Tents and Sleeping Bags

I've used a Tarn 2 - made by Mountain Equipment Co-Op - for quite a few years now, and I can honestly say that I am very pleased with the tent. It has kept me warm and dry in some very inclement weather and has never leaked. It has a nice large vestibule, great for a touring cyclist's baggage, and is a free standing unit; the vestibule does need to be pegged out. The tent weighs a little over 5 lbs, which is a tolerable weight for a single person tent. The Tarn 2 is advertised as a two-person, three-season tent; three season, yes, but it would certainly be cozy with two bodies in that small space! There are tents that weigh less, and after seeing them I decided that I didn't want to spend my night in a tube! Some are no more than glorified bivvy bags, but each to their own. My preference is a little more comfort, with space to sit up, and also some room to get dressed in with the least of difficulty.In 2005 I upgraded my tent to a Sierra Designs Lightning. Not that I was displeased with the Tarn 2, but the new tent would be easier to set up in the event of rain - something that seems inevitable no matter where I seem to tour! The Lightning's fly can be easily be set up first with a footprint, and then the inner tent can be installed from the inside. Also the Lightning is about 1 lb lighter and, surprisingly for less weight, there is much more room inside - the tent will sleep two people comfortably or in other words, me and all my panniers/load with no problem. The only down side that I have found with the tent is that the fly really needs to be secured to the carbon fibre poles with the velcro straps at the corners. Normally it's ok to neglect that step, but in high winds the tent will try to fold down without having the very bendy carbon fibre poles secured to the fly, which should always be guyed out as well.The only other complaint would be that the zipper on the fly is only one way - opens from bottom to top. I found this counter-intuitive, as often, with a two way zipper, it is nice to have the fly unzipped at the top for a short distance to provide better ventilation. After using the tent a couple of times, I actually took my tent fly to a tentmaker and had them sew in a two-way zipper - that cost an extra $40.00, but a worthwhile modification to prevent excessive condensation. Otherwise it can be a very comfortable free standing tent in non-windy conditions.After using a full length ultra light Thermarest sleeping pad for a while, I decided that, for my bones, it was a little on the thin side. To remedy this situation, I've opted for the comfort factor with a full length Thermarest LE (Luxury Edition) and it certainly is a lot more comfort for not too much weight gain, although it is a bit bulkier. With the thicker Thermarest pads it's wise not to try and inflate them too much, as you may end up rolling off to the side. I usually just let the mattress self inflate without adding any extra air. Recently I tested Thermarest's Prolite 4 sleeping pad, and I was very impressed at the comfort and compactness of the much lighter new materials used. The Prolites are made in a few different length and thickness configurations. All are narrowed in the leg area to save weight and roll up much smaller than the previous versions of full size pads. Once inflated, the Prolite is almost as thick as my LE and certainly as comfortable. One caveat is that the material of the Prolites is thinner than the previous era of Thermarests; not a problem for tent campers, but one would have to be careful using these lighter pads on bare ground, where small rocks etc. could easily penetrate the fabric. Nevertheless, the Prolite 4 has replaced the LE in my inventory of touring equipment.Also, after using a minimal (too minimal!) sleeping bag - a 0ºC light-loft bag with 3M's Thinsulate fill - I've changed tack now and am using a North Face Cat's Meow, a -7ºC (+20°F) bag with Polarguard 3D fill. I found that the light-loft bag just didn't keep me as warm a I'd like in all situations, but the bag was very compact and compressed into a very small sack. I mulled over purchasing a down filled bag, but opted in the end for the synthetic fill. Polarguard 3D is possibly the next best thing to down and almost as compressible. It is much more forgiving when compressed in a compression sack, unlike down whose lofting ability can be compromised with repeated excess compression. On the other hand, down is much easier to compress and compresses smaller, hence would not require aggressive compression to be equal in packed size to a synthetic bag. Synthetic fills have inherent "warm when wet" properties, unlike down, which loses it's warmth when damp. Uncoated sleeping bags very often can get damp from the sleeper's body and breath vapour; also when bike camping in damper climates it may not be possible to dry the bag as thoroughly as required on a daily basis. Nevertheless, the choice is there and one must decide which fill is most suitable/affordable for one's needs/budget. I also opted for a warmer bag as I can unzip the bag or lay on top of it if the weather is warm, but I still have the advantage of a warm bag if I'm camping in cooler climate at higher elevations.Another update... I splashed out on a Big Agnes sleep system. Which basically comprises of an air mattress which fits into a sleeve of one of their proprietary bags. I'm a person who likes to turn over inside a bag and not with the bag, so this mattress always on the bottom idea is great for me. I purchased their Zirkel down bag with an insulated mummy pad and can honestly say that I find this method the most comfortable over all my previous nights tent camping sleeping arrangements. I had a little problem with the pad on my Scotland tour - the valve has a very sharp corner where it is bonded inside the seam of the pad. Probably the way that it was packed tight in my luggage when flying over there, was when a tiny pin hole developed. Anyway, I noticed that I was losing a little air overnight the first couple of nights camping, and then found a tiny leak after soaking the pad in water - actually a hostel bathtub - very handy! Needless to say, I am always very careful how fold the pad for packing - I make sure that the valve is not bent over tightly over its sharp edges. I've heard that BA have changed the design of the valve and the material - lifetime warranty too! Otherwise as I've implied, a truly great system. http://www.adamk.ca/bike_camping.html