First hang on the Pinhoti Trail
Well, I did my first hang in wintry conditions night before last in the Talladega National Forest here in Alabama. Did a short 8 mile backpacking loop and spent the night under the stars. Temps were in the low 30s and I was about 1500 feet above the valley floor, winds about 5-10 mph.
I setup my Hennessey UL Backpacker with Supershelter insulation. Had my Nunatak Arc Alpinist 20F quilt and have to say I was at times toasty! It was easy to regulate temperature with the quilt. I drifted off to sleep looking at the stars and listening to mice digging in my trash bag and was surprised by the sun shining into the hammock waking me up about 7:30.
Things to change about the hammock setup:
- Fly setup, possibly a bigger fly. I am using the stock Hennessey fly and a bigger one would have been a better wind block. I made my own whoopie slings for the hammock, but don't have a good fly rigging setup yet. Whoopies with straps and marlin spike hitch worked great.
- The Supershelter insulation did a good job holding the heat and the quilt made it nice and comfy, but my feet were a bit cold, especially in the morning. I will probably cut a foam pad to tuck under my feet in the future. Not sure the SS will perform this well in colder temps.
- I like my little Coleman inflatable pillow that held my head in a good position and made it a much more comfortable night.
- One of the side tie-outs for the hammock came undone and the hammock sort of folded up close to my face. This made for some condensation near my face in the morning.
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Camp by g - s - h, on Flickr
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Me at McDill Point by g - s - h, on Flickr
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McDill Overlook by g - s - h, on Flickr
EDIT:
Here is my GPS track at EveryTrail if anyone is interested:
http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=1400473
