Lol, just re-read my post and it makes me look like a spokesman or something, especially it being my first post..
I'm not. Promise.
Lol, just re-read my post and it makes me look like a spokesman or something, especially it being my first post..
I'm not. Promise.
Due to back injuries I was never able to sleep on the ground and after tent camping for many years with an air mattress and a bottle of 800mg ibuprofen, I had to come up with something else. I mean when your kids have to put your shoes on for you, it kinda takes all the fun out of it. I was first introduced to a Hennessy Hammock in 2009 on a cub scout campout and I was extremely intrigued so I bought me an explorer deluxe and have slept like a baby ever since, I still bring meds but have never needed them. Since then I have purchased 5 more for each of my kids and wife. I have even threaten to fore go a conventional bed and hang one in the bedroom. Needless to say hanging around has helped me in more ways than one. Chris
What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger!
Back about 9 years ago while on a camping trip in Big Cypress FL we got hit with a real barn burner of a storm that lasted about 10 hours. Horizontal rain and everything that FL has to offer. Well the woman that was camped next to me was in a Hennessy Hammock and she was the only out of 14 people that had one. When the camp flooded with about 4" of water at 3:30 am she was the only person that stayed high and dry. She decided to upgrade to a newer Hammock a year later and I was first in line to buy the old one. I tried several times to go back to a tent and I just don't find it as comfortable as a hammock. My wife just brought me a WBBB 1.0 for my birthday and I can't wait to try it out.
Well, i have yet to hang. I found myself reading - Why would I sleep in a hammock? from Just Jeff's hiking page. Got interested and searched for videos on youtube on hammocks. Shugs How to videos caught my eye and clicked on it. Just watching parts 1-4 made me a convert, from a ground dweller to a tree hanger.
I have been trail running and backpacking for years. When sleeping out I have always used a tent with pads and bags and ....... I met Dutch when fate landed me a job working with him (jealous yet). We got talking one day about running and hiking. That led to overnighting and he told me all about the wonders of sleeping above the ground. I was amazed. Well now I have been on three short trips and have a bunch of ground crawling gear for sale. My wife is going out with me for our first hang together next weekend. Dutch has generously provided much of my new gear and my wifes' new hammock as well (she loves the bug net). I am a hanger now, that is until Dutch figures out a way for me to sleep on a cloud.
i am 6'6'' so getting off the ground is a pain...and i thought there had to be another way and luckily i was right.
It all began a little over a decade ago. My very first backpacking trip, I took one of those $5 sting hammocks with two wooden dowels, along with my tent. Hadn't planned on sleeping in it, but there I was one night, in my sleeping bag, in the hammock. Only fell out twice.
The next summer I camped on Manitou Island, still in a tent, and woke up the final morning in three inches of water. I knew at that point there had to be a better way.
I had this thing with this gal who was a cub scout / boy scout den leader or pack mom or whatever you call them, and she mentioned camping hammocks, and I bought my first Jungle Hammock. lol, what a learning experience!
After a couple years of experimenting with the Vietnam era shelter, trying to make it warm and bearable, I finally wondered what would happen if I tied ropes to the ends of a bedsheet, and the other ends to trees. Then I discovered Wally-Word's buck-a-yard fabric section, and started getting creative.
After a dozen different failures, in 2006 I finally came up with something I really liked, and I've been camping in the very same hammock with little modifications since then. Same hammock for five years now, and it's even my main bed in the house at the moment, and it's calling my name as I type.
Then I few weeks ago I planned to camp on Manitou Island, but the trip was cancelled because of weather. But in the parking lot I met a few other not-so-happy campers, who just happened to be talking about hammocks. They introduced me to this site, and here I am!
I just got back from a two week solo trip to the island, in my hammock of course (the "Delta House Homeless Shelter"), where I tried a few things I picked up from those guys and this forum.
I'll post about that in another thread. :-)
While I have yet to hang overnight, I am SOLD on this idea. I have always loved camping & hiking in mini-mode. But since the accident, Siatica has made the sleeping-on-the-ground part less than enjoyable, even with pads. The idea of sleeping out of doors in relative comfort again is really exciting! And that I will be able to do it with just a few pounds of gear has brought back dreams of doing some long-distance hiking. I CAN'T WAIT! mrmike65
Back in the day, the scouts taught me to camp year round, even in Northern Wisconsin. I kept it up for 10 years or so, until college and few other things got in the way. I'm back to backpacking recently. My favorite setup at the time was a canvas wall tent and military cot. When properly used, that can be a pretty awesome winter camping outfit even at -30. (Pretty heavy on the back, but good exercise
I remember seeing the old military surplus jungle hammocks in catalogs and stores, and it always interested me. Last year, I started to consider it again, and finally took the plunge recently. This past weekend I took my first DIY hammock out on a 4 day solo backpacking trip. I managed pretty comfortably down to 36 degrees. (No sew fleece and nylon underquilt, grommets to attach it, wrapped up like a pea pod, tied together with mini biners.) The second night I slept on a steep slope of a glacial formation, facing the sunrise. It was incredible. There is no way I could have set up on the ground in that area. Third night saw a severe thunderstorm and near freezing temps. I was pretty cozy. I plan on creating an IX underquilt for the winter a bit later this year,
I have a question for everyone. Do you usually camp solo? My boyfriend wants to go with me on my next backpacking trip. I'm dreading going back to the ground. Do you set up two hammocks when the significant other comes along? Or do you bear the ground for a few nights? Sleeping in separate hammocks doesn't seem the most romantic.
Last edited by musuron; 06-13-2011 at 23:44.
I've been camping since I was a kid. Hated sleeping on the hard ground though.
I was walking thru the local pharmacy when I saw an ENO Double. I researched it a year ago here, then went to Amazon and bought it.
OK - it was Shugs fault really....
Last edited by Boomer; 06-18-2011 at 03:18.
Bookmarks