Kodiak Canvas Tent: what to sleep on?
Contributors to this thread:Equipment
From: Tall Paul
07-Oct-21
Hello all, So this thread is about Truck camping, not backpack hunting. I bought a Kodiak Canvas tent and need something to sleep on in cold weather. #1 I hate cots. #2 You freeze to death on air mattresses. I looked on the internet at folding foam mattress, which might work, but the longest one I can find is 75". Unfortunately, I'm 77" (tall). I'd sure appreciate any advice/ experience you guys have to offer. Thanks, Paul
From: Tall Paul
07-Oct-21
I forgot: I already own a real high quality air mattress, queen size, that would be great. If there's a way to use it without freezing to death, I'd like to know!
From: midwest
07-Oct-21
I have a tri folding memory foam mattress I put on top of my cot. It's just as comfortable on the floor or when I sleep in the back of the truck. Check out Amazon. I did a quick look and see they have one that's 6" thick and 78" long. It will take up a lot of room when traveling, tho.
From: BowHiker
07-Oct-21
The wife and i push our two cots together and put air matress on top of that in our kodiak. Works well, get the better of both worlds with that set up. If weight and room wasnt an issue i would probably prefer somekind of memory foam matress on top of the cots.
From: Z Barebow
07-Oct-21
Similar to midwest. Cot with memory foam topper. Throw my back pack mattress pad underneath memory foam if desired. If really cold, I also drape a blanket over the cot and let it hang to floor. (To capture air space beneath cot) But I run a Buddy Heater when it is that cold.
From: ND String Puller
07-Oct-21
Have you tried a cot with a foam topper ? We’ve been using the old army canvas cots and 3” foam cut to size. I’m 6’ so not sure what you would need in a cot. It’s nice to store stuff under the cots also, to give you more room in the tent.
From: ND String Puller
07-Oct-21
LOL delayed post I guess
From: Twinetickler
07-Oct-21
Hotel room?
From: soccern23ny
07-Oct-21
Air mattress with foam/high r value sleeping pad. Air mattress gets you higher than the coldest air and sleeping pad insulates/reflects heat back
From: Sunset
07-Oct-21
https://www.amazon.com/Alki-Twilight-Thermal-Mattress-Topper/dp/B07B6RZ8BG/ref=asc_df_B07B6RZ8BG/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=264090555281&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2177619849856851373&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9012324&hvtargid=pla-436645953080&psc=1#
Use this between you and your air mattress to stay warm.
From: KSflatlander
07-Oct-21
Midwest X3
From: DanaC
07-Oct-21
Large size is 79" long
https://www.rei.com/product/188372/sea-to-summit-camp-plus-si-sleeping-pad
From: Brotsky
07-Oct-21
Yep, I use a pad on my cot with a blanket over top. Works great. Burn the wood stove or run a buddy heater when it gets cold.
From: WV Mountaineer
07-Oct-21
If I was rocking a Kodak, I’d get one big enough for a dormitory, steel box spring bed with a roll up mattress. Sleep like a baby.
From: Empty Freezer
07-Oct-21
Use a buddy heater you can sleep naked on an air mattress.. No visuals please..
From: Tall Paul
07-Oct-21
Thanks for all the good suggestions. I have to admit my cot experience is very limited. Mostly bad memories from the early '70s as a child sleeping in a moldy canvas tent. Even then the cot made my back hurt.
From: Tall Paul
07-Oct-21
I have a queen size, 24" tall air mattress that costs about $125, that is incredibly comfortable. If I could use the Thermal blanket that Sunset posted about, and it really worked, that would be ideal. It's the cold air INSIDE the air mattress that's the problem. But I'm still open to any suggestions.
From: Jaquomo
07-Oct-21
Long Thermarest with high R value. I'm 76" and that works for me. I'm not a fan of cots either.
From: orionsbrother
07-Oct-21
When ice fishing/snow camping, and weight/packing isn’t an issue, I’ve used a good thermal pad that’s less inflated on top of an air mattress as a thermal break and I slept very well.
From: Sunset
07-Oct-21
The Twilight Thermal Mattress Topper has worked very well for me on my queen air mattress. I use it with flannel sheets and stay cozy.
From: Sunset
07-Oct-21
The Twilight Thermal Mattress Topper has worked very well for me on my queen air mattress. I use it with flannel sheets and stay cozy.
From: Surfbow
07-Oct-21
I use a cot with my insulated air mattress when I truck camp, never been cold...I also have a good sleeping bag
From: Tilzbow
07-Oct-21
I’m 78” tall and use a Teton XXL cot along with a XL Thermarest Luxury pad on the cot and then a home made 3” pad I made with egg crate foam and covered in canvas. It’s a super comfortable system and also takes up a lot of room and weighs a bunch. I’m not a big fan of cots but there’s little to no sag with the Teton. I also see a big cot pad on Teton’s website that’s worth a look, it’s the same spec as the big Thermarest.
I don’t use it in a Kodiak tent though….. I’ve got a White Duck Canvas tent.
From: creed
08-Oct-21
Cabelas outfitter cot with their foam cot mattress and a self inflating Alps mattress. more comfortable than my bed at home
From: Stringcheesehead
08-Oct-21
Alps mountaineering XL cot is the best out there in my opinion. For adding warmth whether cot or air mattress the nicer space blankets and/or a wool blanket add lots of warmth. Done plenty of winter camping and those 2 types of blankets are the ticket. Have slept on just those 2 layers without the cot or mattress more than once in freezing temps. Also remember the basics of sleeping in a hat and warm socks etc. If it's really cold. I only own 3 season tents and have done fine in WI winters.
From: Glunt@work
08-Oct-21
I love sleeping on a cot with a foam topper. As stated above I drape a wool blanket over the cot so it hangs to the ground. It's is big help with warmth. Cots also leave you more space to stash stuff underneath and you have a place to sit when getting dressed or telling the group the story of the giant that you almost killed.
From: Ermine
08-Oct-21
Just an air mattress. Never been a fan of cots
From: 320 bull
08-Oct-21
I use the 40" wide cabelas cot with a walmart 3" foam mattress. I also have the cabelas 0 degree 40" wide sleeping bag. I roll around allot at night and this setup works well for me. As stated above a good hat goes a long way when temps get into the 20's. I am not a fan of running a heater in a tent and have never had issues with being cold with my setup. Cots are way better now days than they used to be
From: Oryx35
08-Oct-21
I use an air mattress and a buddy heater in my Kodiak. I picked up some cheap moving blankets from harbor freight to add insulation above and below the air mattress, but as Empty Freezer notes, the buddy heater keeps those tents plenty warm everywhere I've used it.
From: Huntiam
09-Oct-21
Dang .. I’d go with a Motel 6 I guess then
From: Paul@thefort
09-Oct-21
"you freeze to death on an air mattress". I had the same experience until I placed this foam pad on top of the air mattress. (sleeping on the ground or on a cot) Now I get the adjustable comfort of the air mattress and the pad prevents the cold from invading my sleeping bag.
From: txhunter58
09-Oct-21
From: txhunter58
09-Oct-21
I have something like this. Bought it for my wife. Pricy but she likes it. They have 79” ones. https://www.amazon.com/Zermätte-Memory-Foam-Mattress-Floor/dp/B08CL47YRH/ref=mp_s_a_1_2_sspa?crid=9JTCFRTW577F&dchild=1&keywords=thick%2Bfoam%2Bcamping%2Bmattress&qid=1633825257&sprefix=thick%2Bfoam%2Bcamping%2Bmattr&sr=8-2-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEySUxISVI1VzhPRVNNJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwODM3ODU0M09EU05FUUZDSFhUNCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMzA1MDg3MkxSVkVJUVVHTFRSSCZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX3Bob25lX3NlYXJjaF9hdGYmYWN0aW9uPWNsaWNrUmVkaXJlY3QmZG9Ob3RMb2dDbGljaz10cnVl&th=1
From: txhunter58
10-Oct-21
Good thread
From: WV Mountaineer
10-Oct-21
FWIW, Teeton touched on the variable that determines comfort in a cot. How much it sags. I’m going to help you out a bit. Because if not setup properly, the moisture your body releases will get a cot wet enough to sag after a few days. So, you need a layer of foam between you and the cot fabric to retain that moisture. If not, it collects in the cot fabric. Which, makes the cot damp. Which makes it sag after prolonged use that way.
So, use a piece of foam like Paul posted at least. Or a thicker piece. Check them out after three or four nights sleeping. Hang dry while you hunt during the day if they are getting saturated. Do this enough to keep the cot from getting wet. And, you’ll sleep like a baby. If not, you sag into a position that hurts your shoulders and neck if you are a side sleeper.
Air mattress are a pain in the butt in colder weather. I’ve tried it, If I didn’t freeze, I sone to a sag that wouldn’t allow me to roll over and sleep on my side.
From: Tall Paul
10-Oct-21
Lots of great advice guys, appreciate it!
From: Tall Paul
10-Oct-21
Thanks for the info about cots, WV. That explains a lot. I have low back pain, so sleeping on a sagging cot sounds like a nightmare.
From: drycreek
10-Oct-21
Carry a fat girl who can cook with you…..
From: Tall Paul
11-Oct-21
Yeah, but a fat girl will make my air mattress sag...
From: Grubby
13-Oct-21
I ordered a foam mattress from Amazon, cut it in half and when it’s cold I use both on my cot with a large quilt on top of them that hangs to the floor.
From: Ermine
14-Oct-21
I’ve been thinking about installing a stove jack and running a wood stove in the Kodiak canvas when it’s cold out
