Winter camp - Daughter gets cold, what do you do?

I do winter hammock camping quite successfully, granted I'm not doing negative numbers like Shug. My issue was assuming my system would work for my daughter and my original question was given what I had available to me, would you have handled it differently and I got a lot of good suggestions.
 
panzertroop said:
Of course it was the contributing factor. And yes based on everyones replies we all know that hammocks are cooler to sleep in because of the increase airflow below them. But if you took the time to read any replies or had any experience hammock camping you would know that plenty of people use hammocks in winter. It's a matter of proper insulation and technique. Folks have been doing this for years and in extreme cold conditions. It's a preferred method for many.

Watch this video
[video=youtube;HDd1Hc3_v8Q]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDd1Hc3_v8Q[/video]
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Whoa panzertroop, no need to be antagonistic here. I just replied to the op like everyone else. Although I wasn't aware that hammock camping in cold climates was popular, I've done my share of hammock camping in the jungle, so I'm no stranger to the concept.
 
So I broke down and got her the snugpak under blanket and hammock quilt, I was a little bummed that it was 5lbs for a system that would only do 30s but ease of use and comfort for my kid right?

I went backpacking this weekend and didn't bring her because her new system was untested and it was going to be low 20s and I didn't want to manage the last setup again. Yesterday she said wanted to test her gear to figure out if she can use it in colder temps. She went out and set up the hammock without a tarp and put the quilts on, she ran the shock cord through the 4 end tabs and tied them in a square knot over her hammock and used two s biners and bowline knots on the main suspension and had no gaps, it was a pretty kool setup but I wonder if it will hurt the mosquito netting in time, she tied a knot in the one side adjustments because she said the one side is wider and this way she knows the head end.

She went out at 12pm and it was 24F, she had a heavyweight base layer on her legs and regular socks, tshirt and hooded sweatshirt on top she was out there for 3 hours and only her toes were cold
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I was so impressed I went out and tried it a few hours later and 8 degrees colder and I was cold in clothes equivalent to what I'd sleep in normally and my toes were freezing, I tried shoving my down jacket I was using as a pillow under my butt and while that warmed my butt up my neck and shoulders were now freezing. I went in and got her reflectix sit pad and her reflectix sleeping pad. I folded the sit pad to go in the footbox of the quilt and laid on the sleeping pad in the hammock and I was warm. My daughter came out and wanted to try it and she laid there reading a book she had for homework, this time she added gloves and a hat. She was out there from 730 to 10 and it was 14F and she wasn't cold at all and was giddy this was the first time her feet weren't cold
IMG_20160118_205756697_zpsiejyvzao.jpg


to say I'm impressed with this system would be an understatement. All this was no tarp & with winds of 5 - 15 mph, next weekend we'll setup the tarp and have her spend the whole night and if that goes well I think we're good
 
Can you remove the mosquito net for the winter if you're thinking it might get damaged?
 
Danke42 said:
Can you remove the mosquito net for the winter if you're thinking it might get damaged?
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No the hammock is a Moskito Kakoon, the net doesn't zip off, she was thinking maybe attach to the ridgeline of the tarp, we'll give that a shot this weekend
 
As a fellow hammock camper, I'm glad to see that you're getting this sorted out. Where I am now we don't get any actual cold, so I've not had to deal with that particular problem yet.

I've checked out the snugpak stuff (I have the jungle blanket), and ita good to know it's good down quite a bit lower than they say.

And to be clear, you put a layer of reflectix in the hammock, and another layer by your feet, and all was well down to 14 degrees?
 
ocnLogan said:
As a fellow hammock camper, I'm glad to see that you're getting this sorted out. Where I am now we don't get any actual cold, so I've not had to deal with that particular problem yet.

I've checked out the snugpak stuff (I have the jungle blanket), and ita good to know it's good down quite a bit lower than they say.

And to be clear, you put a layer of reflectix in the hammock, and another layer by your feet, and all was well down to 14 degrees?
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Yea the hammock quilt has a foot box so her sit pad goes in there in a u shape and she has a doubled over reflectix pad that's the size of a large thermarest ridgerest that she laid on in the hammock. You can also boost it by adding clothes in between the quilt and hammock and for the feet you can wrap them with your down jacket instead of the sit pad and the long pad
 
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