Little seals the fate of any outdoor adventure more than getting (or not getting) a good night’s sleep. Fortunately, a Sea to Summit sleep system will help you wake up refreshed and ready to handle anything Mother Nature or the mountains will throw at you.
Not only are their sleeping bags, mats, liners, and pillows lightweight and durable, but they’re also carefully designed to deliver the most versatile and comfortable sleep system out there. Since 1991, Sea to Summit has been relentless in making sure you have what you need for any and every adventure, and that begins with sleep.
Let’s take one specific sleep system and break down what separates it from others on the market, and why, when put together, it will give you the best shot at that restorative sleep your body needs for wherever you’re headed the next day.
Sleeping Mat
Anyone who left their camping mat at home imagining they would save on space and weight likely regretted that decision. A sleeping mat not only provides cushion against sticks, roots, and rocks while protecting sore joints but also offers a barrier between you and the ground to keep you warm and toasty in your sleeping bag even during the coldest hours of the night.
The Ether Light XT Air Sleeping Mat has everything you would want in an ultralight backpacking mat from a multi-function valve with a one-way inflate port so air won’t escape while you inflate to an anti-microbial nylon surface. It carries a 1.5-season rating with a 1.2 R-value, which means the pad is best suited to those summer backpacking and camping trips along with any warmer-weather bike and paddle excursions.
It weighs less than 400 grams, about the same as two apples, and inflates to be about 4 inches thick. The pad also comes in two sizes, regular and large, and includes pillow lock patches to secure the pillow you’ll be thankful you brought along.
Sleeping Bag
Plenty of sleeping bags claim to be long-lasting and warm, but not nearly as many actually deliver on both of those promises. Sea to Summit’s Spark sleeping bags offer plenty of warmth—they boast 850-plus goose down—and their 10D shells are water resistant.
But these bags don’t stop there. Multiple zippers offer different configurations for optimal ventilation, and the outsides help block wind for the days you find yourself sleeping under the stars (or clouds) and away from the protection of a tent.
Sea to Summit also makes a Spark Women’s bag tailored specifically for the trailblazing women out there who want sleeping bags that fit their bodies. The bag provides the same down fill and other perks of the regular Spark including a draft tube along the zipper to retain warmth. Select Spark unisex and women’s bags also include a 3/4 length zipper to allow them to be zip coupled together to share warmth and space with your partner.
Reactor Liner
We may not think about a sleep liner before heading into the mountains or desert or setting up our tent near a coast, but they can often be a critical piece of gear. Think of a sleeping bag liner as the little extra warmth that lulls you to sleep on a cold night. And the Reactor Liner series, with its Thermolite Pro fabric, is the perfect fit.
The liner is lightweight and soft, spun out of EcoMade fibers that create a soft, stretch-knit fabric. Use it as extra warmth in your bag, or on its own on a hot night. You can also open the bottom that secures with a drawstring for added ventilation, or even wear the liner around camp.
Pillow
While the old backpacking adage says, “ounces make pounds and pounds make pain,” sometimes, like in the case of the Aeros Premium Pillow, those 3 extra ounces are worth it.
This pillow’s silent air bladder inflates as thick, or thin, as you need, and secures to your Sea to Summit Ether Light XT Sleeping Mat. The brushed exterior feels soft against your skin, helping you achieve the best sleep each night.
For roughly the same weight as four AA batteries, the Aeros Premium Pillow is exactly what you’ve been missing from your backcountry sleep system.