>>235196I carried one of these folding camp stools for years. I thought it was great to have something to sit on for cooking, at the fire, and whenever else, and not get my butt wet, or over-flex my knees by sitting on them too much. Other people I camped with would always look on with envy. But at some point I stopped carrying it and I found that I didn't really miss it. It seems like there's always something, a rock or a log, or even the ground, to sit on, and I’ve gotten more used to sitting cross-legged on the ground.
If you just want to keep your pants dry, bring a waterproof “sit pad.” I used one of those FedEx padded mailers for a while, and it was nice, but it’s also possible to cut a piece of foam from a sleeping pad (for instance on of those blue Walmart yoga mats) exclusively for this purpose.
My current sleeping pad is a Thermarest Ridge Rest, which is closed-cell foam (not inflating), and I carry that on the top of my backpack, so it’s easy to get to. I find myself unrolling the whole thing throughout the day at rest stops, just so I have something soft and dry to sit and recline on. It’s harder to use this around a campfire without actually sprawling out on the ground, which is a definite weakness of the system, but at random rest stops, having the ability to just lay down on a soft(ish) pad whenever I want to is pretty nice.
