On Wednesday I received my Hammock Gear 3 Season Incubator, and I was eager to try it out. My late afternoon schedule coupled with the early sunset did not give me the opportunity to adequately test it before the weekend. With a Boy Scout backpack trip planned on the Florida Trail (Eglin North, Titi Creek section), And temps predicted for the mid-low 30’s this was an excellent opportunity to break in my new UQ.
Our contingent was 13 scouts with 5 adult leaders. For 8 of these scouts, it was their first backpack experience. We arrived at the trailhead at 8:30 on Friday evening, and as expected, it took about 30 minutes to get everyone properly adjusted and set up before we hit the trail. Three of the adults along with another parent ferried the vehicles to the exit point while I and cohort took the scouts in the dark the .9 miles to the campsite. The FT here goes through an area of thick underbrush, but the trail is well marked and maintained, making it impossible to stray from the trail or become lost. It took less than a ½ hour to get to the campsite, and the scouts quickly set up their tents.
I, on the other hand had a slightly rougher time. I had tried to quickly set up my hammock and new UQ on Wednesday, but I was in such a hurry that I put it away quick and ended up tangling my suspension with the ridgeline (all whoopies). So as I removed it from the stuff sack, I pulled too hard on one of the lines while trying to untangle it all, and I pulled one of my whoopies all the way through. I worked on it for almost 30 minutes, but there was no retrieving the loop. Luckily I had made these sling extra long, so when I cut off the bad sling, I had plenty left over to retie a temporary suspension for the foot end. Good thing I know my knots.
The UQ was a little tight on the hammock, and as I had suspected, it was so tight that once I got in, I ended up compressing the quilt at my lowest point. This may be because, in addition to the GT Skeeter Beeter Pro being one of the longest hammocks out there, it is a single lay and my stretch more than others like the Blackbird. Temps were down around 33°. I was not cold, but I could tell that my butt was not as warm as my back and legs. The draft ends were perfect. I think I just need to extend this by just an inch or two on each end.
The trail on Saturday was nice, following a generally flat path, with gentle rolling slopes as it descends into each stream watershed (every mile or so) and then up the other side. The troop got a late start (young scouts learning to break camp) but we only had about 6.5 miles to hike to the next campsite, which was beside a pond. Once we established a rhythm, the entire group stayed together and kept up a pace of just over 2.5 miles per hour and after a long lunch we made it into camp by 4 pm, an hour before sunset.
Set up for me Saturday was quick and easy. I should also add that I had borrowed a tarp from a friend, who as it turns out is making and selling tarps on the side. His website is www.terrapintarps.com. The tarp he had loaned me is the Slider. It is a tapered hex tarp, with a 9.5’ ridgeline, is 8.5’ at the head end and 7.5’ at the narrow end. It is made of .9 oz spinnaker material, and weights in at 13.1 oz including stuff sack, 6 tie outs and stakes. Being SpinUL, it was a little noisy, but pitched easily and provide very complete coverage. I neglected to take any pics of this set up, but I did take some while evaluating it earlier in the week. I will try this tarp out again this weekend at the Heart of Dixie hang and provide a more complete review.
Saturday evening was clear, but warm (about 60°), so when I went to bed I was quite warm. Sometime about midnight, a dry front passed, and temps dropped by almost 20 degrees and the wind really picked up. At no time did I experience any wind getting into the UQ, and I remained quite warm (sweating slightly), even after the temperature dropped. The tarp was a little flappy, but I got up once to tighten the tie outs and it settled down nicely. Had there been rain accompanying the front, I would have been concerned about whether or not the coverage would have kept the entire hammock dry, but I am still an novice a this, and perhaps could have done a better hanging the tarp. I may have a chance to prove (or disprove this) this weekend.
The last day was only a 3.5 mile hike out and once breaking camp, took less than 2 hours. It was an excellent first hike for many of the scouts, and a successful first backpack hang for me, in spite of minor technical issues. I had day hiked ¾ of this section of trail, but for the season, it was a fun and scenic, and it would be nice to do it again sometime.
Pics:
1) Florida Trail, Titi Creek section
2) 3S Incubator
3) 3S Incubator
4) View from hammock, Walton Jr Pond campsite
5) Slider in bag
6) Slider weight
7) Slider laid out
8) Slider tie out detail
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Originally Posted by Cutter
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