The Best Cots For Hiking and Hunting
A restful night's sleep is essential while hunting or hiking, and cots are a great option to keep you off the ground and comfy. However, they are heavy and hard to transport for travel.
We tested 10 of the best co-teaching cots and scored them on comfort mobility, the ability to move, ease of set-up and durability.
Comfort
A good night's sleep on the trail is essential to enjoying your camping experience. As opposed to sleeping on the ground, cots help you stay away from the rough and cold terrain while providing a comfortable place to sleep on. When selecting a cot make sure you choose one that is lightweight and provides solid support to ensure you get an enjoyable night's sleep. Cots with an appearance of a mattress are desirable and are often designed to be used with an air mattress or a sleeping pad to provide an additional layer of insulation.
The right cot for you is essential regardless of whether you're camping in the car or backpacking. For those who are mostly backpackers, consider lightweight options such as the Helinox Lite Cot or ALPS Mountaineering ReadyLite Cot, which offer an extremely portable sleeping solution that is easily transported in your bag. If you are doing a combination of car camping and backpacking and camping, you might want to consider something heavier such as the REI Kingdom Cot 3 or Coleman ComfortSmart Deluxe.
If you're looking for a more comfortable option, the top cots listed here are all designed to look as like a traditional mattress as they can. They're a bit heavier than their ultra-lightweight counterparts however, they're easy to carry and setup on the trail.
When you're choosing a cot it is also important to think about its materials and construction. Look for cots made of top-quality fabrics that can withstand the rigors of use. Look for features like a 600D polyester fabric and reinforced seams to ensure your cot will last for a long time to come.
A cot should also provide enough cushioning to keep you from the hard, uncomfortable ground. Certain models, such as the Coleman ComfortSmart Deluxe are quilted and padded, whereas others like the REI Kingdom Cot 3 have baffles to prevent you from sinking into the cot. Also, a cot must be long enough to meet your height and wide enough to comfortably lie down in. You should choose a cot with an adequate capacity for weight, especially if you are traveling with a partner or pets.
Portability
The most comfortable camping cots are small and require less space in your backpack. This lets you put more sleeping gear in your backpack. They are also lighter than many other camp bedding options and can quickly add up when you go on long hikes or multiple-day backcountry trips. Considering how much time you'll spend packing and unpacking your gear, the mobility of a cot is a major factor in its overall rating.
Depending on the model that you choose, it can take a few minutes to unroll and put up the bed. Some models are more complicated and require more assembly. Others have parts that are difficult to locate or connect. Some cots have built-in storage pockets or other features that will help to reduce the amount of time you spend setting up your bed.
The most versatile cots come with legs that can be adjusted, allowing the user to adjust them for different terrain conditions. Some cots come with a tether to keep them steady in stormy or windy weather. They're particularly useful for backpacking, when the stability of your shelter can be compromised by unstable or uneven ground.
Consider how often you'll use the cot and the location you plan to camp when choosing a cot. Cots with a lightweight design and compact fold are perfect for backpacking, whereas those with a robust construction and a bigger sleeping area are more suitable for car camping or basecamps. If you intend to use your cot at your home, it's worth investing in bedding that's specifically designed for the kind of bed you have. This includes fitted and flat sheets as well as a matching pillowcase.
If you're in search of a comfortable, easy-to-set-up cot that's suitable for all types of camping and camping, the Byer of Maine Easy Cot is a fantastic choice. It packs down into a case similar in size to the standard camping chair, and comes with a strap to make it easy to transport. This cot doesn't have the largest sleeping surface of our top selections. However, its sturdy frame and durable materials make it a great option for most camping trips.
Easy Setup
Cots are often required when camping, but they tend to be more difficult to put up than other kinds of sleeping equipment. This is due to the fact that you need to set them up in an even surface which can be difficult to find when camping. Some come with bars for the foot and head that you may not want to hit when you sleep.
Fortunately, the top cots we tested are relatively simple to set up. Some are self-standing, which is a huge relief since it doesn't require you to figure out how to secure them, while others have simple foldout designs and just a few clicks to set them in place. Traditional cots are a different story. You must assemble the frame by yourself and then tie the fabric, which takes lots of strength and time.
The Alps Mountaineering Double Kwik cot is among the easiest to set up, which means it can be used both for camping in a car or tent camping. It can also be used for trips to backpack. It's a little heavier than the typical cot but it packs down to a size that's similar to the carry case of the folding camping chair. It's also extremely sturdy, constructed from a tough and comfortable 600D polyester and an aluminum frame that isn't made of any plastic parts that are fragile.
We also recommend the Coleman Pack-Away Cot. It is simple to set up. It has a unibody design that removes bars across the head and feet. This makes it perfect for back and side sleepers. The cot can be folded down to a size similar to the bag that you carry in your backpack of choice. It's a bit heavier than other cots we tested but it's very solid and suitable for adults weighing up to 225lbs.
We were also impressed by the Helinox Lite Cot, which is a cot that is light that's extremely easy to set up. It takes just the time of a few minutes to unfold and snap it into place and then a few nudges for it to be broken down. The legs are locked using a unique lever-lock mechanism that is extremely secure and provides a sturdy base for your sleeping bag.
Durability
The best camping cots are built to stand up to lots of use and abuse. They are constructed with strong materials like aluminum frames and tough fabrics. The fabric should be tightly woven to ensure it doesn't tear in the rigors and strain of a sleeping person. A good cot will make use of the heavy-duty 600D polyester, which will withstand lots of wear and tear. The best cots are made with double stitching and reinforced seams in high stress zones like pole sleeves.
baby cots online are great for camping, as they keep you off the ground, comfortable, and safe from insects and other creatures that might be roaming around your campsite during the night. They are also an excellent alternative to sleeping bags and foam pads if you're hiking or backpacking. But, not all cots are created equal and some require you to pair them with an additional sleeping pad to ensure maximum comfort. This can be a major issue, particularly for backpackers carrying a heavy pack.
Some cots, like the REI Co-op Kingdom Cot 3, use an air bed to make them more comfortable, so you can get an excellent night's sleep and not need to carry a mattress to sleep on. However this cot is large and bulky, so it isn't easy to fit it into a tent even if the tent has plenty of space.
The Helinox Lite Cot offers another great option, which doesn't require an additional sleeping pad. The lightweight aluminum frame offers excellent support and is very comfortable to sleep on. It was more comfortable for our testers to use on hikes than an air or foam cushion.
They are also ideal for guests staying over, and you don't want to have them sleep on the floor. They're also a great addition to an RV or camper because they are more comfortable than inflatable mattress. They're also more sturdy than an air mattress or tent and you don't have to worry whether they explode or shift in the middle night.