Elevating my perspective with a single point suspension

[akuusist]

Just did the first test hangout of my DIY single suspension point hammock (bat hammock). Not quite as comfortable as a standard hammock but I think I can get used to it.
Why - to be able to sleep high in the trees. Must be way easier to find a tree canopy suitable for single than for dual suspension.
Anyone here hanging high? Any tips for a newbie?

Things learned in the first tree:
- Bring a haul line. Easier to climb without gear.
- Get hammock setup as ready as possible on the ground. It's way tougher up there.
- Don't drop anything. Few biners and cord loops could be handy.
- I used standard climbing harness and via ferrata set to secure myself. Ultralight sling harness without any gear loops would be easier with all the branches.
- I'm gonna bring a small saw blade to cut the small sharp branch stubs at hammock level, legal or not. (talking about finger sized stuff)

Why high in the trees?
- Thrill, scenery, maybe spotting wildlife.

[Shotgunred]

Pics? How do you suspend tarp? Tips? Never hang higher than your willing to fall

[XTrekker]

Id be mindful of the branch your hanging from, from snapping off. Would be a nasty fall. Also, how do you keep yourself from swinging around in the wind? Gonna need to see pics to better understand how a stable setup looks. I guess LNT is out the window if you plan to bring a saw blade.

[gargoyle]

Bathroom breaks?
Cooking?
Safety?
Why???

I, for one, do not think it is in the forums best interest to promote or endorse "hi-hanging".
While I do see the thrill, it just doesn't honor the safe and friendly environment here.
Maybe a climbing forum?

[Turtle Creek]

I remember this thread, the guy hung pretty high:
http://www.hammockforums.net/forum/s...ad.php?t=44129

maybe some of his prepping will help you.

[gunner76]

or this thread...... http://www.hammockforums.net/forum/s...ospital&page=6

[HardBall]

There are a lot of people that do it, but it really is a different animal. They call them "treeboats.". Google for pics.

[akuusist]

Thanks for the links. Some inspiring reading there! I was still a way lower than Refreshing. Some photos:
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-C...assa%25202.JPG
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-i...assa%25201.JPG
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-S...assa%25203.JPG
No photos of the setup as I didn't want to climb down for them.

Hammock is just a 3x4m piece of polyester voile tied up like the bandana Stork uses to carry a baby (edit: gathered ends both tied to a same point). You can quite easily see through it, and the hammock is a closed space to keep bugs out and small objects in. There is some shoulder squeeze but I think I can cope with it.

No tarp made yet. Probably the moquitohammocks' style is working.

Suspension is a climbing sling around the tree trunk. A second sling to a branch helps to pull the hammock a bit away from trunk.
Head end of hammock was tied to another branch to stabilize the setup.

Bathroom breaks: climb out of the hammock and check there's no-one down there.

Cooking: I could imagine using Jetboil but would probably still prefer cooking on the ground and just having a cold snack up there. Spilling hot water on you or getting something in flames up there ... ouch

For safety, I followed standard climbers methods. Safety rope was tied around trunk below the hammock suspension point and in a way that it can't slide down. I would imagine this is pretty safe, once you get yourself anchored up there.
What was not safe, was climbing up. I climbed the trunk like a bear, since there were no reliable looking big branches to throw a line over.

LNT: Yep, sawing a small dead brach stub doesn't sound bad to me but I wouldn't go to a popular campsite, or come to US to do the same. Need to respect the local culture. It's not allowed here in Finland either, but landowner probably couldn't care less. (It's good for the tree to cut off dead branches anyway). Too few people here to ever have a visible impact, unless you are stupid enough to cut down trees for a campfire.

Maybe it's not a different animal but just a notch back in the evolution. I do have a quite prominent Occipital bun...

Hey, remeber I'm not experienced in this when reading my ideas.