jessearl
10-15-2006, 19:00
I'm in Florida and was backpacking in the Ocala National Forest from Friday till this afternoon.
Had a great time and really enjoyed the trails the the spring-fed ponds that cover the area around Juniper Springs Recreation Area in the forest.
This was my second trip using my Hennessy. The first time was about 7 weeks ago on an overnight just the test the hammock out which was brand new then. It was about the high 70's during the night and I loved every minute of it and slept like a baby.
Because of my first experience with the Hennessy some number of weeks before, I didn't think I would need a pad underneath me this weekend. I thought the temperature would still be high enough that the sleeping bag would be sufficient. Hey, I'm in Florida, right? So even though it was packed initially, I left it home to save on weight. I'm new to backpacking and tried to keep my pack as light as I could. I was at 25 lbs. this weekend and that was reasonable.
But Friday night low was in the high 50's and I was very cold during the night. I woke up about 4-5 times shivering. But I at least slept through the whole night. I just used the sleeping bag unzipped as a blanket.
Saturday night's low was in the high 40's and I was frigid. I went to bed about 10 and woke up around 12:30. I could tell it was going to be cold that night so with much wiggling and tugging and sliding, I was able to get inside the bag and have both underneath and over me. I couldn't get it zipped up so it was more like I was inside a taco than a sleeping bag.
It wasn't enough.
By 2:30 I had had enough and got out of my hammock. I couldn't take any more of the cold and it was futile to continue to try and get warm.
I went and restarted our camp fire and kept it aflame until daybreak. It was my only hope for staying warm last night.
I never thought the conversations about needing a underquilt or sleeping pad in cold weather applied to me. But I learned something important about my hammock and no harm was done.
And I still love sleeping in my Hennessy much more than a tent.
Had a great time and really enjoyed the trails the the spring-fed ponds that cover the area around Juniper Springs Recreation Area in the forest.
This was my second trip using my Hennessy. The first time was about 7 weeks ago on an overnight just the test the hammock out which was brand new then. It was about the high 70's during the night and I loved every minute of it and slept like a baby.
Because of my first experience with the Hennessy some number of weeks before, I didn't think I would need a pad underneath me this weekend. I thought the temperature would still be high enough that the sleeping bag would be sufficient. Hey, I'm in Florida, right? So even though it was packed initially, I left it home to save on weight. I'm new to backpacking and tried to keep my pack as light as I could. I was at 25 lbs. this weekend and that was reasonable.
But Friday night low was in the high 50's and I was very cold during the night. I woke up about 4-5 times shivering. But I at least slept through the whole night. I just used the sleeping bag unzipped as a blanket.
Saturday night's low was in the high 40's and I was frigid. I went to bed about 10 and woke up around 12:30. I could tell it was going to be cold that night so with much wiggling and tugging and sliding, I was able to get inside the bag and have both underneath and over me. I couldn't get it zipped up so it was more like I was inside a taco than a sleeping bag.
It wasn't enough.
By 2:30 I had had enough and got out of my hammock. I couldn't take any more of the cold and it was futile to continue to try and get warm.
I went and restarted our camp fire and kept it aflame until daybreak. It was my only hope for staying warm last night.
I never thought the conversations about needing a underquilt or sleeping pad in cold weather applied to me. But I learned something important about my hammock and no harm was done.
And I still love sleeping in my Hennessy much more than a tent.