If you’ve ever been curious about why your outdoorsy friends sing the praises of a well-timed outdoor camping trip, you’ve come to the right place!
A night spent under the stars, surrounded by nature, and free from the ‘real world’ for a little while — there’s truly nothing like it!
Unfortunately, several factors may work to disrupt or reduce the quality of your sleep when you go outdoor camping. But there are a couple of things you introduce into your routine to ensure a better night’s sleep.
Here are our top 5 favorite tips.
1. Wear Proper Clothing
You can add some warmth and comfort to your night of sleep by wearing appropriate clothing. In fact, this is often just as important as selecting the best sleeping bag! We’ll discuss this below.
In warmer weather you don’t want to be sleeping in thick sweatpants, nor do you want to sleep in shorts and a tank top during the cold weather. You can resolve this by shopping for the most comfortable pjs for men to guarantee your optimum comfort as you sleep.
Overall, the key to ensuring a better night’s sleep with clothing is to plan for all conditions.
However, try not to wear too many layers. Doing so may restrict your movements within your sleeping bag, which can cause extreme discomfort. Try to think logically and wear thick layers of clothing but without piling on too much at any given time.
2. Choose the Right Sleeping Bag
In addition to comfortable and appropriate clothing, you also need to select the right kind of sleeping bag. Purchasing a quality sleeping bag can do wonders for helping you to sleep better while you are camping.
The product that you end up choosing must suit your sleeping habits and must also withstand the types of temperatures that you will be exposed to while camping.
For example, if you’re headed to a hotter climate, don’t take a winter-grade sleeping bag with you. This could cause you to overheat and will likely result in a terrible night’s sleep.
3. Get Off the Ground
If you struggle to sleep while you are camping, a great place to start is to get yourself off the ground.
Landscapes can be pretty unpredictable, and we know that it can often be impossible to find an area free from debris and rocks to lay your sleeping bag. But there are simple ways around this issue.
You could start by bringing a camping cot or even an air mattress with you to provide a buffer between you and the ground.
Air mattresses tend to be more affordable but they aren’t completely leak-resistant, and camping cots can be a little on the pricey side. However, they will last a long time and ensure a great night’s sleep.
4. Use A Comfortable Pillow
When you go camping, the last thing you’re probably thinking about is taking a pillow with you. However, this could mean a whole lot of difference in terms of the quality of your sleep!
You can use a regular tent bag or a sleeping bag sack stuffed with some of your clothes as an alternative to a pillow, or even a specialized blow-up pillow. But for the best possible night’s sleep, nothing compares to a comfortable pillow from home.
Keep in mind that memory foam will harden when it is exposed to cold temperatures. If you’re headed to a colder climate, consider alternative options.
5. Head To Bed At A Reasonable Time
Going to bed at a reasonable time (that is, before the early morning hours) isn’t something you probably think about too much when you go camping.
In these situations, we often get distracted by the experience of being able to sit and chat with loved ones around a campfire and don’t notice time slipping away. Yet the issue with staying up late is that the sun will still rise in the morning, regardless of when you went to sleep.
Tents are notoriously bad at keeping out the bright light of early morning which could cause serious disruption to your sleep.
The simple solution? Instill an ideal bedtime that allows you to get adequate rest without missing out on a lot of the fun of camping.
Summary
These are our top tips for a better night’s sleep when camping. The amount of sleep that you get can truly make or break a camping trip. Use all of these tips the next time you go camping if you want to guarantee a better night’s sleep.
About the Author/s
The New Jersey Digest is a new jersey magazine that has chronicled daily life in the Garden State for over 10 years.
