Camp setup help

[BirdHunter7]

so I’ve got a couple trips planned for this year and finally decided to get a tent. I went with the kodiak canvas 12x12 and added the porch. My buddy has this tent with good luck. So far my trips planned are for at least a week each of hunting.

Montana in October
Kansas end of December
Nm and Arizona on Jan.

All will be setup next to truck so no packing in.

My main concerns are sleeping setup. Can’t decide if I should go with an air mattress, cot and sleeping bag or. I am 6’4” and I like to sleep comfortably because I don’t get much sleep as it is

For heat I haven’t decided between propane or a stove yet but my buddy runs a propane heater so I am leaning that way.

Lighting for the tent I think I am gonna get the goal zero 360 lights that can chain together.

Power wise we will either have a generator or if at a park will have power.

Those are the main things I am working on now. Where do you guys go to find quality gear online? I would rather buy quality and not have to replace it later. But I’m not made of cash either.

 

[rideold]

Heck, if you're next to the truck then go for broke and sleep on a cot with a piece of 4" foam!

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

Cot and thick foam pad.

 

[Back Country Hunter 2]

Last Lights are my choice for tent lighting in a truck camping scenario.

 

[sodaksooner]

cot is the bomb for truck camping. I sleep much better than on the ground.

 

[BirdHunter7]

Would you still pick a cot over a air mattress? Only problem with air mattress is I’ve always had cheap ones and they deflate which I hate.

 

[FLATHEAD]

I'm thinking of doing the same. Gonna get one of them Dos XX cots.

 

[Jr4]

XL size cot and thick pad, heat I would use wood do to moisture, generator and 4ft led shop light
Just my 2 cents

 

[Geewhiz]

For a heater I would recommend looking into a chinese diesel heater. I bought one for my cargo trailer and couldnt believe how well it worked. Im suprised they arent more popular than they are.

 

[BirdHunter7]

Those lights look pretty interesting. One enough for a tent or should I go with two?

 

[BluMtn]

XXL cot with pad. You will sleep so much better.

 

[JD Jones]

Xxl cot and a “hikenture” 4” mattress. They are the bomb for car camping or when you find yourself in the dog house

 

[BirdHunter7]

I guess that settles that. I’ll go check out a cot and pad for it. What’s a decent sleeping bag? For a range of weather in a heated tent? Since I will be running a heater I don’t need a super expensive one?

 

[FLATHEAD]

KS at the end of Dec. could be a little nipply.

 

[Blacktail247]

I sleep a lot better on an air mattress. When I’m in my cabelas Alaskan 8 man tent I take a full size mattress. I have a Honda eu2000 generator for filling it up and also run a 1500w space heater through the night. The tent is a little big for the heater when it gets real cold. A divider in the tent would fix that I’m sure but haven’t got to it yet. I have wanted to try a buddy heater but nervous about heating with it through the night. It’s also doesn’t like to run at high elevations. Which propane heater are you considering?

 

[BirdHunter7]

I’ve used a buddy heater in a cheap tent plenty. Also use them in my duck blind and deer blinds. Just make sure you have a little fresh air coming in and you are good. But I plan on just getting the dual head my buddy that mounts on the tank and I will use a 40lb propane tank.

 

[MHLS8611]

Having tent camped for years in a wall tent I highly recommend a good cot and pad. A good cot is key, don't buy a cheap, flimsy cot. The Cabelas or Teton XXL outfitter cots are hard to beat IMO.

 

[kfili]

I go full air mattress, I can't imagine a cot being more comfortable than a 10 inch or whatever air mattress.

 

[BluMtn]

Having tent camped for years in a wall tent I highly recommend a good cot and pad. A good cot is key, don't buy a cheap, flimsy cot. The Cabelas or Teton XXL outfitter cots are hard to beat IMO.

Cabelas XXL cot, Teton Pad, and I have the Rustic Ridge Elk Hunter sleeping bag 40x90 rated for -35. And when it gets well digger cold I have a https://seatosummit.com/products/thermolite-reactor-extreme-liner.

 

[5MilesBack]

I go full air mattress, I can't imagine a cot being more comfortable than a 10 inch or whatever air mattress.

Uninsulated air mattresses are cold as all get out. They seem to suck the cold from the ground.

I use a 40"x86" cot with a foam pad and then eggshell foam on top of that with my giant rectangular sleeping bag. I sleep better than I do at home. Way better than an air mattress, even an insulated one. Only problem is that that foam takes up a lot of room in the truck. But I have an 8 foot bed, so plenty of room even if I'm packing for 3+. For lighting I use lanterns. For heat I use a double tank top heater even at 11k feet. You don't need the heat all night, that's what your sleeping bag is for. But my tank top heater will get my 14x16 wall tent up to 70+ in very short order every morning.