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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 5,891
Campfire Tracker
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OP
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 5,891 |
Having been a ground dweller (tent) all of my life I am thinking about transitioning towards a hammock for my shelter of choice.
Im thinking that the improvement in sleep quality would be the number one benefit.
Looking at the Warbonnet line.
Any hammock campers out there?
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Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 42,843 Likes: 6
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 42,843 Likes: 6 |
ya know, a couple of our older Eagle Scouts had a hammock they got off line that had a weather proof cover over it, like a pup tent sort of thing... with sides that extended down past the bottom of the hammock...
camping in some severe Oregon coastal winter weather, they were staying high and dry and it actually was handling the weather much easier than any of the others with standard tents on the ground, no matter how much we tarped them over....if I was still long distance hiking and back packing, it would definitely be my shelter of choice.. easy to set up, and easy to take down...
as long as you are where there are trees around that is...
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Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 809
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 809 |
If you are satisfied sleeping in one position, on your back, they are comfortable. In the rain or bad weather make sure your drip lines are properly rigged or you will get wet. I have used them in the past but don't any more. Some of the older ones that were sold as surplus, I don't know from where, need to be checked throughly before the trip. I failed to check out mind and ripped through the bottom. As has been mentioned and it may go without saying, trees that are properly spaced are very handy.
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Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 4,625
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 4,625 |
If you are going to be camping in cold weather you may have an issue with staying warm on the hammock due to airflow under you versus sleeping on the ground.
"My message to my troops is if you see anybody carrying a gun on the streets of Milwaukee, we'll put them on the ground, take the gun away and then decide whether you have a right to carry it." - Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn
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Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 59,158 Likes: 24
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 59,158 Likes: 24 |
When I was a kid I always used the army surplus jungle hammock, pretty stout units as they held up to a rambunctious boy.
Paul
"I'd rather see a sermon than hear a sermon".... D.A.D.
Trump Won!, Sandmann Won!, Rittenhouse Won!, Suck it Liberal Fuuktards.
molɔ̀ːn labé skýla
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Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 33,856
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 33,856 |
Hammock is ok if you don't have a spine or want to ruin the one you have. I guess they are ok if you lower it to the ground and insert a good sit or foam rubber mattress.
The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time by the blood of patriots and tyrants.
If being stupid allows me to believe in Him, I'd wish to be a retard. Eisenhower and G Washington should be good company.
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Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 5,866
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 5,866 |
I tried it with a hammock and it just about killed me. I'm a side sleeper so I woke up in pain and cold but there are tricks to staying warm in a hammock. A under blanket will help keep you warm but if you sleep on your side I don't know if you could get comfortable.
Eating fried chicken and watermelon since 1972.
You tell me how I ought to be, yet you don't even know your own sexuality,, the philosopher,,, you know so much about nothing at all. Chuck Schuldiner
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Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 37,924 Likes: 2
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 37,924 Likes: 2 |
On the cross country bike trip I just took, sure was easier just laying out a little one-person quarter dome in the dark just anywhere at short notice than it would have been with a hammock. Less visible too.
"...if the gentlemen of Virginia shall send us a dozen of their sons, we would take great care in their education, instruct them in all we know, and make men of them." Canasatego 1744
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Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,580
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,580 |
Hammock is great if you have a good one, and you have a place to set it up. Like Birdwatcher said, if you're going stealth at all, it isn't always ideal.
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Joined: May 2006
Posts: 93
Campfire Greenhorn
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Campfire Greenhorn
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 93 |
Your back will never survive and there is a reason they were called jungle hammocks, if it is not warm, you need two bags below foe every one on top.
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Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 1,659
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 1,659 |
http://hennessyhammock.com/I have one of these and it works as described. If you sleep on the short diagonal, you do lay flat. No back issues afterward. Also very weathertight. I've slept through a few good rainstorms in mine. I stayed dry through all of them. The new hex flys they have are even better than the original one I have. It is cold though in any temps below the 60s. That constant air movement below you will freeze you in the night if you don't have a good quality pad below you in the hammock. Plus, you do need to have a place to hang it. No trees around makes it useless.
Stush
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Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,580
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,580 |
Your back will never survive and there is a reason they were called jungle hammocks, if it is not warm, you need two bags below foe every one on top. The cold part is right. They actually make "underquilts" for hammocks, as they are, by nature, much cooler than being on a pad on the ground. As for the back, I am much, MUCH better off in a hammock when it comes to my back. I broke my T5 in 1993 in Wyoming, and sleeping on the ground sucks for me. How comfy the hammock is depends on the hammock.
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Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 32,156 Likes: 4
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 32,156 Likes: 4 |
Do they make hold-in-place closed cell ("ensolite") pads for those things? Pretty sure it would be relatively easy to rig one, if not, but yeah, I'd want under-insulation.
The only true cost of having a dog is its death.
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Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 28,605
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 28,605 |
if comfort is what you want, stick to a tent and get one of these....i slept on it every night for 3 months and its better than most mattresses ive slept on Big Agnes Double Z
Last edited by rattler; 08/31/14.
A serious student of the "Armchair Safari" always looking for Africa/Asia hunting books
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Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 13,860
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 13,860 |
Buy a used Hennessy Expedition off of ebay. Go to hammockforums.net for other info and advice. There, you will get real advice from those, unlike here, who've ACTUALLY USED modern hammocks long enough to actually figure them out. It really isn't that hard, unless you're a 'tard.
If you are over 5'10", you'll need the longer Hennessy, I forget its name. Most folks start with a pad inside the hammock. A Hennessy Expedition with the now unavailable "Segmented Pad Extender" gives a "lay" that is quite flat and rivals the comfort of any bed I've ever slept in, including the I-Comfort I'm about to move to.
The SPE mentioned above is merely a sleeve that allows you to add foam "wings" to a pad. If this sounds silly, after you wake up on a 20F night all warm except for what feels like ice cube trays against your triceps, you'll then under stand.
For top insulation, just use the bag you now own as a "quilt", just stick your feet in the foot and pull it over you. The downside of this is you really don't get the benefit of the hood and need a really warm cap/balaclava or similar. PM if you have any other questions.
In a forest, above 20F, using anything else is, IMO, missing the boat.
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Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,580
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,580 |
Buy a used Hennessy Expedition off of ebay. Go to hammockforums.net for other info and advice. There, you will get real advice from those, unlike here, who've ACTUALLY USED modern hammocks long enough to actually figure them out. It really isn't that hard, unless you're a 'tard. Gee, nobody here has used one? Unlike you, I not only know the name of the Hennessy model for tall people, I own one and use it. I use an different fly than what came with the Hennessy, and changed out my suspension system to something more user-friendly. I also sent mine off to a guy on hammockforums to have a zipper-mod installed.
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Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 69,683 Likes: 22
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 69,683 Likes: 22 |
Not sure how those hammocks would work trying to tie them between two spindly mesquite thickets...
Molɔ̀ːn Labé Skýla!
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Joined: Jan 2006
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,415 Likes: 9 |
Not sure how those hammocks would work trying to tie them between two spindly mesquite thickets... You just find 2 mesquites with no rocks between them to bruise your butt.
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” ― George Orwell
It's not over when you lose. It's over when you quit.
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Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,580
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,580 |
Not sure how those hammocks would work trying to tie them between two spindly mesquite thickets... They don't. I've had to use mine as a ground shelter on a few bike trips when there were not appropriate places to "hang."
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