After taking my first few backpacking trips I am becoming more comfortable doing this but the trips have also raised new questions which I hadn't thought of until being out backpacking.
1. How do you get comfortable sleeping outside?
So far I have really enjoyed the hiking but sleeping has been the most troublesome part of my trips. On my most recent adventure i felt that my sleeping bag/pad were pretty comfortable but I woke up cold a bunch of times throughout the night. Temps dipped to ~ 28 and I was wearing a hat, gloves, thermal underwear top/bottom (synthetic) and a thin layer over that. My nose was particularly chilly. My bag is a 32degree bag (Marmot Arroyo). Any tips on being warm and comfortable?
if that's 28, and you're in a 32 bag, you'll probably need clothing
1) wear more clothing to bed
2) bring a warmer bag
3) ensure you have an insulating hat or toque on. if you find your nose gets cold, a full face balaclava will help - I wear such a thing to bed in the wintertime.
4) EAT right before you go to bed. a good high calorie snack. a hunk of chocolate, or hot chocolate will help, not from the warmth but from some calories for your body to stay warm. In truly cold weather camping (not 28 F, you don't want to know) my pre-bedtime ritual is 3 or 4 walkers shortbread biscuits and a mug of hot chocolate - something I will never indulge myself with normally or I would weigh 400 pounds
Have a look at my gear list to see what I usually take. Note on my clothing - I am content to let my outerlayer get moist and put it on the next day if it's wet out. I keep a base layer dry to sleep in. same with socks. I take two sets, hike in one, sleep in other. if socks are wet in morning, I live with it and hike in 'em.
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