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Thoughts on Hammock Camping


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Hey guys

 

I was wanting to take a poll on everyone here to gather thoughts on hammock camping. I'm 29 years old and the last few years I was enjoying camping a little less as sleeping on the ground was pretty hard on my back. Then I discovered hammock camping and I have loved every minute of it.

 

That's why this past summer I decided to start my own hammock company to get people involved in hammock camping. Here are a few questions I wanted to ask. Feel free to answer any or all of them!

 

1- Have you tried hammock camping? If you have, did you enjoy it? If you have not, why not?

2- What brand of hammock do you camp in? Single or Double? Do you think there's a significant difference?

3- Do you prefer hammock camping or tent camping? Why?

 

If you have time, feel free to check out my products. I'd love to know what you think! www.hobohammocks.com

Thanks guys!

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I guess I should 'fess up here.   I am the moderator who hit the "approve" button for HoboHammock's first post, under the new system that is designed to weed out spammers before their posts are eve

Hmm, is there a rule that if you are in the business of selling hammocks, your business has to have two words in the title and the other one also has to start with an H? I count three in this thread

Interspecies hammock camping:   https://www.facebook.com/TELEGRAPH.CO.UK/videos/vb.143666524748/10153860707449749/?type=2&theater   and she didn't go to REI....

This is a blatant sales pitch, but I'll still call it appropriate (as if I had any real authority!).  I think hammock camping is worthy of discussion here and I'm curious what others have to say.  I first saw it in action at a spring scout camping trip and I thought it was weird and unnecessary.  But as I've thought about it since I think it might be a good way to go and I too would like to hear others' comments on this.  To me it appears it would allow for a lighter pack, possibly a more comfortable sleep, and gets you off the ground.  Negatives to me appear to me lack of a larger shelter if necessary and limited space for groups (didn't even know a double was an option until this post above).

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A backpacking one burner stove has its niche.  A double-bladed kayak paddle has its niche.  A water purification system has its niche.  A troop trailer has its niche.  I'm sure hammocks do well in certain circumstances as well.  I have never found them to be all that practical, but then again thinking it was possible to take the troop trailer to Philmont was a bit impractical as well.  

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While the moderators attempt to bill you for advertising, here are my answers ...

 

1. Yes. These old bones have been needing to stay off rocky ground more often. I enjoyed that aspect. However, the trees get in the way of stargazing.

2. A "K-mart" brand light rope double hammock is just perfect for the job. Price-point maybe $10 or less. Kevlar hanging straps, and biners maybe $25. Throw a 24" matrress pad in for stability and minimizing wear on the bag (which this old hid would do anyway) and we have ourselves a bed. Scouts have let me try their nylon models, but I've found them a bit stifling. Definitely not worth my expense.

3. Tent? Who said anything about a tent? Ever since that first Seabase trip ... I sleep topside -- deck, ground, picnic table, etc ... I've only got a few years left to count meteors. Lately, I've rigged an 8'x8' tarp on the diagonals. When with a hammock, that involves a double length or rope between hammock rings on a pulley system a la Venetian blinds.

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Sorry, can't help. We live in Texas. Finding two trees with which to hang a hammock is a half day chore on most camp outs. Finding 50 trees for 25 scouts and adults would take a week. We'd have to go to Arkansas to find that many trees. 

 

We have done it on the AT a few years ago. The boys loved it! The boys got cheap hammocks at Academy Sports, got a few carabiners to seal them in. Each had a tarp or two to hang above themselves. Light sleeping bags. Worked like a charm.

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I just started hammock camping and find it a lot better then a tent a cot it is lighter and quicker to setup and I am not stiff in the morning.  If you want to get more information on hammock camping check out this youtub channel

 

https://www.youtube.com/user/shugemery

and this book

http://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Hang-Illustrated-Hammock-Camping/dp/1466263687/ref=sr_1_sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1442594417&sr=8-1-spell&keywords=the+ultimmate+hang

and this channel buy the author of the book

https://www.youtube.com/user/hansenoutdoors

 

the book and videos will even show you how to make your own hammock out of a table cloth

 

My system is commercial system I wanted a bug net and have issues with the automatic thread injector (sewing machine) 

 

I use tree straps with woopie slings and a trap with dutch wasps for adjustment

I also use under quits and a top quilt

 

getting your rig the way you wanted it takes some practice just because there are so many options out there to choose from 

 

Take your time and play with your system if you have trees in your yard set it up and sleep in it your neighbors will just think you are in trouble again

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I hammock camp when possible.  I spent the week at summer camp in a hammock.

 

One of the camp outs the Troop has had in the past was "stay cool" theme.  We made hammocks from rope & a twin size sheet.  The Scouts slept in them on Saturday night.

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I guess I should 'fess up here.

 

I am the moderator who hit the "approve" button for HoboHammock's first post, under the new system that is designed to weed out spammers before their posts are ever seen by the forum members in general. In looking at it now, I can only conclude that I read the first paragraph and it seemed to just be a post about who uses hammocks on camping trips.

 

I guess I should have kept reading.

 

At this point, however, I have mixed feelings. Any other moderator can come along and "take action", and if anyone else wishes to hit the "flag" button that is their choice, and then whatever happens happens. But my current inclination is to leave it alone. The subject is a camping-related topic and therefore Scouting-related. Technically it is advertising because it is seeking to sell a product from which the poster will receive the proceeds. But even in the first post there is some "discussion" in addition to the advertising and now it has provoked a discussion of the advantages/disadvantages of hammock camping, the impracticality of doing it in certain parts of the country, ways of doing it better, etc. etc. So on the whole I think this thread has probably become a "net positive" for the forum.

 

So if that's the worst mistake I made this week, I'm probably in pretty good shape.

 

HoboHammocks, I hope you will join in some of the discussions in the forum, but please do not post or link to any more promotional material.

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Just threw mine in my pack for the weekend campout -- that's after using it for 5 nights on our Troops 50 miler.  I love it -- except for CBS (cold butt syndrom) which causes me to have to put a pad in the hammock which causes me to wake up in the middle of the night to adjust the pad.  I probably need to get a down underquilt.

 

To answer the questions:

 

1) Yes.  Enjoyed it.  See above for complaints.  I love not having to sleep around rocks and there are always trees in the Northeast.  The hammock and fly almost equal the weight of my two man backpacking tent -- But they take up a lot less space. 

 

2) Eagle's Nest - Double Wide.  I don't think there is a difference between single and double.  Have a rain fly but nothing else (if the bugs don't bite during the day, they won't bite at night).

 

3) Preference depends on the trip and the season and the trip.  There is something about being snuggled in a tent in 30 degree weather.

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I've never tried it, but I have wondered about it since seeing something about Hennessy Hammocks a few years back.  

I have hoped to have an opportunity to try one out, but so far have never found a display in a store or anywhere to try.  They're just too expensive to order just to try.... 

 

As a side sleeper, i'm not so sure..... but I have talked with several folks that claim to be side sleepers and they love it.  I took a course at our U of Scouting last year on the idea, hoping to get a try.  He was an Eno user, as were some of the students...... but I didn't get to try it.

 

One point of discussion was using a bipod setup and ground stakes when trees were not available....

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Hey guys

 

I was wanting to take a poll on everyone here to gather thoughts on hammock camping. I'm 29 years old and the last few years I was enjoying camping a little less as sleeping on the ground was pretty hard on my back. Then I discovered hammock camping and I have loved every minute of it.

 

That's why this past summer I decided to start my own hammock company to get people involved in hammock camping. Here are a few questions I wanted to ask. Feel free to answer any or all of them!

 

1- Have you tried hammock camping? If you have, did you enjoy it? If you have not, why not?

2- What brand of hammock do you camp in? Single or Double? Do you think there's a significant difference?

3- Do you prefer hammock camping or tent camping? Why?

 

If you have time, feel free to check out my products. I'd love to know what you think! www.hobohammocks.com

Thanks guys!

First, I do think this is commercial, and not just commentary.

Second, I will answer the questions because I'm a hammock evangelist.

1. Yes, when I was having back problems it was the only way I could camp. Is also great in the summer around here.

2.  I have a 60" x 126" tableclothfactory.com hammock with dutchware straps.  I have tried a 90"x132" tableclothfactor.com hammock.  It was a bit more comfortable, but much harder to get out of, so I use the smaller one. 

3.  Hammock camping.  Never have to sleep with a root under my back.

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