KevinL wrote on Jul 5^th, 2012 at 12:12pm:

Easy solution -- get back into a tent!

prouboy

I received an Exped pillow for Christmas last year and I like it for when I’m on the ground.  Packs up to nothing and better than a stuff sack with clothes in it.

The problem is I have started to hang in a hammock and I find that I don’t need much of a pillow in the hammock.  I only put about a half a breath of air into the pillow then vs. two full ones when on the ground. 

I never thought the little flap at the end of the sleeping bag (I have one too) was for stuffing things inside it!  I thought it was a hood to stuff your head into during cold nights.  Maybe it's both, but it takes someone to mention this to get me thinking "outside my hood."  Great idea.  I'll try that too!

prouboy

I use my fleece jacket for my pillow.  My sleeping bag comes with a little pocket at the head of the bag to stuff your clothes in to use for a pillow...or to stuff your pillow in if you must, I suppose.  Turns out the fleece jacket fits perfectly and does a pretty fair job of mimicking my pillow at home.

I used to use my life jacket but just never could get comfortable with it.  And when I switched to using clothes, that worked reasonably well early in the trip, but the later in the trip it got, the smellier they got.  By trip's end, it was usually back to using the lifejacket. 

But that heavy fleece jacket really does the trick and it's a double-duty item on cool-weather trips as well.  On hot trips, I bring it anyway 'cause with the weather up there, you just never know...

Hmmm, that's actually a good idea, I think. For long portages, a little cushion for the old shoulders sounds nice. 

I learn something on every trip, from people and events I least expect!

Someone on this forum I think talked about packing a pillowcase, then putting their clothes, etc in it.  I tried it this year, and loved it!  Nothing like the pillowcase fabric to sleep on. 

I might try the travel pillow idea.

prouboy

I saw a guy portaging on Singing Brook portage with a pillow with his gear - "that's odd" I thought. 

It was one of those horseshoe kind that people use on airplanes.  didn't give it much thought, but seemed odd that it was not in a pack.  Then I guessed that he must be using it for additional padding on his portage yoke, which made sense and might work pretty well (I didn't actually see him using it).

either that, or his hemerhoids were acting up and he used it on his canoe seat - anyways, I guess it could double as a nighttime pillow

portage dog wrote on Jun 21^st, 2012 at 1:05am:

I'll be stopping by the REI to check out/purchase this.

Thanks for the excuse to take the kids shopping there!

My PFD goes under the end of the sleeping pad to get some lift and my pillow is this one (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links) from REI.  It compresses near flat and goes in with the bag and air mattress.  The shape keeps your head cradled, you can adjust the inflation amount, it has a soft feel fabric, and the bottom has rubber strips to keep it from moving around in the bag.  There are two things I'm willing to spend extra on for my comfort - sleep gear and rain gear.  Nothing beats a good night's sleep.

pd

I have a stuff sack that at one time came with a tent, long and maybe a foot in diameter. Into the sack I stuff my PFD, which will become my pillow. Using the extra sack material that is longer than what is required to hold the pfd, I gather the extra something like the ends of a sausage, tie it closed and loop the rope around my sleeping pads. (I use two pads to cushion these old bones.) Granted the sleeping pads will flex in under the rope but with two or three loops I find the pillow stays put. Then the next morning the pads will go into the ex-tent stuff sack for travel.
Works for me anyway.
Best Wishes, Rob

I usually just take a worn-out pillow case and stuff with a towel from my pack.  Or if there is room I will take a very worn-out normal pillow that has lost most of its loft.