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Post by Greg B on Oct 19, 2014 14:55:21 GMT -5
I thought that would get your attention. I started doing an overnight backpacking trip where I drive up on Friday night after work, hike in( often by headlamp in the dark), stay overnight, hike out the next morning which puts me back home usually before noon. Then I have the rest of the weekend and I've still done an overnight backpacking trip. I call these trips a "Friday Night Quickie". On Friday I went up to Loch Levon lakes with a new buddy of mine, science fiction author Shawn Jones. He has 3 books on Amazon and he's currently writing the 4th in the series. He just sold his business last May and is now writing full time. So we went up on Friday night. I was actually early and had to wait 20 minutes for him to arrive. Meanwhile, it's getting darker and darker. We got on the trail at about 6:30pm  As we climbed higher and higher (the trail gained 1000 feet in just over 2 miles) we could look back down on hiway 80.  I hiked with Thunder and Shawn hiked with his dog, Dexter. After about 2 1/2 hours of hiking we made it to the middle lake and found a clump of trees to hang our hammocks. Here's Shawn's rig (the next morning):  and here's mine  It got down to 30 degrees overnight but my hammock and down quilts were more than adequate for the weather. Having hiked in by headlamp light Shawn had no idea what the area would look like until the sun came up. Here's where we were camped.   We "hung around" in our hammocks until about 9am and then decided to get on down the hill. On the way down we could see the scenery we missed on the way up.  You can just see the hiway down there. I've backpacked those mountains in the distance quite a bit. And THAT, my friends, is how I do a Friday Night Quickie. |
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Post by RickW on Oct 19, 2014 15:33:07 GMT -5
Nice. I do like the idea of hammock camping.
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Post by Greg B on Oct 19, 2014 15:37:14 GMT -5
Nice. I do like the idea of hammock camping. It's way more comfortable, warmer, and much lighter than tent camping unless you invest in a $500 Cuben fiber tent like this one: I don't know if you've seen my DIY Gear video which describes my hammock system. Here it is: |
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Post by Doug on Oct 19, 2014 16:19:00 GMT -5
I'm past the years when a quickie in a hammock was possible.  |
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Post by millring on Oct 19, 2014 16:19:41 GMT -5
Thunder is one lucky dog.
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Post by Marshall on Oct 19, 2014 17:04:22 GMT -5
I imagine it's helpful having a dog with flashlight eyes.
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Post by Village Idiot on Oct 19, 2014 21:48:24 GMT -5
OK, now I'm really jealous, and I'm imagining Tamarack drooling when he reads this. What a great idea.
So, out of curiosity, how are those hammocks to sleep in? Can you roll over and lay on your side if you want, or are you laying on your back the entire time?
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Post by Greg B on Oct 20, 2014 9:30:03 GMT -5
OK, now I'm really jealous, and I'm imagining Tamarack drooling when he reads this. What a great idea. So, out of curiosity, how are those hammocks to sleep in? Can you roll over and lay on your side if you want, or are you laying on your back the entire time? I'm a side sleeper at home. But the hammock gives me such great back support that I tend to sleep on my back all night. However, with my new 12' long hammock it's big enough and comfortable enough that I can sleep on my side as well. The bottom quilt is a huge benefit. It's a down quilt which goes under the hammock and is pulled up tight by shock cord. That way, you have a nice 3" layer of down underneath you. As long as you're in the quilt zone you're warm. That gives you the ability to move around into different positions while staying warm underneath. For my top insulation I use a down quilt with a foot box. Kind of like a mummy bag with no zipper. They are really comfortable although it takes a few tries to find the sweet spot. I find that setting my hammock up with the foot end about 10" higher than the head end helps a lot. Another benefit is that because gravity works, every night in the hammock feels the same. It's consistent. If I was on the ground in a tent I'll be tilted one way or the other, there will be rocks or at least a lump somewhere under me. The hammock is always the same. And finally, the weight : My old system: Tent 5.5 pounds Sleeping bag 5 pounds Backpack 4.5 pounds Total: 15 pounds New system: Hammock 1# 4oz Tarp w/tent pegs 1# 6oz Top quilt 1# 10oz Bottom quilt 1# 14 oz Ultralight Adventures Circuit backpack 2# 4oz Total 8# 6oz My entire pack weight without consumables (food, water, fuel) is now less that what just my "big 3" use to weigh. However, if I go for my true ultralight rig where I sleep on the ground and use an insulated air mattress (1 pound) and switch to my home made G4 pack (27 ounces) then I can get my base weigh under 10 pounds. Tarp w/tent pegs 1# 6oz Top quilt 1# 10oz Neoaire XLLite sleeping pad 1# G4 pack 1# 11oz Tyvek ground cloth 4 oz Total 5# 15 oz |
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Post by Marshall on Oct 20, 2014 10:42:35 GMT -5
Nice mandolin.  |
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Post by Village Idiot on Oct 20, 2014 21:48:48 GMT -5
With apologies, Greg, when I think of hammocks this comes to mind:  But what you are describing sounds interesting. And comfortable. We live in an area of timber, but there's a big difference between sleeping in the countryin a house with the windows open and actually sleeping outside. I'm sure Kim will poo-poo the idea of getting one of these hammocks so I can sleep a quarter mile from our house, but I do have a couple of questions: Why is the foot-end higher? I would imagine it being the other way around. And, if a guy has to get out to do his business in the middle of the night, how hard is it to exit and enter the thing? I wouldn't want to find myself in the above Gilligan/Skipper scenario, taking forever to get back into bed. |
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Tamarack
Administrator
Ancient Citizen
Posts: 9,369
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Post by Tamarack on Oct 20, 2014 23:33:47 GMT -5
A wonderful spot to camp and carefully thought-out gear. The idea of a mummy bag without a zipper is most appealing.
In my long-lost youth I backpacked in Colorado whilst doing geologic research (yes - we got college credit for backpacking). We used to sleep under the stars in down bags in sub-freezing weather. Fell asleep watching the stars, slept warm and sound, and woke up with frost surrounding us.
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Post by Greg B on Oct 21, 2014 9:14:54 GMT -5
Why is the foot-end higher? I would imagine it being the other way around. And, if a guy has to get out to do his business in the middle of the night, how hard is it to exit and enter the thing? I wouldn't want to find myself in the above Gilligan/Skipper scenario, taking forever to get back into bed. The foot end is higher because our center of mass is not half of our height. It's in our torso. So that center of mass tends to slide to the low point of the hammock. If the hammock is level then your torso slides to the mid point which puts your feet into the narrow end of the hammock. By raising the foot end you set the low part of the "slack" more towards your head and that causes your body to stay centered in the hammock. Also, remember that the most comfortable position in a hammock is diagonal. If you're sliding down towards one end you're limiting your ability to lay diagonally. Exiting and entering is easy. Way easier than a tent where you have to unzip your bag and negotiate your way through a door while on your hands and knees and then put your shoes on before you can go water a tree at 2 in the morning. Since I use a top quilt with no zipper I just pull my feet out of the foot box of the quilt and swing my feet over the edge. I can sit up in my hammock to put my shoes on. In fact, once my hammock is set up I not only have a great place to sleep, but I also have the most comfortable chair in camp. Entering and exiting the hammock is easy. Remember, you're not very far off the ground. It's generally at sitting height. Check out Shug's "Hammock Newbie" series on youtube. You'll learn more than you ever thought you'd need to know about hammocks. |
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Post by Village Idiot on Oct 21, 2014 10:33:34 GMT -5
Interesting, and makes perfect sense.
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Post by Marshall on Oct 21, 2014 10:56:27 GMT -5
I could do without the first 3 minutes of that video. Reminds me of all the "Computers for Dummies" books where the authors think, because you're a beginner they think you would appreciate their bad awful amateurish attempts at humor **yuck** |
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Post by Greg B on Oct 22, 2014 12:28:23 GMT -5
Yeah, Shug is literally a clown. He worked for years as a clown/juggler for Ringling Brothers. He still makes his living as a juggler/entertainer who works spring through fall on the county fair circuit.
After a while he really grows on you though.
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