Taking advantage of unusually low temperatures in Alabama, and inspired by BillyBob58's recent thread on the SS, I gave mine a test run. Just as BillyBob58 mentioned, I didn't spend the entire night either, but I did ensure that I endured the coldest hours of the early morning. It seems the SS will provide some excellent heat retention, but only if the user is in full contact with the pad and Space Blanket (SB).

The thermometer read -4°C (28°F) when I started the test at about 2300 hrs and remained steady until 0400 hrs when I ended the experiment. Because I wanted to test the Supershelter and not my clothing, here is what I used:



In preparation, I wrapped the OCF pad with the SB and secured it with tape. This proved invaluable compared to my previous tests, as the SB and OCF need to be one unit. Thinking I wouldn't need the SB for my feet, I only wrapped the top portion of the OCF pad-cover the whole thing. Again, because I wanted to test the SS and not my other gear, I didn't use any insulation on top of me until just before ending the test, but the Gore-Tex jacket I draped over myself was adequate. My biggest problem from above wasn't the cold, but the wind. The OCF pad provided enough insulation, that I believe I could have endured much colder with it, but the positioning wasn't easy.

The first complication I encountered was how the hammock setup. I continually slid to the entrance, which is where the least insulation is provided by the SS. After an hour of this I readjusted the tree huggers which had somehow became lower on the foot end. Now I was low in the hammock with a taut ridgeline, but excessive sag-go figure. The SS was set up per HH instructions, but with my sliding problem I wasn't able to take full advantage of the OCF pad. The OCF pad didn't fit as tightly as I thought it should have. I'm sure this would have been rectified if the hammock were suspended better, but I'm still fearful of snapping my ridgeline. The OCF pad managed to slide to either side of me, making the asymmetric position nearly impossible to maintain.

My conclusion is that the SS will work at freezing temps alone if an overcover is used and the pad and hammock are positioned properly. More work on this today in daylight conditions...