Be Comfortable Sleeping while Motorcycle Camping 

Ex squaddie here. A good sleeping bag is essential but I've been comfortable below the comfort level by using tips I picked up in the army. Sleep in your merino base layer. Have dry wool socks to put onto dry feet. Have a beanie hat, as you note. Light gloves help. I've slept in my puffa or Sleeka jacket which also is my over armour under waterproofs warmth layer. Sleeping in your Noddy (chemical warfare) suit was extreme but it worked. Finally, the silver emergency wrap is grams of weight but wrapped around a sleeping bag, it can make a huge difference. It's a lot cheaper than buying either a very Gucci bag that's small to pack or a bag the size of a 10 man life boat which is warm enough.

I'll give you the best tip ever for staying warm on-or-off the bike - I was shown it as a young-bloke by my father who used to teach outdoor education in Wales - Plus l used it successfully right through some of the coldest winters in the UK back in the 80s when l was a despatch rider in London - Get a soft 100% woolen scarf the type your granddad used to wear - Then when the temperature really starts to plummet you wrap it around your tummy between your T-shirt and Sweatshirt - As long as you keep this main body-core area of the stonach and the kidneys warm everything else doesn't matter - Try it next time you start to feel vulnerable - You will be amazed at the heat that is generated.

Totally agree Mark, Get the Sleeping mat and Sleeping Bag right, really is the starting point to making the whole Bike camping experience a pleasure.

Excellent video. A few tips to try: 1) Try a blow up pillow but with a regular pillow case on it. It's still not as good as a real pillow but a little better than just sleeping on the blow up one and doesn't add much bulk or weight. 2) The other reason putting the blanket *outside* the down sleeping bag is not as warm is because the weight of the blanket compresses the down, which reduces its effectiveness. 3) If you are on very tight budget for sleeping bags then look as ex-army surplus bags. 4) A rolled up foam mat under the blow up sleeping mat can extend the temperature range.

One important reason (in my opinion) of a liner like the reactor is to protect the bag. Much easier and better to wash your liner regularly than to wash your expensive down bag. In addition, if you get too warm in your bag, open it and just use the liner. For a pillow, i put clothes in a stuff sack and use it as a pillow. The puffer jackets make a comfy layer to the pillow😊

I have a cheapo heavy sweater from Amazon that has some sort of wool lining. It is so insanely warm its crazy. The wool(?) has to touch your skin though, you can’t wear a shirt underneath it. I can put it on wet out of the washer and is still feels like it’s warming even when wet. The fabric you choose and what directly touches your skin makes such a difference in staying warm. It takes some trial and error to find what works for you, but ask the old guys what they use. Years of experience make a huge difference

As I get older ,I am far more sensitive to cold too, Mark.

I'm loving my Sea to Summit sleeping system. Fairly expensive, but the gear is very good. I'm using the Ether Light XT mat, TL1 down bag (2C), a Glow Synthetic Quilt (10C) and one of their compressible foam pillows. I'm not a fan of the mummy style in the TL1 and tend to keep the side zip open half way. The Quilt connects to the TL1 so it doesn't slide off and provides about 300mm overhang on the sides of the bag. In warmer weather the quilt can be used on it's own. I'm a bit of a fair weather camper and avoid sleeping in sub zero temps, layering is key for me. Oh, and the bag, quilt and pillow altogether are lighter and pack smaller than my original synthetic bag. 😉

Those sleeping bag numbers are completely made up as there is no official standard. Suggestion for the pillows... I use a blow up (wide + flat) pillow and then a medium sized, travel memory foam pillow. You get the height while also having a very comfortable pillow on top and the blow up one takes up almost no space and even the memory foam one rolls up very compact in to a XS roll top dry sack. Also, I have a mini air pump that incorporates an LED light on the bottom and has a 1300mAP battery so I put pillows, sleeping bags, clothes and anything else soft in to appropriate vacuum bags and use the pump to suck the air out. It's amazing how small you can get things without air.

G’day from the “REAL” South Wales, not that bloody Aussie place out east 😂 Your first comment hit the nail on the head, everyone is different, some places are terming things a sleep system 🙄 The last few years I have a very cheap $AU22 cot, with an equally cheap $AU40 thin air mat on top, bloody brilliant sleep!! Best I’ve ever had camping. I’m 62 now and don’t do heavy winter stuff so R values don’t really matter. A $15 tiny little rechargeable air pump blows the mat up in like 40 seconds to without me having to go dizzy 😂 Oh, one thing to be careful of with stretchers or cots is the point where the feet touch the groundsheet of the tent, with constant movement back and fore you can all but rub holes in the groundsheet, making it non waterproof of course. Other thing using a cot in a small tent, you may end up touching the sides Bloody brilliant mate, 👌

Game changer for me was the addition of the helinox cot, pricey but, for me, the difference between being uncomfortable and a good nights sleep

Your loving that bike lift hey. Haha so many different uses. Another good video. That’s clever with the blanket in the bag.

I often have a nana nap on a matt near the heater, sucked at first but it becomes normal over time👍

Scored a $380 4 man tent for $100 new the other week, only weighs 3.5kg. Got tired of having no room in the 1.5 man tent I have also just ordered an alton goods sleeping mat today so we'll see how that goes.

I agree -10 does me to 0 degrees any colder and you will feel it. Poly bags are cheap enough these days just make do with the big pack size while getting started. Those hand warmers are also great use them all the time keep the toes warm!

Hey Mark, sleeping bag temperature ratings are based on: Comfort = average woman in base layers will be warm. Low = average man in base layers will be warm. Extreme = will survive and prevent hypothermia. Hope this helps mate. 😉 All the best, Ben 🇬🇧 Crew member.

I put a blow up pillow in with the small regular camp pillow to give it height but feels normal

This is the best video I've seen in a sleep system. Common sense. Thank you.

Great video mate. Just discovered you. I am in Tasmania and am planning a trip to west Australia next year and have been buying stuff for camping the last 18 months. You have covered so many good points I really appreciate your straight forward no crap delivery, next time your out and see a 70 something bloke on a gs it could be me.😅 thanks mate.

Nice video. I've been watching your bike camping takes. They've been helpful (I'm close to pulling the trigger on a tent after watching your overview on types). Thanks! Aside takeaway: A nice accent apparently makes content leagues more entertaining (to an outside ear). All my friends seem boring now.

The cot was a game changer for me. Off the ground, I can be comfortable in my tent with just a wool blanket (sweat pants) until temps get down into the 30s.

I'll bring a snug pack hammock along, and an aqua quest tarp. But it's rare that I'll spend a night in it. A rain day or 2 stuck in camp or it's great. But tent is the most universal shelter system, and if I'm traveling it's must have. Oh after running a usgi one man tent that is a 4 season unit, i can use a really light sleeping bag, vs a glorified bug net that is 3 season tents, and yeah you need winter weight sleeping bags 😂

Been riding many years, decided to meet some car camping mates. It was a fiasco; I could not sleep in my good bag and expensive camping pad. Since then, no more moto camping. Now, the nightmares of riding exhausted have receded and I am ready to try again, but I don't think I can sleep on the ground....Great videos-I'm watching them all.

Love your videos I use a 7.5cm (3”) thick self-inflating mat. I’m the wrong side of 71 yrs old and need my comfort. Don’t even try going thinner. I sleep on my side, back and front when at home as this lets me do all of that

Hammocks use a "under quilt" that hangs under the hammock to keep out the cold. I wonder if you could do that with the cot? Hang something under the cot in the legs.

11:00 your summary / comparison of the Helinox cot and the SEA to Summit Mat is spot on ! I agree with you Mark.

Really like that idea of putting the blanket inside the sleeping bag... gonna try that !! Thx Mark

"im not sleeping on snow" ... well with the way the weather has been, you might bloody well be soon 😂😂

One of the best reviews and camping tips on RU-vid!!! I have watched most of them, but yours is trumps! Thank you

Great review Mark! Keep ‘em coming mate. Love your honesty. No Bullshit 😊

Great no BS real world info! 👍🏼👍🏼

Watching your videos makes happy and laugh about your practical approach. Great Mark. A happy camper from the Netherlands 🇳🇱

Still take comfort rating as an average, I drop down 2 degrees on any manufacturers rating as they inflate figures! I also use baselayers whilst inside a bag.

Whether you're in the air sleeping in a hammock or on a cot/stretcher in a tent, you're trying to mitigate the same issue, which is loss of heat through convection. "As a hammock user" ...sorry, had too... I still use an insulated air-mattress along with a season appropriate sleeping bag in my system. I do have a cot/stretcher for when theiry're aren't trees around to hang a hammock. It's pretty much the same set up

I was a scout all my childhood (mid 2000s). I haven’t tried more modern sleeping gear. And most of our packs were not optimized for long range light weight options. But I swear by cots. If you want to enjoy camping you really need to get yourself up off the ground. I’m sure there are great reasons folks don’t use them. And I believe them. But for me the additional packing requirements of a few legs is worth not having to worry about your bedding getting wet when the tent leaks. Or it’s just rainy and the tent isn’t ever gonna be perfectly dry. Or sand. Or mud. There’s just been so many times I was in a cot and went “glad I made that call” and even more times I was on the ground and thought “man I wish I had my cot”. It’s not for everyone or everything but definitely worth considering and hard to go wrong with.

Absolutely right. Sleeping pad, bag and pillow key to good sleep! I’ve got Klymit Static V wide, nemo fillo pillow and nemo forte. Pad and bag are not quite warm enough for below zero Celsius but close.

I use the Helinox Cot & chair, then use an Alton sleeping mat, with an inflation bag....works great. The only problem was that the mat would slide off the cot. Problem solved by adding a small sheet of kitchen drawer non slip from the reject shop, also adds a thin layer of insulation. The Alton mat packs to nothing.

Also have a down throw compact camping blanket / poncho which found just as good with out the down sleeping bag

I use the blow up mattress in my swag sleeping bag and silk liner rolls up small and use a Hoochie in case of rain.

I can't do without my 2 person inflatable mattress, I'm 63 and I like to be comfy!

Another good one, lots of options. You may already thought of it but an episode on the selection of a camping site? Alot get this wrong and turn a nice trip into a trial. Keep them coming.

Sleeping bag & mattress I use same as you Pillows I use a large & medium foam black wolf

Great review and some good tips the pillows always seems a problem for me too, not a fan of the blow up ones neither, at 70yrs old I'm a cold sleeper to, i managed to find 2 small hot water bottles they pack flat in the panniers home from home 👍

Nailed it cobba 🍺👍🇦🇺

Great tip with blanket mark

Brilliant is the word. Thanks for sharing.

I used to have that Ether light sleeping pad (loved it) but it started getting a ton of micro leaks at the dimples. I am heavier so I got the Exped Dura 5R. Similar but heavy duty. Packs about the same. Not cheap but like you said, it’s worth it. The Helinox chair is also worth the money.

Hi Mark, I just purchased a Sea To Summit Ether Light XT Insulated Sleeping Mat Large Grey from an ebay seller for $210.00 free delivery. thats about the best price that i could find.

I use the Thermarest Mondoking and my UGQ quilt. A little warm in mid Summer, but can't be beat if things are chilly. Very comfortable. Only negative is that the pad is a tad long when packed on the bike, but I ride a HD Road Glide LMTD, so it accommodates that pretty well.

Use butane_propane mix it won't freeze, unlike butane. Paul. Cornwall UK

You could also use the blanket as a lap blanket when you're drinking your warm milk before nigh nighs old fella😂😂

Greetings Mark; A great information vid; As you know I an happy with my Helenox Cot and a self inflating mattress on top for my old body...LOL.. Thanks... David...Adelaide...Tiger 900GT & Street Scrambler....

Great tips, thanks for sharing your experience, a while ago I spent a fair bit of cash on a decent sleeping pad which is similar to the sea2summit you have but for some reason I bought the normal width one - should have spent the extra couple of quid for the wider one, easy to roll off

Great vids, wanting to start moto camping and looking at buying my sleeping system. Would be good to get your comparison between ground and hammock. Thanks and keep ‘‘em coming.

As the taco ad goes, why not have both ... I put my blow up mattress on top of my cot and it's a double gamechanger, like being home in bed

Good solid advice Mark.

I find stretchers uncomfortable. Need a mattress on top. Even just a thin one. But too much to carry on a bike I think.

For pillow buy a cask wine drink it and use the liner as a pillow 😂

Step 1, understand hammock camping. Step 2, hammock camp. Step 3, never sleep on the ground again.

Loving your camping vids - super helpful to me as a newbie. Having watched this right through, re sleeping mats, am I right that you haven't found one that's as comfortable as this Seatosummit Etherlight XT and which also has better heat insulation (and quiet/silent like the stretcher)? I've heard good things about the thicker self-inflating mats like Exped Megamat - any thoughts by chance?

Great vid Mark , when are you going to finish poor Charlie behind you 😢

Far out keep on keeping on 👍👍🍺🍺

When I go on a bike trip I take my mobile to book a hotel room stuff camping

Hammocks are a minority!?! Boooooo! 🤣 I still love you Mark. 😉

How did I know sunshine would get you motivated to get out and put another good vid together CHEERS

Used my helmet in a pinch😮

I, wonder if wombats get cold. 🙄🤪🙃

Awesome thank you sir ! Wish I could use a hammock. No way

I’m making lamb curry outside on the fire mark ! Wish you could try it maan .