Winter Camping

[bikerector]

Good day all, as me and the kiddos continue to expand our adventures, I think I want to try a couple backyard camping trips, maybe even hit something in the woods nearby, and I'm curious who else has tried this. I have my hammock already setup up for such a thing but I'm also looking into tents. What have been your experiences and any pro tips? As a kid, all of my winter camping would've been with a pickup truck so we never strayed far from civilization and a reliable heat source and that was always limited to hunting trips.

Last year I spent a lot of time playing around with wood framed tarp shelters in the backyard as a place for me and Jack to play in when we were able to get outside some. I'm not sure if I'll do the same or stick to smaller, more temporary things as I've really kitted me and the kiddo out over the course of the year for overnighters. I finally got Jack to sleep with me in the tent overnight in the backyard a couple weeks ago so I think it's become much more likely. He has all of his own sleeping gear but I think we'll be using the 2-person bag and sleeping pad for a while so he feels like he feels more comfortable sleeping outside.

Since I'm a knife guy, does anything change with your knife selection? I would probably opt in for sure to have a saw and likely an axe as additional cutting tools, but I know stainless steel has been a plus for my machete/choppers for winter trail clearing tasks, especially around the freezing point when it seems like stuff freezes to the blade.

As always, pictures and stories are welcome.

I hope y'all have had a good year. I hope to be around my sub-forum more this fall and winter with my daughter getting older and hopefully she'll start sleeping more regularly soon (teething now so maybe in a few more weeks).

 

[1066vik]

I use a sheet of reflectix under the sleeping bag in my hammock instead of a different pad or an underquilt.
If it's really cold, run a secondary ridgeline under the tarp and hang a poncho liner over that for an extra 10 degrees of comfort.

 

[bikerector]

I use a sheet of reflectix under the sleeping bag in my hammock instead of a different pad or an underquilt.
If it's really cold, run a secondary ridgeline under the tarp and hang a poncho liner over that for an extra 10 degrees of comfort.

Brilliant! Besides taking up space, and downsides like durability issues or being slippery? Way cheaper than a standard sleep pad or underquit, though underquilts work pretty darn well if you can afford it, in my experience. I tried my best to avoid the UQ but at 40 degrees or so I just couldn't keep my butt and back warm.

 

[1066vik]

I took two 16" wide pieces about 7' long and used sail patch tape to piece them together to make a 32" wide pad. then rounded/tapered the ends.
It stays in place, I don't slide off, and it adds a surprising amount of comfort across a wide range of temps.
I've slept warm at 13F with this under a heavy down bag, and at 28F under a generic holofill bag. It folds at the seam and rolls up about 4-5" diameter. Weighs next to nothing.

 

[bikerector]

I took two 16" wide pieces about 7' long and used sail patch tape to piece them together to make a 32" wide pad. then rounded/tapered the ends.
It stays in place, I don't slide off, and it adds a surprising amount of comfort across a wide range of temps.
I've slept warm at 13F with this under a heavy down bag, and at 28F under a generic holofill bag. It folds at the seam and rolls up about 4-5" diameter. Weighs next to nothing.

That sounds amazing.

 

[1066vik]

caveat - I tend to sleep warm, but if you want to try it out, i can build you a roll and ship it to you.
I'm told it's comparable to one of the klymit self-inflators for warmth - maybe not for comfort - but at the price.....

 

[bikerector]

caveat - I tend to sleep warm, but if you want to try it out, i can build you a roll and ship it to you.
I'm told it's comparable to one of the klymit self-inflators for warmth - maybe not for comfort - but at the price.....

I wouldn't be opposed to that. Just so I'm clear, you put the reflectix between the sleeping bag and hammock, not under the hammock like an underquilt? I have a 2-later hammock as my lightweight option and tried my klymit static v in there but it doesn't wrap my sides enough to help me too much. I played around with a bunch of different things I had already in gear in late winter and early spring this year and learned a lot just hammocking in the backyard in 40-50 degrees and rain. Learned about drip lines for sure.

I tried one of the tarp/mylar blanket things and was quite underwhelmed. I think I've seen them termed casualty blankets. It was fine for the wind but did nothing fir insulation when underneath the sleeping bag.

 

[1066vik]

yup - with a 2-layer hammock, you can slide it between the layers just like you did the klymit.
it's bulky to pack, but weightless.
space blankets are good as a wind break, but sick as insulation.
this stuff is a space blanket welded to each side of a sheet of bubble wrap, so one side reflects body heat, the other side protects you from whatever is below, and the bubble filling provides some insulation. (so in the summer, it reflects ground heat back away from you, while reflecting your body heat back at you, unless you have a good layer of sleeping bag or blankets to soak up your sweat)

 

[19-3ben]

This is brilliant stuff. I'm sitting here lurking and taking notes.

Since I'm a knife guy, does anything change with your knife selection?

My knife selection used to change, but these days I pretty much will just carry what I felt like carrying anyway. I don't fuss much about it.

 

[bikerector]

Small update, I ordered a top quilt back in November and it finally arrived just before Christmas. I was able to get out for a mid-day test during an extended holiday break my new day job offers and I have to say, I'm impressed with the warmth I was able to get with the underquilt and top quilt. The items are rated for zero degrees and the temps were around 30 and I woke up from my nap hot. It wasn't windy and I didn't have the winter wind sock on so I feel comfortable that I could've gone at least 10 degrees lower with the hammock setup, maybe more with warmer clothes (especially socks).

I'm planning to get my winter floorless tent setup tonight or tomorrow and I'll probably just lay inside with the military bivy and sleep bag for now as things are getting sloppy with a freeze/thaw cycle right now as the temps are in the 40's during the day for a couple days. I have a few glow-in-the dark zipper pulls I need to install on the tent because the stock zipper things are hard to operate with winter gloves on.

 

[bikerector]

For those interested in why you can see through the hammock (2-layers, actually), this is the cloud71 fabric from Dutchware gear which is a superlight fabric but is still pretty strong based on their videos and my experiences with it so far. It's still silly light with the double-layer which made it easier to work with a sleeping pad, or the reflectix using the info from 1066vik (I haven't tried it yet, just haven't made it to the hardware store to pick some up with other priorities coming up).

 

[bikerector]

We finally got some 20 degree weather with some wind and snow last night, and more importantly the okay from the wife to sleep outside. It went pretty well, except for the noise of the tarp and winter sock rustling around all night when the gust came in. Surprisingly loud when there's not much other noise out. But I was mostly warm. I could use a tarp with doors or I should've tightened up the A-frame shape around my head side to keep the wind from getting in.

Really, I could use a slightly larger tarp for such a thing as my 8x10' just covers the hammock and gets to about the bottom of the hang so wind gets up in there for the butt to get cold too easily and an asymmetric hang isn't as easy without being fully exposed on one side. It's a good size for rain/snow coverage, which was the intent, but it doesn't help with the wind as much, thus the addition of the winter sock from dutchware.

Overall though, had I selected things better and did a better job with the tarp pitch (I was lazy because I pitched it after the kids were in bed, so after 9 PM) I'm comfortable down to about 20 with wind.

Looks to be about 35 inside the caccoon this morning.

Overall, a successful night of backyard camping, though I did make coffee and breakfast in the comfort of the house so not a complete camping "trip."

 

[1066vik]

I am huge fan of the Etowah 10x12 for winter camping, because I can use the extra length to make "doors" on the ends to restrict winds and hold in a little more heat.
it also gives extra shade fly in the summer.

 

[bikerector]

I am huge fan of the Etowah 10x12 for winter camping, because I can use the extra length to make "doors" on the ends to restrict winds and hold in a little more heat.
it also gives extra shade fly in the summer.

This is exactly what I was thinking. I have 2 Etowah tarps now, after you recommended them last year or the year before, and it seems like I'm ready for a 3rd, larger one. The 10x8 has seen a lot of backyard use both with and without the hammock working out tarpin' configurations. Kinda wish I started with a bigger one but the price of the 8x10', being a 2nd quality, was really hard to pass up and turned out to be a gateway for silnylon for me.

I waa also thinking the bigger tarp would be better for nore people than just me and my son if we go out as a family.

I have a VIAM tarp/tent thing that is pretty nice that I've had up twice now, including earlier this week when we have just a little snow. It has zip-on vestibules so it's pretty nice, and has a stove jack for hot tenting. I should see if I can figure out how to string it up over the hammock, it's huge by comparison though and an asymmetric design.