream Pump Sack and that takes seconds. Having two chambers is great for safe sleeping: even if you get a leak from one of them you are going to sleep through the night. Having experienced a leak from a Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite and having spent the night happily on the ground this is a very nice feature.

Valves: They facilitate inflation enormously in respect to other systems. They seal perfectly after every puff you send and make deflation a blink. You pop them open and 90% of the air goes out.

Noise: It is an almost silent pad, a nice change from others that crackle like a nervous cricket every time you move.

Warmth: I have the non-insulated version (I admit bought it in an effort to limit weight) and it works very well down to freezing range. In my last camping trip the ground had extended frost in the morning and the pad, together with my old North Face 30, was as expected starting to feel a bit cold when falling asleep. Still I had no trouble sleeping and the pad is warmer than expected. This is probably thanks to the dual chamber and the fact that you never touch the ground because of it. Just for fun in the next around freezing trip I'll be carrying a Thinlight 1/8" foam pad from Gossamer (70 gm) to see how it works.

AirStream Pumpsack: It is a very neat gadget. It makes inflating the mattress a matter of seconds and it doubles as a waterproof bag. It is also supposed to avoid putting moisture in the pad (not sure how important that is) but inflating by mouth seems to make easier achieving the desired inflation (you just count your breaths). Still a must have if you expect wet weather (you can put sleeping bag+matress+pillow in it) and change campground around day to day.

Weight: It is not a pad for a gram counter. It is 650 grams (bit less than 23 oz) where my Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite is 350 grams. But, it is incomparably more comfortable, much wider and warmer, and guarantees a leak proof safe sleep. You pick. I like to sleep when camping and the choice was easy!

Background

A large number of pads in the last...many many years. Foam, rigid, first generation self-inflatable, Therm-a-Rest self-inflatables, Neo-Air, Sea-to-Summit Comfort Plus.

Most comfortable pad I have ever used camping. I have moderate to severe arthritis in my knees and my hips hurt. I am getting old and heavy and this pad gave me a good night's sleep to keep up with my Boy Scouts. I love the size and how easy it is to blow up.

I love my new Sea to Summit sleeping pad. Over the years I have used foam, self-inflating, hammocks, air mattresses... I am going with my boys as one of their Scouters to the Canadian Jamboree. So I needed something small that I could carry in my backpack, but that would still keep me off the ground.

I am almost 50 with bad knees and hips. I am also overweight. I researched Therm-a-Rest, Klymit, Cabela's XPG and then bought this mat. I also bought two Sea to Summit Comfort Plus insulated mats for my sons.

Had a great two nights sleep on our pre-CJ camp. So impressed by this little mat. The "air coils" redistribute your weight so you never hit the ground. The pad has two sides that inflate separately. This way if one is punctured, you still have a functioning pad.

The double valve is easy to blow into and each side only needs about 12 puffs to inflate. Lifting the second part of the valve opens the valve wider allowing the pad to quickly deflate. The mat easily rolls back into its original bag.

I am glad I bought the boys the larger, insulated pad. We live in Saskatchewan and although larger, the pad will keep them warmer in sub-zero camping.