Gear Guide: Sleep Systems For Two
Ah — camping for two? Gaps in the mattresses, individual cocoons lying side by side, slip-sliding away from each other while trying to get close — sound familiar?
It doesn’t have to be that way. Camping couples have some great options when it comes to doubling up inside the tent. Here are two options that meet the needs of two different kinds of campers who face the same issues.
1. Basic System: when weight and pack size are not an issue
The Outbound Double Deluxe is a great option if you are not limited by what you can carry. It’s a hooded, flannel lined, baffled sleeping bag that’s filled with 1.8 kg of Quadratherm hollow fibre and packs up nicely into its own duffel bag. It’s rated to -7 degrees Celsius and will take you all the way through the summer and into the shoulder seasons. It weighs about 4.5 kg.
An alternate option is the Woods Rendezvous, it weighs 6.5 kgdue to its heavy cotton canvas outer layer and thick cozy flannel lining. This option will take you further into the shoulder season as well, as it is rated to -12 degrees Celsius.
Chinook makes a series of double-wide mattresses that provide some very comfortable options. The Trailrest Double Wide series comes in three thicknesses three-, five- and 7.5-cm, so you can choose the right comfort level and R-Value for your needs. The mattresses have two valves for quick inflation/deflation and have fully bonded foam-fabric construction. It weighs between 1.8 and 4.5 kg, depending on thickness and measures 182×121 cm.
2. Deluxe System: Cutting down on weight, not on snuggles
The ExpedDreamwalker Duo Syn 160 M (pictured) is designed to be partnered up with either two sleeping mats with a coupling kit or one double-wide mat. Its bottom sheet snaps around the mattress and provides a bed-like feeling — a sheet with a synthetic filled duvet on top. The duvet snaps around the sheet, so you can adjust how much you’d like to open your covers. It’s rated to be comfortable down to eight degrees Celsius and only weighs 1.5 kg. It can also convert to a single bag or be worn as a poncho around camp! Talk about versatile.
Also from Exped is the Synmat UL Duo 7, which makes a great partner in this system. It can inflate to a maximum thickness of seven centimetres but has two individual channels. This way, the odds of malfunction are reduced and each person can customize their comfort zones. It weighs about two kilograms, including the bag and pump and measures 182x123cm.
