Back and Hip pain/sleeping comfort

[nastynate]

I've been doing a lot more backpacking this year. I upgraded to a Solong 6 tent that I love. Been using an older Thermarest Ultralight, which is a early Prolite model. Not very comfy though. Picked up a new Ridgerest solite for cheap to try out. Loved using it for lunch stops and easy to just throw in the tent and lay down. But my hips and back kill me. I'm trying to decide if I should spend the money on an neoair xlite or bite the bullet and get a hammock. I like the space to move around in the tent, but a hammock sure would be nice on these Tennessee ridges and overlooks where it is hard to find a piece of flat dirt.

[Ironbelly]

Personally, i have not looked back since i switched to a hammock. I get the best nights sleep ever each and every time i am out backpacking. Granted it does take some trial and error to get your hammock set up just right, but after you get it all dialed in its simply amazing. I use a superfly tarp from warbonnect pitched in porch mode if there is a decent chance of bad weather and i have WAY more room to move around than in in 2 or 3 person tent. Hammock makes the best camp chair too!

I also have a neoair, the original ones. And they are quite comfortable too. But I still would choose my hammock every time over it if the hammock is a viable option for that given trip. I have yet to find a place i couldnt put my hammock(that has trees obviously) but have found many of places where i couldnt put a tent.

[Ironbelly]

Haha, i completely forgot to add that I broke my back many years ago in the service and since have been plagued with back pain especially when backpacking. But when i sleep in my hammock i awake completely pain free, and honestly feel amazing throughout most of the day.

[Del Q]

I have been experiencing serious level of back and hip pain, last hike was brutal (125 miles - Damascus to Erwin - April 2013)

Chiropractor told me that I have "flat back" syndrome..............trying to work through it, next hike to NH/ME in late March.

As of right now there is no way I could go backpacking.

[nastynate]

Mine only hurts while trying to sleep and first thing in the morning on the trail. I'm just a weekender so I don't ever get the "I'm so tired I'll sleep anywhere on anything". $130 on an xlite or synmat UL7 would go a long way towards a hammock setup. Although I do love being able to spread out in my tent, eat in the vestibule, etc.

[Ironbelly]

Why does everyone say they like to spread out in a tent and do things like you arn't able to do that in a hammock setup? You have a tarp and that gives you TONS of more space than any tent just about unless its a super small minimalist tarp. And you have a nice little camp chair to boot (hammock). If your scared of sitting directly on the ground then use a piece of polycro, tyvek etc as a group cloth.