I feel silly even asking but here goes. I like the idea and it seems an obvious multi-use choice when I read about using your pack under your legs with a torso-length pad... but in my corner of the woods, my pack is often very wet at the end of the day. Doesn't it rain where you pack-as-pad sleepers live? Do you just wipe it down and call it good or...? Thanks.

It definitely rains here, but I keep my pack dry by putting on rain gear which covers my pack. I put my pack with the back pad facing up, so even if the outside of the pack gets a bit damp/wet, it faces the ground. This is my system for summer and winter, and I highly recommend it!
HTH

I use a 2.3 oz. pack cover over my pack that does a good job of keeping the outside of my pack dry. In a hard rain, moisture can get in between my rain jacket and pack and get the back panel a bit damp. If that happens, I just flip the pack over and keep the damp side down and the dry side up against my legs and feet. It probably helps that I use synthetic insulation.

Thanks for your replies. I figured the pack liner is a must to keep my bag and warm clothes dry no matter what, and would eliminate the need for a pack cover. So I could add the pack cover at 2.3 oz and leave my ~3 oz. foot/sit pad home, or could skip the pack cover and bring the foot/sit pad.

I've been wondering for a long time... to you all just squish whatever is in your pack with your legs? I don't bring very much gear at all, but when my "camp" is set up and I'm ready for bed, I still have my pot, camera, food, etc all in my bag. I realize certain things will help with the cushion and/or insulation, but I really don't want to squish my food.

Generally food is safely tucked away in bear canisters several hundred feet from the campsite. Sleeping on or next to food asks for all kinds of trouble, ie bears, rodents etc.

Edited by jegsmith on 04/03/2008 00:02:27 MDT.

All my hard surfaced products, such as pot + stove, stay in a stuff sack under my tarp, while the squishables are stuffed into my pack (usually just the clothes I hiked in). Food is hung in a tree away from camp. This system has worked well for me.