Gossamer Gear is a real leader in the ultralight hiking community. They specialize in ultralight backpacks, but they also sell other accessories which can save you a lot of weight. The NightLight sleeping pad, in the 29″ size, only costs $18 and weighs 2.4 oz. That’s over 6 oz less than a Therm-a-rest Z-lite 3/4.
The NightLight has an egg shell-like surface and is 3/4 inches in depth with an R value of 2.27. It’s good for 3-season use if you’re not a cold sleeper and it is more comfortable for people who sleep on their backs than side sleepers. I normally use this pad when hiking through heavily wooded areas like the Catskills where I can heap together a lot of leaves under my tent to augment the pad’s insulating properties and overall comfort. If you have to sleep on a platform or hard ground, think about bringing a thicker sleeping pad instead.
The NightLite is meant for hikers who have ultralight frameless hiking packs. These packs have an external pocket between the pack’s shoulder straps where you add a sleeping pad. The sleeping pad acts like a internal frame, stiffening the pack. I use the NightLight like this in my Starlite pack from Six Moon Designs. If you have a regular pack with a built-in internal or external frame, you’ll find that it’s very awkward to get the NightLight to fit into the main compartment.
Disclosure: The author owns this product and purchased it using their own funds. The Author is also a Trail Ambassador for Gossamer Gear.
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This review has some mistakes. The 3/4 length pad is actually heavier than the thermarest at 9.6 I believe maybe 10 oz. The torso length which is much shorter than the 3/4 length is what you are actually referring to.
Good catch. I was referring to the 29" pad, which does weigh 2.5 oz, and not the 3/4 pad which is around 10 oz. I'll make the edits. Thanks!
Hey Mr. Werner,
I’m in the market to get a new pad this season. I used to have an enormous therm-a-rest (probably the most comfortable and largest they sell). I’m slowly but surely trying to replace my heavier gear with ultralight. The only problem with this is that I’m a really light side sleeper. My wife uses a prolite 4 regular, and I was thinking of buying the same but in xtra small size. I’m 6′ 2″ so I realize that my feet would hang off the end. Do you have any recommendations? Does it feel weird to sleep on a 3/4 pad? I feel like the xtra small prolite would just be a more comfortable option than the one above. THanks!
mark
Getting a shorter pad is a great way to lighten up.Just put your pack under your legs – they need less warmth than your core. I’d also recommend that you look at one of the NeoAir pads from thermarest. They’re somewhere half-way between the prolite 4 and this Gossamer Gear pad. While I have slept on it in the past, it takes some getting used to because it’s a lot thinner than what you’re probably used to . If you remember the blue foam Mt Washington pads – it feels about the same but a tad firmer.