Desert Sleeping
You don’t need a tent or RV to sleep well in the wild.
Do yourself a favor and try sleeping outside, in the open instead. This is the technique that I have developed...
How to sleep most comfortably in the desert
I used to camp with a tent when working in the deserts of the American Southwest. But I have always preferred to sleep under the stars whenever possible. I like to lie on my back looking up at the vault of the heavens in the blackness of the desert night, imagining all the worlds that are out there, as I drift off to sleep. So even many years ago I would only sleep in my tent if it started to rain.
As time went on, I realized that I could abandon my tent altogether. The trick was to put my sleeping bag inside a bivouac (bivvy) sack, so as to stay dry if it rained. (Bivvy sacks were originally designed for mountaineers who had to sleep while hanging from cliffs. A bivvy sack is basically a personal-size tent that is made to wrap around a single person, and which lacks any support poles.)
I have since refined my technique even more. Here is the best way that I have found to sleep in the wild: First, set up a folding cot such as the type shown in these photos. It rolls into a very small and lightweight package when it is being carried. The cot keeps you off the ground while you are sleeping and therefore has four advantages: 1) It keeps you warmer than if you were on the ground because air is a terrific insulator; 2) it keeps you dry in the event that water runs on the ground during a storm; 3) it is far more comfortable than sleeping on the ground; 4) it keeps you above snakes and scorpions.
Second, put an air mattress on the cot. This item is optional, but I think my sleeping is more comfortable when an air mattress is on the cot. Third, select a medium-weight sleeping bag, and fourth, slip that sleeping bag inside the bivvy sack. Put the bivvy sack-sleeping bag combination on top of the air mattress which is in turn resting on the cot. Lastly, don’t forget to use one or two small pillows to support your head while you are snoozing.
Operationally, this is an extremely comfortable sleeping arrangement. The bivvy keeps you dry and adds warmth to the sleeping bag’s performance. The internal sleeping bag is snug and dry and warm around your body. And the air mattress and the cot keep you much more comfortable and warmer than you are if you sleep on the hard ground.
I have slept more comfortably in this set-up than I have in some hotel beds. The only drawback is that it can get too warm inside, and then I have to partly unzip the bivvy sack and the sleeping bag to cool off. The bivvy sack has a mosquito net that can be zipped shut (while leaving the outer shell open) if the insects become too problematic. When it rains, the top of the bivvy can be zipped all the way shut, but you should open its side panels to allow air to circulate and prevent the interior from becoming uncomfortably steamy.
During the day, I leave the cot set up (as it is impervious to rain and wind). But I roll up the air mattress, the sleeping bag and the bivvy sack, and I put them all inside a waterproof (and dust-proof) bag that is manufactured as an equipment storage sack for scuba divers. (It’s called a dive bag.) I slip the sleeping bag and the air mattress into the dive bag first, then slide the two little pillows into a gap between them, and lastly I slip the bivvy sack into the upper part of the dive bag. Then I seal the dive bag shut and lay it down on top of the cot. Voila! Now the entire kit can sit outside all day, no matter what the weather happens to be.
Lastly, I like to use a folding three-legged stool as a night-stand. I lay it, too, on top of the cot during the day while I’m out and about in the desert. With this sleeping kit in my personal arsenal, I haven’t taken a tent into the desert for many years. Try it. You’ll wonder why you spent all those years sleeping in a tent or an RV.
How I sleep in the desert, from outside in: A bivvy sack containing a sleeping bag, on an air mattress, all on a cot.
My camping pillow: compact and stylish!
Desert sleeping kit packed for the day. Everything except the folding 3-legged stool fits into the diving-gear dry bag.
