(How) do you sleep in the backcountry?

[Surfcam]

Funny, I sleep the same way you do. This first 3 hours are usually good but then I wake about every hour and turn over. I've been using a Neoair Xlite Reg with an EE quilt. To me, assuming I'm comfortable with the temperature and my environment, I attribute my mediocre sleep with the narrowness of my pad. I'm considering switching to a Exped Hyperlite Synmat in size MW (medium wide). All of the other pads I've seen are long and wide. Hopefully this works. 

[James Singewald]

When ever I go backpacking I make sure I have a warm sleeping bag and just listen to the water if I am near the water and think about how beautiful the morning will be. Sometimes I plan what I will be doing the next day. I have never had real trouble with sleeping though. 

[Dogwood]

For those who are fretful of new environments and noises an alternative to ear

plugs is sleeping near water. Who hasn't fallen asleep at the lake, river, or ocean

It's a great sleep aid.

Letting go of the assumed need to know everything or always be electronically connected can help too. The more I travel the more I experience the unfamiliar. The more I experience the unfamiliar the less fear I have because I'm learning that the unfamiliar isn't always something to be fearful. I'm expanding my comfort zones the more I travel. This includes not just a physical tolerance increase but an emotional and psychological.

[Game Warden]

Unless you are in grizzly or mountain lion country, there is nothing that can hurt you in the wilderness, aside from ticks and other arthropods. That said, I also disapprove of ear plugs, because they create a barrier between you and the world you want enter. I remember the midnight raccoon exploring my campsite, and the god-damned whippoorwill that kept me up all night as he tried out new lyrics directly over my bivy, despite the sticks I threw at him. Plenty of time to sleep in the grave.

[jensaito]

Some tips from my own exeperience. Upgrade your sleeping pad. In my opinion, the most comfortable are Big Agnes Insulated Q core and the Big Agnes Double Z. Get a decent pillow and convience, that your sleeping bag is warm. Get up early the day you camp, and hike most of the day. Avoid going to sleep much earlier than you do at home, and get same habit to do before sleep (reading, work out, music listening) .Don’t analyze the sounds in the night and find your comfort zone, stay relax and warm.

[Grey Mouse]

I know that this is an older topic but perhaps I might add something. I never take a sleep aid since I like to camp in bear country. Also I find it easier to sleep with a dialed in sleep system and a full belly. A good food coma from a savory meal is worth it's weight in gold for sleeping and moral.

[Dogwood]

Ive seen some studies(dont have the links though) that conclude the most restful sleep and time in the house is when there's a  power outage. This applies to those who are in the habit of falling  asleep watching and hearing  the TV.   

[Grey Mouse]

I honestly wouldn't doubt that Dogwood. Everybody needs a little down time to unplug and reset the natural internal clock.

[Parkinson1963]

For me to sleep well in the back country, it comes down to three things;

1) good sleeping pad (you will pry my Neoair from under my cold dead body)

2) A comfy warm sleeping bag, I love quilts

3) A Pillow, try the IKEA blow up travel pillow 5$ of sleeping bliss.

[mrgriff82]

I hammock camp, it is more comfortable for me. I do make sure that I take a couple pairs of ear plugs (incase I loose one) and tylenol PM. Ear plugs are a must, especially in a crowded camp area or shelter. As for the tylenol, that is usually a first night only, due to knowing that I will be sore the next day. It just helps me relax so my muscles can recover over night.