View Full Version : Is a groundpad really necessary?
I'll be spending ~30 days from late June to late July hiking NJ through PA. I've got a 20* sleeping bag which I'll probably end up using mostly as a quilt under me in my hennessey. I doubt night temperatures will ever get very cold and I have gotten away fine in summer months without a pad, but this will be my first extended hike. My question is, is it really necessary for me to lug around my 9oz thermarest pad?
You might have a chilly night now and then, especially if it's windy. I'd bring a pad (if I used one regularly (check my pictures here to see how I insulate my hammock).
I did a July 4th weekend hike in the low hills of Vermont and used my closed cell foam pad on one of the three nights we were out.
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/files/2/5/0/2/dsc01457_thumb.jpg (http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=38616&c=member&imageuser=2502)
This is how I hammock now. Back then I used a HH.
wind isn't a variable I had in mind, though as for the example you provide in vermont, I feel like it may be at least a couple degrees warmer in PA.
Toolshed
05-30-2011, 19:21
You might have a chilly night now and then, especially if it's windy. I'd bring a pad (if I used one regularly (check my pictures here to see how I insulate my hammock).
I did a July 4th weekend hike in the low hills of Vermont and used my closed cell foam pad on one of the three nights we were out.
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/files/2/5/0/2/dsc01457_thumb.jpg (http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=38616&c=member&imageuser=2502)
This is how I hammock now. Back then I used a HH.
All that's missing here is the fire (oh and a giant rotisserie motor) :banana
Doc Mike
05-30-2011, 19:24
I never use a pad or under quilt during those months but i sleep warm and when its above 50 the quilt or a pad makes me to warm.
9 ounces ain't much of a lug, big guy! I carry a pad for my hammoci - all it takes is one night that's beautiful, clear and cool to be just a little too cool to go without. 9 ounces ain't worth losing sleep over.
9 ounces ain't much of a lug, big guy! I carry a pad for my hammoci - all it takes is one night that's beautiful, clear and cool to be just a little too cool to go without. 9 ounces ain't worth losing sleep over.
it's not so much the weight as it is the bulk. no sense in carrying something like that if i don't need to.
Rocket Jones
05-31-2011, 06:23
How about one of the Thinlight pads from Gossamer Gear? Little bulk there.
gunner76
05-31-2011, 07:49
Or you could get a UQ as they pack down very small
I haven't been hanging for very long, but I would want something - even when it is warm, if nothing else than to cut the wind chill. If you get the 1/4" Evazote pad, get it from JacksRBetter for $10 - don't buy the Gossamer Gear pad for $40($30 plus shipping). I have used a Walmart Windshield liner and it works ok on a day in the mid-50's. I have a double-layer hammock, so I don't have a problem with pads staying put. I like having a little something so that I don't have to snuggle up inside a sleeping bag.
gunner76
06-04-2011, 18:40
I own and have used a Wallyworld blue pad 24" x72"+/-, a windshield screen, a sleeping bag and a (UQ) Under Quilt as inslulating pads in my hammock.
For wight and compactness and most comfortable I would have to choose the UQ.
For low cost and best temp range I would choose the blue pad
oruacat2
06-11-2011, 22:09
I have a 20-degree bag and can sleep comfortably in my hammock down to about 35-40 degrees wearing only shorts. Anything lower than that and I need a pad/insulator of some sort. I'm used my thermarest successfully in the past, but it has squared-off edges that are just "sharp" enough to punch-through the hammock fabric, so I'll be trying-out something less rigid - some sort of foam pad.
I'll be spending ~30 days from late June to late July hiking NJ through PA.
Don't wait until then to find out. Experiment with what you got to see what works.
It was HOT and sultry two nights ago, 92 degrees with still air, so I hung my hammock in the back yard with no pad and no sleeping bag. It was just to warm to use any of it. But during the night a thunder storm rolled though and the temperature dropped 20 degrees with 1.25 inches of rain. My back froze. When the rain let up I added my foam pad and a retangle shaped sleeping bag as a quilt. It was warmer, but as I would roll or reposition myself, I could feel cold spots because I was perspiring where my back came into contact with the pad. Once again when the rain slacked off, I removed the pad and installed the 3/4 length UQ. I'll never leave home without it.
daryl
volleypc
07-06-2011, 17:12
I would be miserable in a 20 degree bag. I would use the pad and a lightweight summer bag.
I get cold on my back if the temperature gets much below 70. Interestingly enough, I usually am a warm sleeper overall.
A couple of weeks ago, I was hanging on a section just south of Dennis Cove in northern Tennessee. The 5 AM temperature was 41 F. I was very glad for my underquilt.
This was just a week and a half after waking up to a 6 AM temperature of 80. I was glad I never attached the underquilt then.
Take the pad. It's worth it as a "Just in case".
WingedMonkey
07-06-2011, 18:43
Not that it matters, but the OP is already on the trail.