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.
Tags
- Gossamer Gear NightLight sleeping pad
- nightlight sleeping pad
- gossamer gear nightlight
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!