What’s Your View Towards Hammocks?

[tim hower]

Not sure why hammocks get a heavy rep. Hammocks like the blackbird compete with the lightest tent setups. If you don't want a bug net there are lighter options.

[drowning in spam]

From the stakes to my quilt and all the way up to my down balaclava, my fully netted 0°F setup weighs less than 60 ounces, and it could weigh less if I got a custom down air mat. What hammock set up can match that?

[Clifford Ritt]

One night in a hammock and I was sold for all the good reasons listed above. I love my Warbonnet Blackbird.

[Chris Buster]

I am somewhat of a light sleeper and even when I was using an exped down airmat my back still hurt in the morning. Over the last three years I have been in a hammock and I cannot go back. If you have a hammock at least 5ft in width, you can sleep at an angle (which is the way you should always sleep in a hammock) and your back will actually have support. I personally use a SoCo Double hammock, from socohammocks.com, and I sleep like a baby. I do give a little in weight, but the 6.5ft width gives me the ability to sleep all night, which in my opinion, warrants the added weight.

[Leigh Baker]

I find that while I'm a side sleeper on the ground and at home, in my hammock I'm completely comfortable on my back. I've heard others say the same. Strange but true. I currently have my hammock setup and my ground setup virtually identical.<60oz. I have a Warbonnet Traveler with an optional bug net since most of my trips are in cool weather.

[Joslyn Bloodworth]

I can't do a hammock. I've never been able to even nap in one. The Bridge Hammock looks the most promising, but as someone who HATES going over 1lb for a solo shelter, they pretty much are just a non-existent option for me unless it's warm weather.

[spelt with a t]

That's a bummer, Joslyn, as per your UL mission they're easy and cheap to make. Has your husband tried them?

[Leigh Baker]

I should clarify, that the setup includes shelter and sleep system.
12.9 Warbonnet Traveler w/suspension
11.5 HammockGear Cuben Tarp w/ suspension and snakeskins
19.8 HammockGear Burrow 3 season
11 Warbonnet 3 Season Yeti
2.6 GG thinlight 3/8" cut down
1 titanium sheppard hooks 4
1 dphammocks half body bug net
59.8
I could 86 the snakeskins for a 2.2 oz savings but I like using them and minus bugnet in cool weather would save another oz.
Versus
14 POE A/C Elite
2.9 GG 1/8"insulation/doubles as sit pad
20 WM summerlite
10.7 MLD Solomid
8.3 Zpack hexanet
1.5 6 titanium shepard hooks
57.4

There are certainly lighter set ups, but mine works for me. I can switch to either depending on the location.

[Kattt]

Joslyn, have you tried the kind of hammocks we are talking about? The backyard hammocks that most people think of, are a whole different story.
Here is a picture of my daughter this Saturday morning at Sword Lake, going on 15 hours of sleep

[Joslyn Bloodworth]

@spelt – My husband does like the idea. The problem, and please correct me if I'm wrong here, but the best way to insulate a hammock is to have an underquilt and a top quilt. This not only increases the weight compared to what I am willing to carry for a sleeping pad, but that means I've got to make two quilts per person and despite the low cost to make a hammock itself, it isn't much cheaper at that point to make four quilts and two hammocks. A lot of my cost and weight savings comes from being able to make a double quilt and shelter.

@Kat – I have not tried the long term hammocks. The reason I can't sleep in a normal hammocks is my head and legs at any angle over my hips and I'm wide awake plus I'm a side sleeper. I have seen people say that side sleeping and hammocks work great, but I just can't see how if your legs get bent up. Maybe I'm wrong and if I am I'd love to be corrected, but it doesn't look like anything but a bridge hammock would fix that and that becomes rather heavy and expensive based on the research I've done.

Honestly, if ya'll have solutions to my issues, I'd love to hear them. I'm always open to new suggestions!

[Ankar Sheng]

I spent about a month sleeping in a hammock last summer over various hikes and canoe trips. Not a fancy one, I think it's a grand turk ultra light with bug netting. Up her in the Canadian Shield there's no shortage of trees to hang from, and that was the biggest benefit. It enables you to make camp on any shore line when the days paddle is done, or pick the most choice site when hiking regardless of terrain. This was especially nice on canoe trips, some rivers have 100m of muskeg on either side before there's solid ground, and when the suns going down being able to set up at the first outcrop

For insulation I used a z-lite pad and a piece of 1/8" foam under my feet that I use to wrap up my fishing rod in. Both of my packs use z-lite pads for structure, so this combined with the prohibited cost of getting an under quilt limited my options to using a foam pad.

As far as comfort goes, I'd rank it below sleeping on the ground, which is why I just got a bug bivy. Getting comfortable can be difficult and frustrating. Mosquitoes, even though they can't bite you, can still swarm around inches from your ears on the other side of the fabric which can be really annoying. I found there's always a trade off between being laying flat and having your shoulders pinched, this probably isn't an issue in asymmetrical hammocks though.

I was about to buy a warbonnet hammock this summer, but ended up getting a new smaller, lighter tarp and a bug bivy instead. This was a cheaper and lighter option for me.

[Kattt]

Hammocks are not for everybody, for sure. Many swear by them and others can't find a comfortable lay in them. They are a bit finicky as well. At home I am a side to side to back sleeper. In my hammock I mostly sleep on my back and then curl up fetal at times, which is super comfortable for me in a hammock. Since I just took two trips and don't have one planned until October, you are more than welcome to try mine out for a bit. It's a Traveller. Let me know and I can send you mine if you'd like.

[Joslyn Bloodworth]

Thank you for the offer, but I'm still doing some more research before I decide if I want to try it.

[W I S N E R !]

Never used one, though I'm sure they can be comfortable. If I were doing any jungle/rainforest trekking, I'd go with one for sure.

My reasoning for staying away from them:
I've never slept anywhere that I couldn't find a decent place on the floor. I've slept in plenty of places in which I couldn't use a hammock; deserts, dunes, ridges, beaches, above treeline…
So in the spirit of keeping my gear simple and not trying to own a bunch of shelter systems for different uses, they don't appeal to me.

[Joe Clement]

Not enough trees where I live to hang.

[Author]

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