My sleeping pad popped on day 2 of a 5 day trip in the Smokies

Took my inflatable pad up to Cosby Knob shelter last month. Woke up at 2am on bare ground with a slow leak near the valve. Found a tiny puncture from a pine needle, no tape or patch kit with me. Ended up stuffing my pack under my hips and using my rain jacket as a pillow base. I know foam pads are heavier but now I'm wondering if I should switch. Has anyone else had a blowout that far from a car? What do you carry for quick fixes?

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oliver7195d ago

Three trips ago I woke up with my face literally on gravel because my pad did the same thing, except mine deflated at 2am in a drizzle and I had to use my dirty socks as a leak test. I now carry a ten dollar patch kit from Walmart that weighs less than a Snickers bar, plus a tiny tube of seam grip that has saved my butt twice since. The foam pad debate is real but honestly my back prefers the inflatable so I just accepted that I'm a grown man who still forgets his own repair gear sometimes. That night I also learned the hard way that pine needles are sneaky little jerks and now I always lay a ground sheet down before anything else. You got off lucky with just a sore hip, my ego took a bigger hit than my bones did.