I was just joking, man. I should probably use smilies more often. I am impressed by the effort to type all of that out. It's good info.Originally Posted by sliver
My replies are usually limited to how much I want to type from my phone... like this one
Like thrash metal? Check out my nephew's band, Deathwatch. He's an amazing drummer... https://soundcloud.com/user-660860695
One more thing: I have camped where I was getting 55 mph gusts on my SF. Being an engineer/nerd, I calculated the force on my tarp and it was more than I had guessed by a long shot. Then, I calculated the force on my Spindrift sock and liked the numbers a lot better. Suffice to say, I stowed my tarp and switched to the Spindrift to make sure my SF didn't get damaged.
The reason I did that is because I tore out all 3 of the stake loops on one side of a 3-season tent camping in 60-75 mph winds. Another time, I tried orienting my tent so the long axis was parallel to the wind direction in that kind of wind. That just changed which stake loops tore out. After that, I switched to a bivy bag. Lower wind profile = less force. And, closer to the ground puts you where the wind is the slowest because of the wind gradient created by brush and grass.
The force on your tarp/tent increases by the square of the velocity of the wind. In other words, a 40 mph wind exerts 4 times as much force than a 20 mph wind (1600 vs 400).
A round tree also has unusual drag properties. The force on a round tree will be 2.5 times the force exerted on a flat object that presents the same cross-sectional area.
I think I just hit my $.04 worth.
“I held a moment in my hand, brilliant as a star, fragile as a flower, a tiny sliver of one hour. I dropped it carelessly, Ah! I didn't know, I held opportunity.” -Hazel Lee
LOL, keep going man. It's definitely interesting. I had not considered a lot of what you're saying. I usually just mostly consider site selection and tree size when it's windy.
Like thrash metal? Check out my nephew's band, Deathwatch. He's an amazing drummer... https://soundcloud.com/user-660860695
Strong branches in the winter can hold a lot of snow. And depending upon the melt/freeze cycles, they can hold a lot of ice and the snow/ice load can be quite heavy. So If the branches above are ladened with snow, I'd pick trees further apart. Really pay attention to wants up there.
In another vain, I was once in the Jefferson Wilderness area when a heavy rain storm passed through. There were many flat, nice looking tent spots when we arrived at a camping area (not "official" camp ground). Fortunately, we picked a place with enough of a slope (we were on pads under a tarp; didn't know about hammocks) that the water run though (under our thermarests). All those flat spots we bypassed were under 4 or 5 inches of water. Even if you are in a hammock, your gear might be on the ground and that dry ground you put your gear on at night might be a lake by morning.
It did work out okay. I studied the sky in the morning and saw a small patch of blue. Just as it passed overhead, I scrambled to the pack, pulled out the canister stove and fired it up under a pot that had just enough water for a cup of coffee (so it would boil as fast as possible). Just as it was hot enough to add starbucks instant coffee, the rain returned and I ducked back under the trap and gave the cup to my housemate. She's been with me every since. What did that commercial long ago say, "The sounds of love don't just happen, you have to make them." Note to moderator - I'm sure the sounds they it was referring to were like, "Here's your morning coffee dear."
Guess I don't understand that, if you are talking about the tree trunk. Airplanes, submarines, etc., are made rounded to reduce drag...
I think he means that the larger surface area presents a greater opportunity for drag but this doesn't seem to be taking into consideration the continuously changing angle of incidence around the radius and the changing drag coefficient. I think he might have his numbers reversed.
I guess for me the practical application of using a tree in high winds is that I often arrange my hang with a larger tree at the head end of my tarp as a wind block then close the doors at that end. Much prefer it to the wind hitting from the side of my tarp.
David
Last edited by Bannerstone; 02-07-2015 at 06:13.
Maybe I should be asking about bottom insulation that doubles as ground insulation? Now, what I have is Hennesy bottom insulation. Kind of a grey foam thing that compresses. It would not work as ground insulation for a bivy. The one time I set up on the ground, I had a blue foam pad, I used it on the outside, under the hammock. No rain no wind, no tree. That was before I got the bottom insulation. There is no way to predict the weather 4, 5, 6, 7, weeks ahead of time. There is a way to be ready for a storm.
So, todays question is, How to bivy in a hammock in a storm?
Hadn't thought of that, but out here, we have redwoods, and they ARE big enough to be wind blocks. Different techniques for different people...I figured always to try to set tarp 90d to the wind, and then lower everything AMAP, since the wind is less the closer to the ground. Also figured that the angled tarp side would act to deflect, more than catch. Which, as I type, gets me to thinking of (of course) sails, so maybe there's more to think about than I thought..
Having a tarp slapping up against you all night in high winds keeping you awake you tend to spend that time thinking a lot about site selection and setup.
The deflection you describe is exactly why I like doors that are large enough to close in a proper vee shape rather than just a simple fold flat across one another arrangement.
David
Use your Tyvek foot pad (or backup 6-mil bag) as a ground-cloth.
Some backpacks have a removable foam pad for UL-bivy usage.
Don't set up where water will collect.
Lower the tarp. Move the tarp?
Consider a rectangular/square tarp w/ ridgeline to give you more options than a catenary will. I love catenaries, but I've found them to be less versatile.
If you could rig a way to pull the hammock bug netting off you that'd be pretty nice (planning to experiment with this myself)
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