Camping gear review: The self-inflating Therm-a-Rest® Women’s ProLite Plus™ mattress

June 24, 12:13 PMMinneapolis Outdoor Recreation ExaminerMarie Malinowski

Previous Next

1 comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Minneapolis Outdoor Recreation Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

The ProLite Plus Therm-a-Rest

There’s no disputing that a self-inflating camp mattress is your ticket to nirvana after a long day hiking the trails. Many times, I’ve collapsed onto a mattress and rested my tired carcass before taking in food or even setting up a tent. 

Arguably, Therm-a-Rest is the standard for self-inflating mattresses. Open the air valve and then go set up your tent. When the tent is up, the Therm-a-Rest is inflated. That’s one less task you have to worry about. If you want, you can blow more air into it to adjust the firmness.

Though I’m a doing it at the pace of a cautious, skeptical, cynical snail, I’m starting to embrace the idea of women’s-specific gear. Starting. I haven’t completely accepted it because so much of what is on the market is men’s gear in pastel colors and adorned with a flower motif.

But the Women’s ProLite Plus is a four-season mattress with extra insulation added to the torso and feet, the body parts, which, according to research, get colder on women faster. It has a tapered design that eliminates excess weight, rolls up ultra-compact, and the bottom grips keep the mattress—and you—from sliding around in the night. All this for a mere one pound, eight ounces, and 1.5 inches of thickness.

My old self-inflating Therm-a-Rest is a ¾-length pad and when I compared the sizes between the two, the full-sized ProLite Plus wasn’t that much bigger. Obviously, if size is your biggest issue, you’ll want the Therm-a-Rest NeoAir™, which packs to the bulk of a Sigg water bottle—but it’s not self-inflating.

Obviously, the true test will come next winter but for now, I’m pleased with this new mattress and even more pleased that someone else besides my husband cares that my torso and tootsies are susceptible to cold.

Cascade Designs, the makers of Therm-a-Rest (and MSR, SealLine, and Platypus products) gets extra bonus points for making all Therm-a-Rests right here in the U.S.A. It’s nice to know that there are some companies that haven’t jumped on the outsourcing mania.

Pair this mattress up with the Therm-a-Rest Compak™ camp chair and you’ll never want to return home.

For more info: Visit Cascade Designs and check out their entire line of high-quality camping gear.