I carry a variety of “luxurious” objects once I head outdoors, ultralight be damned. On overnights, it’s an inflatable pillow and actual, stay e-book. On day journeys, it’s roughly ten kilos of Swedish Fish (full-size, crimson solely). And anytime I’m headed to a spot the place I could be tempted to take a photograph or thirty, I carry paper, a paintbrush, and a small watercolor equipment, which I then use to craft really mediocre renderings of actual knockout surroundings.
My favourite luxurious merchandise, nonetheless, is a small, sq. piece of closed-cell foam—my sit pad. When of us see me whip it out on path, most both do the identical with their very own or ask if it’s price carrying; the truth is, the one individuals who’ve ever outwardly scoffed at my sit pad are the identical kind who insist that not solely are you able to dig an appropriately-sized cathole with a twig, but in addition that swiping a rock down your butt crack after making a deposit in stated gap is much superior to utilizing rest room paper. My response to those of us is normally to smile politely, then exhale a drawn-out and extremely glad “Ahhhhh” as I settle my booty into that candy, candy foam.
Pay attention, I feel that even probably the most stalwart gram weenie can get on board; my sit pad weighs a scant 2 ounces, and folds up tight to vanish into my pack. Plus, they’re low cost—my fanciest mannequin, the Therm-a-Relaxation Z Seat, set me again about fifteen bucks. And my dirtbaggiest model, which is roughly one-third of an inexpensive, blue roll-up mat that I purchased at an enormous field retailer, value nearly $three.33. What a steal!
I imply, have you ever ever plopped down for a lunch break within the desert, solely to shoot again up instantly after discovering an errant cactus backbone jammed into your tender cheeks? I haven’t. Have you ever ever groaned in discomfort whereas kneeling at a gravelly riverbank for a lot too lengthy whereas attempting to get your silly filter to work quicker? Not me! Have you ever ever misplaced all feeling in your valuable buns whereas sitting within the snow after an extended afternoon of breaking path? Actually, I really feel dangerous for you.
What’s even higher is that the standard sit pad can do a complete lot extra than simply placing some cush below your tush. It’s additionally a protector of pants, stopping abrasions and placing up a courageous entrance towards not simply filth, but in addition extra devious substances like tree sap. After which there’s closed-cell foam’s magical powers of insulation. In reality, I carry two small pads once I snow camp—one to slip below my butt or toes, and one other to slide below my canister range. If the wind picks up when you’re cooking, you may even press one among them into obligation as a windscreen. Sit pad: three; Jack Frost: zero.
And there’s extra! At night time, I fold my sleeping pad up right into a second pillow, used to prop my head up at simply the proper angle to learn my e-book (i.e. one sentence, again and again) for the 2 or three minutes I’ve earlier than falling right into a deep slumber. And in the event you’re touring via, say, a six-mile-long burn zone in early summer season, the place all the vegetation has been scorched into oblivion, and also you determine to slither your legs below a bush like a small animal in hopes of cooling down your core physique temperature, then a sit pad makes a very nice sunshade on your very sweaty face. It’s additionally fairly helpful to carry one above your head when the gates of hell open immediately above your very uncovered place on a excessive plateau within the Rockies, unleashing a violent barrage of large hailstones upon your tender flesh. Belief me on this.
The second throughout which I turned a real fan for all times, nonetheless, occurred after I’d been mountaineering on the Pacific Crest Path for about six weeks. Regardless of inhaling a very hideous quantity of meals throughout that point, I nonetheless misplaced roughly fifteen kilos. My garments had been soiled, salty sacks draped over my physique, however even worse, my pack belt now not sat tight atop my hips, forcing the whole weight onto my shoulders. I attempted to cinch the belt utilizing a security pin, which flew off inside a number of steps, after which I attempted stuffing my puffy between my pack and individual, to no avail.
However then I noticed that I had a little bit of light-weight, comfy, malleable, squishy salvation tucked simply beneath my pack lid—my trusty sit pad. I folded it a number of occasions, then slipped the froth between the belt and my proper facet. I examined it with a number of steps, then stored on strolling, my pack—and the way forward for my hike—again in alignment. Of all of the I carry, my sit pad may not match any strict definition of “luxurious,” and it positively doesn’t assist me hike higher, quicker, or stronger, but it surely certain does turn out to be useful generally.
