Build your wife a touring bike.

Worked for me :)

-- Mark

When you have a right partner you can sleep without anything at all.
:)

A couple of points,get a liner for your bag as it adds a couple of degrees more warmth and it is a lot easier to wash a liner than the bag.If you use a down bag when you wash it,wash it twice once with a mild soap and then with nothing,this causes the bag to be well rinsed as you don't want any soap left on the down.Then dry the heck out of it,taking the time to break up any lumps you find as they don't dry and then the damp down mildews.Don't dry clean a down bag as it causes the down to pill up losing the loft and the warmth. On rest days take the time to air out any bag you are using as the moisture build up from normal use causes the bag to lose insulation value.Just drape it over a bush,fence(not barbed wire though!)or what you have or better yet throw it into a dryer when you are doing the rest of the laundry.The bag you store your sleeping bag is called a stuff sack for a reason,just stuff the bag into the sack in the morning when you pack up,a whole lot easier than rolling it up.I just lay the bag over my shoulder and start stuffing,turning the sack a quarter of a turn with every handful.This causes the bag to fill the sack better and easier than just stuffing it in. Then at night after you set up your tent before doing anything else take the bag out of the sack and let it loft up as long as possible prior to climbing in for the night.

Yeah, my chiropracter lady says just resting in a symmetrical position on yr back does wonders. I mean, she's talking spine of course, but the muscles are involved as well. It's all connected, man. Really.

However, I've never really had any back pain that didn't disappear after the first few days, so I'm not sure how much this would help. My primary persistant problem has always been the knees, so keeping them supported and relaxed is something I figgered out *real* quick.

I'm no spring chicken any more - but when I was a spring chicken I always resented having a peasant's body build - you know - built low to the ground for picking potatoes. Well, I guess it all works out in the wash since I can still sleep on anything, anywhere and wake up fine.

That's not quite true. There are brands/models of mummy bags that are designed for larger (wider) people. Big Agnes is one that comes to mind.

Or you could use a velcro strip if youre worried about sharp things on your pillow. :)

Man, the army/navy store here in jacksonville ROCKS!!! it is where i am buying all my camping gear for the rest of my time here. They allowed me to trade the bag in for a different one... this time I got a Kelty Large 25 degree bag. it is still mummy shaped, and MUCH wider. Amazingly, it actually packs away the same size as the first one!!!! I am really glad that I have been in the yard the last few nights trying things out.. i am getting a lot of stuff worked out before the trip. so, tonight I will be back in the yard!!! thank you everyone for your ideas!

Two tips after reading all these great ideas.

When drying a bag in the dryer, whatever it is made of doesn't matter, toss in a tennis ball. It'll help fluff it up as the dryer tumbles.

WOOL!!!!
Only two writers mentioned it, but get some wool! Long johns, socks, glove liners, hats, you won't regret "Smartwool" products either as they are very good. They aren't cheap & the higher the percentage of wool the better.

To heck with Thermarest and closed cell pads!!!!!!
Check out the Big Agnes Insulated Air Core pad:
http://www.bigagnes.com/str_pads.php?id=ia

This baby is 2.5" thick and rolls up fairly small.
I sleep on my side and I used to have to wake up every half hour and flip over because of the pain of my hip digging into the ground. The Air Core pad made things significantly more comfortable.

i'll be excited to hear how your night in the kelty 25 degree goes - i'm looking at one of those myself right now, especially because they looked nice and roomy.

I'm with Thor!
Great product, get the 25" wide if you toss and turn alot (me). Probably a better buy for me and my touring needs.
John

I spent weeks and weeks trying to figure out a consistently comfortable pillow this summer, and this is my magic secret:

I use my pot. It's a plain 2L aluminium pot, which I wrap in a fleece top and use upside down. I sleep with the pot just off the edge of my therma-rest so it rests on the ground and doesn't move with all my nocturnal tossings. For extra padding, I just stuff whatever's available under my head or on top of the pot. It's just the extra height without the shifting that does wonders for me.

Also, a rolled up pair of pants or something under the knees makes a pretty big difference for my lower back.

- Baz

holy cow... lets just say that my sleeping bag troubles are a thing of the past. This bag is bad ass. I have much more room than the last bag (keep in mind i am 6'3'' 250 lbs. I was warm and cozy all night long... just a pair of shorts on. It is down so i have to be careful not to get it wet so I purchased a special waterproof compression pack for it.. it is simply amazing how small it packs in that bag.... simply amazing....

yay! i'd guess that that means even in a regular sized one of them that my smaller girly frame will have enough space to toss and turn in!

Take care not to practice this in Bear country folks (unless it's a pot just for boiling water in).

Yes, bears' noses are eight times more sensitive than those of bloodhounds!

where exactly is this Bear country people keep referring to? Montana-Idaho-Colorado-Washington-Oregon-NorCal? I'm sure it's bigger than that, but where?

I'd say pretty much all of non-urban Canada... and even then, I've seen bears in Ottawa! Around here, if there is a forest large enough, chances are you are in bear country.

I hear ya, I have never seen bears in Ottawa, but I have seen a moose, and countless deer, and that is a few km's away from the green belt. I have had more than my fair share of run inns with bears.

The animal that has caused me the most problem is the crow, as soon as I turn my back they will steal anything that is not hidden or tied down.

Have any of you people had any run inns with wildlife, or is it just me. I have seen lots of foxes, and almost always see them when I am stealth camping. The only animal that I worry about is the bear, I am always careful to avoid them but it does not always work

Don't overlook the very useful ziplock freezer bag. I usually have 6 or so with me everytime I go camping/backpacking/touring/travel etc. You can fill them with air for a pillow or clothes (including dirty), make great hot water bottles in a sleeping bag before you hop in (not too hot of water, you don't want to melt them). They make great ice packs if you hurt something. I also use them as one of the best washing machines I have found. Toss in some powdered detergent and a little water and your dirty clothes and you can massage the zip lock around and get your stuff really clean...then just rinse.

Have fun!

Robert

that is a good idea! I was wondering about how to wash clothes if no river or lake is around....

Let me ask you this, as far as taking a bath... For those of you that stealth tour, do you only wash up in resturant bathrooms when given the opportunity? Or do you do sponge baths at night once camp is set up? I figure I can use a 2 litter bottle of water, boil half of it, then put the hot half back in with the cold half... creating nice warm bath water... I picked up some soap at the camping store that supposedly does NOT have to be rinsed off... will this work, or am I missing something? any helpful suggestions will be appreciated!!!!

hopefully some farmer dude does not walk up to me with a shot gun as my camp is set up on his land, and I am standing there naked playing with my stove..... :)

mike

lol!

I'm not sure pointing to another forum is a good idea (is there a readership battle between forums anyway?) but a few days ago there was an interesting discussion on exactly that on bike touring branch of the Lonely Planet Thorn Tree Forums.

Fox, racoon, skunk... never had problems with bears while camping and they are also my main concern. We only have black bears around here but these are still really big animals.