Tent, sleeping bag, air mattress - cheap and light-weight

J

jfive

Joined
Feb 12, 2006
Messages
201
Hey Guys,

I'm going to take a trip to california, arizona, utah any maybe new mexico and colorado throughout september. Since it's going to be a camping trip I need
a tent (for 2 persons) that is assembled in a reasonable amount of time,
a sleeping bag (rather for warm climates) and
an air mattress.

I don't want to buy any crap because I don't want to suffer from hypothermia but this journey is going to be quite expensive so I would like to keep the costs as low as possible. Therefore I would really appreciate your advice when it comes to what to buy and where to buy. Until now I don't know where the journey begins - probably Vegas, San Diego, L.A. or San Francisco - so I need stuff that is available mostly anywhere throughout (for example in a walmart). Because I would like to take the stuff back to Germany (by plane of course) I need equipment that is quite light-weight.
I know light-weight, quality and reasonable prices don't mix but maybe there is something appropriate for me.

Thanks for your help ;)!
 
Try to hit a Bass Proshop (google for location, they are nearly everywhere now). Columbia makes some sleeping bags that are ideally suited to warm weather and are very reasonable (I think under $40 if I recall). An Insulite pad (not air, it's closed-cell foam) is going to be your cheapest option, typically under $10 at Walmart. As for tents, I'd have to defer to someone else as all of my tents are rather costly and therefore would ruin the budget (I only use Hilleberg tents from Sweden and they are fantastic, but costly).

Have a good trip, take a hat, it's warm that time of year in the locations you listed except for the mountains of Colorado.
 
Campmor,com has several high quality backpacking tents on sale for prices averaging 1/2 off regular.

I'm partial to Wiggy's bags so I can't really give ya a rec as to a less expensive one. But considering the season and the geographic area you should be able to get away with a 35-40 degree bag, or even a poncho liner inside a poncho. Bags rated for those temp ranges are fairly inexpensive from several makers especialy if you stick with synthetic insulation.
 
Sounds like you are gonna car-camp ? If that is the case, your instincts are correct on the Wal-MArt idea. Get a 2-3 man tent with the most coverage of rainfly they have, get a 40 degree bag, and the thickest cheap pad they have. Also pick up an inexpensive fleece blanket or two and you are in business.

I have a 40 diollar tent from wm that has last 4 years of summer-time car camping, probably 30+ nights.

enjoy
 
Thanks guys for your help!!!

Yep car-camping it is. But I don't know if we have access to the car most of the time so that's another reason why I need light-weight stuff.
Because of the hot climate that I will encounter I thought about a tarp solution but on the other side I'm afraid of creepy crawlers and I have no experience with a tarp what so ever. So a tent is probably the best solution.
I can't wait for my journey :)!!!
 
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