View Full Version : Hammock and Tent to Thru
jbrecon2
01-01-2010, 10:24
So I was thinking.....while browsing the hammocks forum I liked the idea and freedom of a hammock. However I dislike all of the set up, the need for under insulation, the need to tweek it until you really figure it out (which i will not have time to do before i leave). So I discovered ENO hammocks and am now considering taking both. I am up in the air with a tarp tent (rainbow, moment, lunar solo), but either way its going to be light. ENO makes a 18 ounce hammock and another that is 12. If I brought this along, I would have the comfort of afternoon lounging in a hamock whenever i want, the occasional warm night sleeping in one, but still have the tent for inclement weather, mosquito season, SNAKE PROTECTION (joking, but only half). I am not an ultralight guy, but I am a really light guy. By spending money on things like montbell and a ULA pack, I think I can splurge a little here. Just looking for general opinions, or wondering if anyone else does this?
You'll almost certainly send one or the other home very soon. In typical March weather, you might occasionally have a warm afternoon (around 70), to hang and enjoy the hammock without an underquilt, but most days, it will be fairly cool. You could use your pad to extend this to around maybe 50, and you will likely enjoy the ENO as a camp chair, but I simply don't see you keeping it too long.
By Neel Gap, most thru-hikers pare away everything they can think of that they don't need. I would say look at switching to the hammock with a decent tarp and bug net around Pearisburg. You'll be into warmer season hiking by then and a pad underneath should be plenty sufficient. You can have a better experience with both tarptent and hammock that way.
you'll want your hammock when it gets warmer, and you'll want a hammock w/ bug netting, b/c with warmer weather brings bugs
Raul Perez
01-01-2010, 12:34
agreed with some of the previous posts. At night you will be cold in your hammock so you will need some sort of insulation be it an underquilt or a pad. I'm a recent hammock convert and I have to say that insulation under you is required to get a decent nights sleep.
Went on a 2 day trip over the summer and the temps dropped to probably mid 60's and my back was really cold and kept waking up from it. The next night I threw in my thermarest pad and slept much better.
I now converted to underquilts and I'm never looking back. I'm getting some really awesome sleep time out of my hammock now.
Also in the warm weather you will want a bug net.
white_russian
01-01-2010, 12:46
It is really not that bad about figuring out a hammock. It is just that there are a huge amount of options in this area. I mean with a hammock you have three independent things: tarp, body, and insulation. With a tent you are pretty much stuck in a predefined system. Now with all those options, the simplest ones work fine. I carry a Hennessey ultralight backpacker with the stock tarp, a wide ccf pad and a regular sleeping bag. It works great. You have to remember that in any subject the folks that talk about tweaking and make things sound hard are usually obsessed.
jbrecon2
01-01-2010, 13:16
thanks for the advice guys!! I probally forgot to mention that i had no intention of carrying it until at least May. I just imagined it would be nice for late afternoon naps and such...just to enjoy the lounging. But this is mostly a product of my imagination as a see myself gently swinging in a cool breeze next to a gentle stream. We shall see.
white_russian
01-01-2010, 13:27
But this is mostly a product of my imagination as a see myself gently swinging in a cool breeze next to a gentle stream.
You are going to love Maine then.
thanks for the advice guys!! I probally forgot to mention that i had no intention of carrying it until at least May. I just imagined it would be nice for late afternoon naps and such...just to enjoy the lounging. But this is mostly a product of my imagination as a see myself gently swinging in a cool breeze next to a gentle stream. We shall see.
Sounds great in theory, but I've never set my hammock up mid-day; I'll just nap in a shelter or a field. I don't think I ever set my tent up mid-day, either, come to think of it, although I might have done so to avoid bugs. IMHO, you'd be better off making a choice and living with it than carrying 2 shelters. You could start with a tent and switch to a hammock as the weather warmed.
There's no need for an underquilt if you use a top entry hammock without bug netting:
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=38616&catid=member&imageuser=2502
Your bag must fit snugly around your body or the gaps will be cold.
With a big tarp in the winter you can set up like this:
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=38474&catid=member&imageuser=2502
In the summer you can throw your tarp of choice over something like this:
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=38614&catid=member&imageuser=2502
If you look closely you can see the hammock running through the bug netting with the sleeping bag on the left side (the hammock runs through it).
SGT Rock
01-01-2010, 23:44
What I did for winter hammock camping. Still my favorite gear in any weather.
http://hikinghq.net/stay_warm.html
tinker. have you ever had any bad frost experiences with no bug netting?
tinker. have you ever had any bad frost experiences with no bug netting?
Nothing too bad. The lowest I've been down to with the winter setup above is 5 degrees (F), and the tarp was far enough above me and to the sides that the only time I touched it was exiting the tarp. The airflow under the tarp (it isn't completely to the ground all around) coupled with the semi-open ends minimizes frost build-up, but it does happen (just as it does with a tent).
Tinker,
Were you down to 5 F in the sleeping bag, and tarp, shown in those photos?
That sleeping bag is rated to 40 F right?
Did you use a different sleeping bag, or more insulation pad or more clothing?
I just got a hammock and I am going to get or make the other things I need: I'm not sure what.
Tinker,
Were you down to 5 F in the sleeping bag, and tarp, shown in those photos?
That sleeping bag is rated to 40 F right?
Did you use a different sleeping bag, or more insulation pad or more clothing?
I just got a hammock and I am going to get or make the other things I need: I'm not sure what.
Yes, and the bag is rated (conservatively) to 40 degrees. I was wearing a North Face Nuptse Down parka and used an old REI synthetic hood from another parka. I had a hot water bottle in my bag with me, and I don't remember whether I had my Montbell ULAP down thermal sheets summer bag with me at that time, but any colder than 5 degrees and I would probably need to bring it inside the Golite bag and use it as a comforter.
Also, on that trip (with the self portrait) I had my Sierra Designs down booties with me. My trail runners and Sealskinz socks don't cut it down below 15 degrees (and that's when I'm moving!).
That is great news. A lot of that you would need to have with you anyway.
I am pretty excited about the hammock. I registered over at the other forum.
you'll love it connie. after a few hangs you'll be asking yourself why on earth you'd ever sleep on the ground again!
Powell19
01-03-2010, 02:31
I don't know much about packing with a hammock, but I ran across these (http://www.junglehammock.com/index.php) a while back and thought they looked pretty neat. The FAQ says you can set them up on the ground like a tent, too. Might be right up your alley.
Raul Perez
01-03-2010, 10:20
tinker that is one serious tarp you got going on. is that the JRB tarp?
If you are already prepared to sleep on the ground with a pad (CCF or T-rest) you can sleep in a hammock. Adding "Wings" to your pad makes it a bit better, (search on Hammock forums) but not totally needed.
Taking a "Nap" in a hammock is generally a bad idea if you plan on doing major (or just more) miles that day. One of my 30 minute naps lasted 4.5 hrs. I now nap on the ground so that I can wake up & do a few more miles, otherwise, I figure I'm done for the day & set up camp.
Hammocks can take time, but with the resources available at HF it isn't that bad. There are plenty of hangers in NJ that may even be willing to meet with you & walk you through the learning process & you can be done in a day. I have done it around here & got a few off the ground in just a few hours. Granted, they now have totally different set ups than what they started with, but that is to be expected.
If it were me I would either get a top tent and build a UL hammock, or I would go for a full hammock setup, with a big tarp and a bug tent for the ground.
On a mostly ground setup I would go for a Moment tent, with (2) 3/4 length blue pads.
Build a single layer UL hammock out of walmart fabric and harbor freight straps at about $20 and 16oz. Use the pads in the hammock plus a poncho or cuben as a garlington taco bottom and carry a 2 garbage bags and 2 emer blankets as extra insul if you want to sleep hanging.
The other approach would be to get a full hammock setup, UQ and all, 20oz top down quilt to cut the weight, Large Cuben or sil tarp, that can set up like the ewata sp ?? vid on youtube or brawneys setup.
and add a bug tent for a gatewood cape at 7 oz for buggy weather on the ground.
Like the rest of backpacking gear, multi use is important.
1.I use a home made hammock
http://www.imrisk.com/zhammock/zhammock.htm
I'm in the process of modifying the zhammock for a bug net and to Hennessy Clone configuration
http://www.hammockforums.net/forum/showthread.php?t=670&highlight=hennessy+clone
2.and a homemade "Gearskin Clone' Backpack.
http://www.moonbowgear.com/1trailgear/1Custom%20packs/Gearskins/gearskin.html
My pack starts with a 60"x16" piece of ripstop and uses G4 pack shoulder straps and belt.
3.I carry 1 &1/2 ccf pads and criss cross the 1/2 pad under my torso. These pads are coiled into a cylinder and the cylinder becomes the frame of my gearskin clone.
My loaded pack weight is 25 to 30 pounds, depending on amount of food and water I carry. This is not ultralight, but is a manageable total weight for me.
Yep, I built a risk patterned double layer hammock only an asym.
Pretty darn comfy and cheap. Started off with just harbor freight straps. Somebody from the hammock forum sent me 4 rings for free and another guy made and sent me some amsteel short braided loop ends to use with the rings so now I use that setup.
I am going to build an ultralight hammock when I get back from the holidays.
As far as the tarp setups tents and whatnot here are some links.
Moment. I am sure yu have seen it.
http://www.tarptent.com/moment.html
Hammock - tarp setups.
Check out the storm/winter tarp. Looks premo to me. A 10x12 foot tarp gives you a ton of room on the ground or hanging. If cuben it would have to be 9x_.
http://www.tothewoods.net/HammockCampingDry.html
If you have a long hammock like I do the campmor 5x9 poncho/tarp makes a decent garlington under shell for more bottom insul. An elcheapo driducks poncho breaths. I think 2 will snap together to make a full shell, but I have yet to try it out.
Campmor poncho/tarp.
http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___20275
Setup for etowah tarps I mentioned. If you set it up with a beak on the open side and carry a small piece of tyvek, for the open side its pretty weatherproof
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkBeZqXU4zk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkBeZqXU4zk)
Type in brawney's tarp on youtube and a link will come up with a good ground tarp setup.
Her site
http://www.trailquest.net/BRindex.html
Bug tent for gatewood cape.
http://www.sixmoondesigns.com/shop/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=22&cat=NetTents
I forgot to mention my tarp which is the old Sportsman Guide 9 ft. camo tarp. (that is no longer available) It has two tie outs on each edge
For cold weather, I hang close to the ground with the tarp tied below the hammock ties. I then use the lower tie out to the ground on each end. (similar to the way the hammock specific tarps tie out). I then tie the upper 1/3 tie out together around the hammock on each end with tarp bungies (http://www.tarpsonline.com/accessories.asp ), giving me a real tight cocoon to hide in from the weather .
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/QT_cT_N0IhxUttQEsZx71g?feat=directlink
tinker that is one serious tarp you got going on. is that the JRB tarp?
Nope. Equinox 10x12' tarp with the 10' being the ridgeline. That way it's about 5' high or so in the center when staked to the ground. It gives me plenty of room inside.