Which Thermarest

Not sure which of these pads to purchase ? My wife and myself ( plus one lab) do mostly car camping- but also the occasional 1-3 night backpack trips. So weight/spce is somewhat of a factor- but mostly warmth and comfort.Am also looking for a new tent but will post seperate to avoid confusion ( on my part) Must say this is a great site. Please forgive spelling and dumb questions- this is first forum where I have posted. Thanks in advance !!

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I have a few thermarests. For car camping I like the 3 inch luxury comfort Therarest. I use the Prolite 3 for lightweight backpacking. I also have 2 regular trail-type (the old green standby) in full length & 3/4.

If you only want 1 for all, maybe a standard trail.

http://www.thermarest.com/

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The luxurious answer is two a piece. I'll explain.

I separate car camping and backpacking gear where luxury affords; a lightweight bivy for backpacking, a large, comfortable tent with gear vestibule for car camping (it's usually a climbing, fishing or hunting trip and I need the room). So, the pad I carry for hiking (a cut down foam torso) and the "pad" I carry for car camping (a veritable blowup mattress) are designed to fit my needs. So long as your budget allows, I recommend the same.

If it doesn't, though, here's my advice: try out a pad at the store with the idea of backpacking in mind. Find whatever you think is best and buy it. When you're car camping, supplement your pad with a piece of foam formed to your tent, or an extra blanket or two...instant comfort.

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Thanks !! I hadn't put in this perspective- but makes sense. Really appreciate the replies-Friend

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I have several T-rests and prefer the Prolite IV-lrg, used with a supplemental foamy.

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The Thermarest brand can be very confusing as they occasionally change product names and completely revamp their whole line. I'm no expert on the history of Thermarest, but in the old days they had the Standard shorty and the Standard long, orange babies with the metal valves(and then brought out the foam Ridgerest).

They expanded this line to include the Camp Rest and others. Then they discontinued the Standard line and came out with pads called the Expedition short/reg/large, knockoffs like the Explorer and the Backpacker, phew, confusing. And don't forget the Ultralight model, 1 inch thick and very light at the time it came out. Too thin for winter.

AND THEN a couple of years ago they revamped and changed all the names again, to Prolite 3 and 4, Trail Guide and the Trail Comforts. Who can keep up with all this?

Anyway, as kutenay said, I really like the Prolite 4 large for 3 season camping(it's a little thin for snow and winter camping--can feel my butt on the ground when sitting up). My current favorite for winter is an older model called the Expedition, 25x77x1.75, and if I had to upgrade I'd go with the Trail Comfort large at 2 inches thick. Heavy but comfy.

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We have two Camprest and one StayTek Camprest, and one Guidelite long. Don't fret the marketing gimmicks with the name changes, just remember that if you want a car camping pad, it should be 25" wide by 77" long and 2" thick. Anything more is overkill in my opinion. I use the thinner, lighter Guidelite for motorcycle camping, and for the youngest camper in the carcamping group. Two of my Camprest pads are '88 models and like new, so actually, CampRest pads are more cost effective than their competitors.

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