My first real hang is done and I have issues. Hammock issues, that is.

The gear was a Hennessy Hammock Expedition Asym, a SuperShelter (+ emergency blanket), a Double Bubble pad, a 15 year old 20 degree down sleeping bag, balaclava, fleece hat, fleece pullover, a synthetic pullover, synthetic t-shirt, cotton sweatpants, and two synthetic wool socks. The hammock is hung on my screened porch, so no temperature difference between the outside and the hang location. Haven't figured out a good set-up for the tarp yet. I turned in at 20 degrees, and got up at 20 degrees.

I started off with everything but the DB pad.

New Hampshire was (is) being visited by a Nor'easter. The snow started falling around 11:00pm, which was the time I turned in. At first it was nice to listen to the snow tapping against the few stubborn, dry and brittle leaves that refused to fall to the ground with the rest. But then the wind picked up, and its intermittent roar kept me from dozing off properly. It did happen, just took a while.

Then, at 12:45am, my WONDERFUL neighbors (and I mean that in the most curse-ridden way possible) decided it would be a good time to take the four-wheeler out and blow donuts. For a half hour. I was feeling a bit cool at that point, and I desperately missed my earplugs. Luckily the porch door was 2 feet away, so I put on foggy glasses and combined a pee trip with earplug hunting. Back out in about 5 minutes, where I put the DB pad in the hammock.

It was pretty comfortable sleeping on my back. Twice during my hang I snored. No big deal except for those listening, right? Unfortunately I'm one of those who listen, and wake up from snoring to turn to the side or stomach. That wasn't comfortable for long, so I turned back to my back. And snored. Vicious cycle.

My second try lasted until 4:30 when I just couldn't get back to sleep. The DB pad worked great initially, but my shoulders and back ended up cold... or were they? The sensation is all new to me. I couldn't tell if I was sweating and that was chilling me, or if it was an issue with the hammock. I was centered on the pad, the sleeping bag wrapped around my shoulders... don't know. My legs were toasty warm with only the sweatpants, my double-socked feet were fine, but my bundled core seemed chilly. Maybe I was over-dressed.

Went to bed and woke up with a sore shoulder. Not sure if that was bed related or hammock related, as the bed has been giving me problems lately.

So not really a great first experience, but there's more testing to be done to stop the chill.