Is there any advantage beyond a good night's sleep?

[Raul Perez]

No worries I was just messin with you anyway.

Doesn't matter how tall you are or short the hammock suspension can be adjusted. Dont get all by the book at a perfect 30* angle or that nonesense. Just hang and adjust as necessary to be comfortable.

Leave the numbers to those filthy geeky accountants!

[88BlueGT]

No worries I was just messin with you anyway.

Doesn't matter how tall you are or short the hammock suspension can be adjusted. Dont get all by the book at a perfect 30* angle or that nonesense. Just hang and adjust as necessary to be comfortable.

Leave the numbers to those filthy geeky accountants!

I'm a CPA ......

still messing around?

[Raul Perez]

So am I... and yes I am still messing around BAM

[88BlueGT]

HAHA! I'm not a CPA, just thought I'd be able to get cha.... your too good though, too good!

Another day....

[Raul Perez]

Ha! No worries... and yes I actually am a CPA. I audit local governments and not-for-profits. I nail those that misuse public money to the wall!

[88BlueGT]

Damn, where were you last week I needed some serious help w/ my accounting class! LOL

[Bearpaw]

I tried to do the hammock thing several years back, but I just could not get comfortable. Bearpaw's photos have me rethinking that. That is a very sweet set up and with the poles used to make the "front porch" the room looks great. If I were interested in such a set up were would I look? I am 6' 225#. I currently have a Lunar Duo and Solo. I use the duo most of the time even solo just for the space.

One more thing, comfort is most important to me (my current set up is the SMD LD, BA IAC or Downmat 9, WM cloudrest pillow, and WM Caribou or Alpinlite, I have some lower back issues so not crawling on the ground could help.

The hammock in the pictures is a Warbonnet Blackbird. I weigh in the upper 200's right now, so I go with the double layer 1.7. For your weight, you would be fine with the double layer 1.1 (1.1 oz fabric). You would save about 9 ounces that way.

I love the footbox of the Blackbird because it allows me to sleep almost perfectly flat when I lay on the diagonal. Its gear loft is huge compared to any of the other hammocks I've tried and I never lose something once I tuck it into there (like my book or teddy bear). The mosquito is a blessing when bugs are out.

The tarps are different from one picture to the next. The brown one is a Speer Winter Tarp (SWT) from Speer Hammocks. However, Ed Speer is not making the SWT at this time. The green tarp is a Warbonnet Big Mamajamba with detachable doors. I like the ability to take of the doors in warmer weather and save weight, but it can be a bit more time consuming to set up than a tarp with the doors already affixed like the SWT. The closest thing to the cut of the SWT is the Warbonnet Superfly. I just got one in digital camo , that I will use this summer when stealth camping near forest service roads on the Sheltowee Trace.

There is a definite learning curve to it all, but Warbonnet is especially good for tutorial videos. I am about to leave from work right now and cannot access Youtube, but I will see if I can get some video for you later this evening.

[Kia Kaha]

The hammock in the pictures is a Warbonnet Blackbird. I weigh in the upper 200's right now, so I go with the double layer 1.7. For your weight, you would be fine with the double layer 1.1 (1.1 oz fabric). You would save about 9 ounces that way.

I love the footbox of the Blackbird because it allows me to sleep almost perfectly flat when I lay on the diagonal. Its gear loft is huge compared to any of the other hammocks I've tried and I never lose something once I tuck it into there (like my book or teddy bear). The mosquito is a blessing when bugs are out.

The tarps are different from one picture to the next. The brown one is a Speer Winter Tarp (SWT) from Speer Hammocks. However, Ed Speer is not making the SWT at this time. The green tarp is a Warbonnet Big Mamajamba with detachable doors. I like the ability to take of the doors in warmer weather and save weight, but it can be a bit more time consuming to set up than a tarp with the doors already affixed like the SWT. The closest thing to the cut of the SWT is the Warbonnet Superfly. I just got one in digital camo , that I will use this summer when stealth camping near forest service roads on the Sheltowee Trace.

There is a definite learning curve to it all, but Warbonnet is especially good for tutorial videos. I am about to leave from work right now and cannot access Youtube, but I will see if I can get some video for you later this evening.

Great info, thanks. I do most of my backpacking in WV and OH, so trees are never an issue, I will have to start checking the videos out. I am not super concerned about weight. My 3 season base weight is about 17#, it was just under 15, but I have added several items back in for comfort. Great info, thanks again.

[Kia Kaha]

Great info, thanks. I do most of my backpacking in WV and OH, so trees are never an issue, I will have to start checking the videos out. I am not super concerned about weight. My 3 season base weight is about 17#, it was just under 15, but I have added several items back in for comfort. Great info, thanks again.

How does the underquilt work on the Warbonets? Most of the ones I have seen seem bigger, they only go shoulder to knee, is that due to the top quilt going up to the knee?

[Chance09]

weights are about the same, and they can be a lot less than what you've listed. you don't need both an underquilt and a pad for your hammock unless you are going 4 season.

Big reasons hammocks are great.

The AT is crowded during thru hiker season. Doesn't matter, all you need is two trees. Can set up almost anywhere. In the brush, in thorns, on rocky and roots spots you'd never want to lay down. you can set up over a small stream if you life...did that once.

You can set up on any slope at just about any angle.

If the ground is soaked you don't get wet. No matter how waterproof your tent is if you wake up in a few inches of standing water you will still be wet if you are on the ground. Had 80+ days of rain the year I thru hiked.

You have the luxury of carrying a tarp. There were many rainy days where i would set my tarp up for lunch to hide out under the rain. At dinner other hikers would come hangout and cook under my tarp since they didn't want to cook in their tents and then i would string my hammock up later.

Add that to the ease of setup, the ease of take down, being incredibly comfortable anywhere you have two trees and i'm sold.

Those are the reasons why i hammock.

[Bearpaw]

A few of the videos out there. This one from Shug convinced me to buy a blackbird. It's very well done. He has some absolutely hilarious videos that are also very informative.

This page offers three setups from Brandon of Warbonnet hammocks. He shows setup of the hammock, Yeti underquilt, and one of his tarps.

How does the underquilt work on the Warbonets? Most of the ones I have seen seem bigger, they only go shoulder to knee, is that due to the top quilt going up to the knee?

It attaches on the end bundles of the hammock as shown in the video above from Warbonnet. For the legs, I use a 24" x 20" piece of foam pad. It doubles as my sit pad for rest stops and camp kitchen if I don't cook under my tarp. It weighs about 3 1/2 ounces and is one of my best pieces of gear. It also eliminates one of the minor complaints with the blackbird, that the edge of the footbox can push up into the calves. The pad prevents this entirely.

If you think you might consider a second hammock, other than a Warbonnet, you might want to look at a 3/4 length Phoenix underquilt from Hammockgear.com. It's a bit wider than the Yeti, but it will work fine for both symmetrical and asymmetrical hammocks. The Yeti is specifically designed for the left-right diagonal lay of the Blackbird. It does not fit so well on symmetrical hammocks like my ENO Doublenest, my preference in winter. But for that rig, I bought a full length Winter Incubator from Hammockgear. It's a great piece of gear.

There are plenty of options out there. These are the ones that work well for my.

[wvgrinder]

you can't have sex in a hammock... and now I bow out gracefully.

I had sex in a hammock. I was alone, but it still counts-doesn't it?

[TallShark]

I had sex in a hammock. I was alone, but it still counts-doesn't it?

Oh. My. God.

[Chance09]

Oh, yes you can.

*can't believe this is actually her first post*

i'll second that one and to whiteblaze

[TAS]

From the Warbonnet site

Superfly tarp 19oz $130
Blackbird 1.7 double 40oz $175
Quilt under 12.5oz $190

total 71.5oz $495

71.5oz or 4lb 7.5oz

Light and cheap?

Buy a cheap UL used tent, throw way the rain cover and get a tarp?

John

[Raul Perez]

John,

Funny how you chose the heaviest items on his site to compare with tents. I could easily do that with tents as well. Pricing to tents...hammocks are about $100-150 more expensive if you are trying to go UL compared to the latest and greatest UL tents out there.

[Deadeye]

I already posted some of what I see as advantages of a hammock, but the OP asked if there was any advantage beyond a good night's sleep.

Isn't a good night's sleep all the reason you need?

Once asleep, I sleep like a log in my hammock, without waking up at all during the night. No aching back, no sore hips, no sore nothin'.

[MedicineMan]

I just got back from 3 days in the Savage Gulf.
First night 12 hours of solid sleep.
Second night 10 hours.
So there is probably no wonder that I have a Warbonnet in my bedroom.
Another advantage is the 'cure' factor....some may not believe...but hangers know that the hammock really removes the pressure points...kinda like being weightless or floating in water, allowing a lot of regeneration.
Yes the NeoAir is the best pad ever made-got two of them for when I have to de-evolve but even the NeoAir pales in comfort to a hammock.
My Warbonnet Traveler is 16 ounces.
2 ounce bugnet (thanks to Mrs. Sgt. Rock)
3 season underquilt 16 ounces.
Summer top quilt 14 ounces.
Cuben tarp 6.4 ounces.........3.4 pounds.....in summer/very early fall it goes down to
2.9 pounds.
Cooking---one of the coolest things is firing up the stove beside the hammock and then sitting in the 'lazy-boy' and having tea and your feet never have to leave the ground

[Kia Kaha]

From the Warbonnet site

Superfly tarp 19oz $130
Blackbird 1.7 double 40oz $175
Quilt under 12.5oz $190

total 71.5oz $495

71.5oz or 4lb 7.5oz

Light and cheap?

Buy a cheap UL used tent, throw way the rain cover and get a tarp?

John

The OP says they would carry 2#'s more for comfort sake. A good night sleep is worth 2# in my book as well. Not everyone is hung up on weight, as some better packs (see McHale-Mystery Ranch) can carry a 35# load "lighter" than a UL pack carries 20#'s.

The OP does not mention price as a factor either, some folks need to understand there are various people in different stages of life out there, when I was 25 price was a big concern. Now I could care less about price if it is the right piece of gear that meets my needs.

[TAS]

John,

Funny how you chose the heaviest items on his site to compare with tents. I could easily do that with tents as well. Pricing to tents...hammocks are about $100-150 more expensive if you are trying to go UL compared to the latest and greatest UL tents out there.

I do so because one I am a big boy and I get more HD stuff because I want it to last and not give me problems in the field.

I did the heavy ones because that is what I would buy, for me thats correct.

Thanks

John