Not a bug bivy, but almost

[Richard D.]

I just wanted to share (i.e. boast about) my most recent MYOG success – a minimalist bug shelter for SUL travel. I have the Gossamer Gear bug net that drapes over your sleeping bag and hangs from the ridgeline of your shelter, but I felt it was clumsy to use and didn't provide 100% protection from things crawling on the ground.

What I settled on is a basically a net tube that extends half the length of your sleeping bag or quilt and closes on a drawstring around hip level. The top of the net has a couple loops to allow hanging, and the two corners at floor level at the head of the sleeping bag have loops so that they can be staked down if necessary.

Total weight is 53 grams (1.87 oz) including string for hanging. This compares to 70 grams (2.47 oz) for the GG bug net in the same set-up.

Other advantages are that this net can be used just as easily in a hammock (unlike the GG net) and that it can be used as a headnet when walking, saving another 30 grams (1 oz) on a separate headnet. And headnets you can buy in stores are of regular mosquito netting, not no-see-um mesh like this.

Here's a picture. You can't tell here, but the net has been pulled upward, allowing maybe 8-12 inches of room above one's face.

I'm curious if anyone else has experimented with minimalist bug shelters in a similar way.

[Ken Thompson]

Brilliant! Been thinking about a different bug set up for hammocking. Getting the sewing machine threaded up right now!

[Richard D.]

MLD has a light "Hammock Bug Net" that offers more freedom and room around the face and body for 3 times the weight (still pretty light). This design is pretty minimalistic. If you decide to sew something like this, pay special attention to the width. Make sure it is significantly wider than your sleeping bag or quilt. The wider it is, obviously, the more headroom you get. I started out with a piece of netting that was 160 cm wide (63 inches). I could see making it somewhat wider, but not much more.

[Art Sandt]

1.87 ounces is good. I have been considering making a full body-length one of these myself, but I guess there are a lot of situations where full body enclosure is not required.

[David Erekson]

Wow, I have been thinking about making one very similar. I don't want a full enclosure, because I don't think it is necessary. Thanks for the post. I like your handy work.

[Jon Hancock]

Very nice. I've been considering a similar idea and had found the Gossamer Gear version (perhaps the only commercially available style on sale in the UK) which provided some inspiration. Ticks are a consideration for me, as well as midges, and I'd been thinking of a light elastic around the middle but your drawstring looks more sensible and I think I could make a sort of "ruff" around it to keep the crawlies out. Food for thought…

[Richard D.]

I just found this bug bivy that is very similar in construction:

http://www.backcountrygear.com/catalog/accessdetail.cfm/EQ3050

It is a little over twice as heavy and offers more headroom, but I think functionally it is the same.

[John S.]

It's also about like the DLG bug net at 3.0 ounces, no longer made.

[Richard D.]

I just slept under this for 6 nights. It did its job well, and the netting was off my face. I found the drawstring easy to operate from within the netting. I also found it necessary to store a water bottle, glasses, and flashlight in an INSIDE corner of the netting, haha. What was tricky was getting in it in the first place. It takes some time to master… :)

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