Hammocks.

trailbum

trailbum

Joined
Sep 18, 2010
Messages
3,493
I'm new to this.

What is your setup.

I'm looking at ENO doublnest.
Atlas straps.
Some kind of rain fly.

What do you use and why?
Any advice would be helpful.
 
I have a Hennessy Exped Asym that I got slightly used for a hundred bucks. It came with the rainfly, straps, and snake skins. For insulation, I use an extra large (truck size) windshield sun reflector, which is good down to the upper 40's.

I love it! Tents are a last resort now.
 
I've got a clark NX250 cause i weigh more than 250lbs & that's pretty much the only option for a fat ass like me. It's a cadillac! I went with camo & the oversized vertec rainfly. I read the standard 250 fly was a little small so I went ahead & went all out instead half assin' it. Hence the camo. I run the factory tree straps with whoopie slings (google 'em & get 'em! don't question it, you'll thank me). I can hang the whole thing in under 5 minutes & have the fire goin' good by the time anybody else has the ground cleared for their tent. As stated above, check out hammock forums. I seriously doubt any BF vendors sell hammock supplies, so google arrowhead equipment too. They're a hammock supplier & where i got my whoopie slings.
 
I have never used a tent. Hammock is the only way to go down to 35-40 degree then either a tarp shelter with reflective warming fire or Kifaru floorless tipi with wood stove for winter and cold. One or the other!

With the hammock I usually backpack and to reduce weight, and because they're not needed, i leave the straps behind and have never used them. The supplied ropes easily support the hammock safely and the ropes do not ruff up or scruff up the tree as the tree huggers would have us to believe. Heck we don't use straps for anything else we suspend?

For those tree huggers out there wailing and gnashing teeth over my lack of using the straps or not recommending them I say this: More trees die or get disease from knife/axe people sticking their blades into the tree for their ego knife photo ops from the open wound which allows bugs and diseases to infiltrate than any hammock support rope potentially chafing the outer bark. If there is any chafing it is at worse temporary. Knife/axe wounds affect the trees causing disease, scaring, and potential death.
 
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I "use" a hennesy exped asym zip. I say use in quotes since I have yet to have a chance to overnight in it, just afternoon naps, but it seems to do the trick.
Quirt, the pressure from the cord can crush the inner layers of bark, and can kill the tree. While some folks don't worry, and some trees can take it, its best for everyone concerned to use the straps. If hammokers use straps in general, more places will be willing to allow hammokers. I'm not an arbourist, or a biologist, however, I've been told by people who are that it is a concern, and thats all I need to know. The problem is worse in areas where many people are hanging from the same trees over a long time, where any damage isn't likely to get much chance to heal. Its not a wailing or nashing of teeth, just giving some reasons to why straps are recommended. Feel free to do whatever you want, I'm not going to stop you, but don't recommend to someone else to go against the common accepted practice, without understanding all of the problem.
 
Hammock Bliss no-see-um-no-more, its big enough to be a double, holds 300lbs, has a built in mosquito net (it can be flipped over for no net). Its light fits nicely in its attached bag. I have used a tarp in the past but just bought a light weight backpacker tarp have not used it yet but its light weight. another note the reflectix insulation used for insulating duct work etc makes a nice pad for the bottom of the rig for cool nights and reflects your body heat back without being all crunchy like a space blankit.
 
gadgetgeek said:
I "use" a hennesy exped asym zip. I say use in quotes since I have yet to have a chance to overnight in it, just afternoon naps, but it seems to do the trick.
Quirt, the pressure from the cord can crush the inner layers of bark, and can kill the tree. While some folks don't worry, and some trees can take it, its best for everyone concerned to use the straps. If hammokers use straps in general, more places will be willing to allow hammokers. I'm not an arbourist, or a biologist, however, I've been told by people who are that it is a concern, and thats all I need to know. The problem is worse in areas where many people are hanging from the same trees over a long time, where any damage isn't likely to get much chance to heal. Its not a wailing or nashing of teeth, just giving some reasons to why straps are recommended. Feel free to do whatever you want, I'm not going to stop you, but don't recommend to someone else to go against the common accepted practice, without understanding all of the problem.
Click to expand...

Duly noted and sage advice. I stand corrected. Use the straps!!!!!! I camp in locations where it is extremely unlikely anyone would camp. But your point of repeatedly hanging a hammock on one tree makes sense. My advice was shortsighted and ill advised.
 
I use a Hennesy with the "birth canal opening" and am very comfortable in it.

A couple things that are important for using a hammock:

The majority of people either LOVE or HATE sleeping in a hammock. Getting eight hours of good shut-eye is a lot different than taking an afternoon nap after mowing the lawn and drinking five beers...don't assume you'll sleep well in a hammock just because it seems like a great idea and other people love it.

Unless it's so hot you need to drape a wet sheet over you to sleep, you'll need some sort of padding or insulation under you to be comfortable. Laying in the hammock compresses your tissues, depriving you of any natural insulation and making your clothes or sleeping bag ineffective. I've gotten cold in the tropics for lack of insulation under me. My pad of choice is the short, ultralight Thermarest, but any non-compressible pad will work.

Some sort of pillow will make sleeping a lot more comfortable.

Once you add the sleeping pad and the rainfly and the tree straps you're really not saving any weight over an ultralight tent or tarp. Unless you need to stay away from ground based critters (tropics) or are camping in a swampy area, a hammock may not be a step up. I like a hammock when I'm alone because I sleep well in them, but many people don't.

Pitch your hammock at home and try sleeping in it a few nights before taking it afield. Lots of people never really get a comfortable nights' rest in a hammock. Make sure you do before committing to one.
 
I recently saved up enough cash for a Hennessy Safari and an Expedition for the girlfriend. I looked at a bunch of different hammocks and settled on Hennessy just because of the "all in the one" package. As a big guy, the Safari appealed to me - it's very roomy. After solely using tents since I first started camping (sleeping on anything from the ground, pads, air beds, etc.) I don't think I will ever go back - my first night in a hammock was the best night of sleep I have had in a long time. It's decently easy to set up though I'm still fine tuning/experimenting with each night out.

The Hennessy line is nice for the "hammock, netting, tarp, straps" combo - You don't need much else besides insulation. However, I did pay more than some of the other hammock options out there. For me, the quality is there and the price seems worth it. That said, the DIY side of hammocks is huge - Everything from tarps, underquilts/top quilts, hammock suspension, etc. is up for customization. My next hammock will be a DIY without a net for the winter. As stated above, hammockforums.net is an immense resource for anything hammock.

For insulation, I ended up just rigging an old sleeping bag as an underquilt which has worked fine for anything above 40 degrees. It was pretty easy to rig up (I ended up cutting/sewing an entrance slit for bottom entry, but it really wasn't needed) and makes a big difference in comfort. The above comments about wanting either an underquilt or a pad are spot on.

I would really consider what you want to use it for (car camping, hiking, extended trips), how much you want to spend, and the temps you'll be sleeping in. The Safari is great for car camping, local trips - places where I'm not backpacking or going very far. I can increase the comfort factor without having to stuff it all into a pack. I have yet to attempt lugging that thing on an overnighter because the hammock plus the tarp and UQ takes up a lot of space in my bag. Most other hammock/tarp combos are smaller and much more space friendly for hiking. Add the insulation and, like sutured said above, your not that much different than a light tent setup in terms of weight. Except for comfort - that's a whole different story :D. Down insulation helps with packability and warmth but is typically pretty expensive (I'm just out of college, so everything is expensive :grumpy:). There's so many options out there - the multitude of hammock setups is big enough that you should be able to find something that would work for you. You could be setup with stuff you might already have - an old or unused tent tarp, old sleeping bag or pad for insulation. Add a hammock and your set.

Weather makes a pretty big difference in comfort for me - I've only slept down to about 30. What you use during a 60 degree night may not work for you on a 50 or 40 degree night. Typically, I always have some sort of underquilt - I add or take away varying items inside the hammock (Everything from not using anything on warmer nights to using blankets, sleeping bags, warmer clothes for when it get's much cooler).

If your unsure, maybe look for a local option? I was able to find a local retailer that had ENO's in stock - I bought a DN and liked it so much that I ended up buying the Hennessy. If you end up not liking it, you could return it (not that online returns are all that bad either) no harm done. I highly suggest checking out the links mentioned above for more info as to what could work for you.

Good luck :thumbup:
 
Hey Quirt, no worries man, I just saw that your reasoning didn't line up with what I've been told was the actual problem. scuffing the bark is no big deal, heck, I've seen poplars get fully ringed, and hardly even slow down! so it does all depend on the tree, but the better we take care of stuff out there, the more places we'll have to play. Learning more is why we are here right?
 
The underquilt or insulation should be written on the package of every hammock. I just started using mine last year and did not do much research on using them (its a hammock, set it up go to sleep). The first night I used it got down to about 45 or 50, I thought I had enough clothes, but froze my ass off. Now I use the reflectix insulation just because it weighs nothing and is not bulky.
 
If you decide to go with a hammock, you will need some kind of insulation underneath you. A lot of hammock designs will have 2 layers of fabric in order to facilitate some kind of rolled insulation such as a foam pad, inflatable pad, or bubble wrap that can be slid in-between the layers. The other option is an 'under-quilt'. Personally I use an under-quilt.
 
Thanks for this thread and all the links - had to start another bookmark folder! I was going for an ENO also till I saw this thread.
 
I have a Hennessey Explorer Ultra-Light. I upsized to the bigger hex sil-nylon tarp.
I've also recently gotten a net gear-sling hammock for underneath, and I'm going to trick out my tarp tie downs with an MSR reflective cord set.
I'll get some pics of it in a couple of weeks.

P1020294.jpg
 
I love the idea of a hammock but I can't sleep on my back. Mostly sleep on my stomach sometimes my side, never my back. Unless I pass out drunk that way ;) bums me out cuz I would love to do the hammock thing. I got the next best thing I guess tents that set up instantly, I can set up one in about 10 seconds. Packing it back up takes a couple minutes. They are not as light and space saving as a hammock tho.
 
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