Trip Report: 3rd Anuual Mt. Rogers Hang Out

**jeffjenn** · 01-26-2009, 00:23

Sounds like everyone had a great time! Glad all trips were made safely. I just have to know, from the pics in Slowhike's gallery, why did FishinFinn have a refridgerator wrapped in green fabric strapped to his back

**Mule** · 01-26-2009, 03:55

Originally Posted by FishinFinn

Did anyone else have their dog try to roll in them when they got home?

And next year, I say "Pony on a spit!" if those buggers get in our food again. Why would they go for beer?

I also have to say it was a pleasure hanging with y'all, and getting to meet you! Now I truly know that the "Internet Hammock Weirdo's," as my wife and co-workers call you, are truly great people. Still Internet weirdos, but good people.

Special thanks to all the people who put in the effort to make this the great experience it was. And to Grizz for the "shuggies." And to Ed and Pan and Smee for the raffle, as well as mrprez's contribution (I really wanted that stickpic.) This was a very memorable event, and just a heck of a lot of good, clean (mostly) fun. I hope everyone made it back home safe, so we can all hang and hike together again sometime.

Fishinfin, If by StickPic you mean that gadget that attaches a camera to your walking stick, PM me your address and I will drop it in the mail. Mule

**MacEntyre** · 01-26-2009, 06:16

Originally Posted by FishinFinn

...next year, I say "Pony on a spit!" if those buggers get in our food again.

I'd be happy to feed 'em if they would pack stuff in and out for us. Wouldn't that be unique? A state park with pack horses hanging around, willing to carry a load for a few carrots...

As I anticipated, my daughter saw pictures of the ponies, and she wants to go to Grayson.

**Ashman** · 01-26-2009, 06:37

I went with my daughter last summer with NCP and his daughter, a great daddy/daughter location!

**Just Jeff** · 01-26-2009, 07:08

Yep - we all had an awesome time, too. It's amazing how we can get so many internet people together and everyone is civil to each other all weekend.

Big thanks to the Jacks and Ed for the raffle, and to everyone who brought something to make Saturday's dinner so good. Too many brats to eat, lots of sweets to keep the calories up in the cold, and plenty of firewood to keep us warm. "Brats out!"

The hourly readings on my Brunton show it was coldest Saturday night at ~10:30p...I read 13F on mine hanging a few hundred feet from the shelter. It read 16F at midnight, then jumped to ~22F for the rest of the night. It was a balmy 25F for the pack-up Sunday morning. And hardly any wind at all. Great hangout.

Key things I learned.
- Don't use a full cider jug to cushion your fall. At least not on ice.
- Ponies are only cute until they go for your food, beer or hammock. Then they're just big rodents.
- The MWUQ works awesome as a top quilt too. But it's so thick that it's hard to not breathe on it so a facemask is important.
- The JRB hood is so warm that I didn't want to wear a facemask so my MWUQ was wet all the way down its entire length! And I wasn't using a sock or anything! Some sites had lots of condensation and others had none.
- The winter tarps make double hammocking MUCH easier. I used the JRB 11x10 and it's so nice to just set up camp and not have to worry about keeping both of us dry. Did an awesome job of blocking whatever wind was out there, too.

**Mrprez** · 01-26-2009, 08:13

Me, Skippy and BooBoo made it back yesterday. Thanks to Skippy for driving the truck back to his place. Gave me some time to catch some zzzzzzs. Had a great time, met a lot of people and gave away some knives. I was plenty warm in my Hennessy/PeaPod/Speer Winter Tarp arrangement. Looking forward to the SEHHA event this spring in Hot Springs. The venison bacon was the best!

**Just Jeff** · 01-26-2009, 08:19

One more thing I think is amazing - so many people get their first hangs in winter. All three of my friends had sub-freezing temps for their first time ever in a hammock. Every year there's at least one newbie hanging in gear scrounged from HF's members. Anyone else get their first hang last weekend?

This shows two things.
- HF members are generous.
- Generosity is a good rationalization for our gear addiction. Is it still an addiction if you're sharing?

**fin** · 01-26-2009, 08:28

Originally Posted by jeffjenn

why did FishinFinn have a refridgerator wrapped in green fabric strapped to his back

I was smuggling pony meat! Somebody else suggested I was smuggling immigrants over the border in my pack.

Originally Posted by Mule

Fishinfin, If by StickPick you mean that gadget that attaches a camera to your walking stick, PM me your address and I will drop it in the mail. Mule

Mule, you were as lucky as NCPatrick! Keep your stickpic, I just need to stop at the local camera store and buy one. Heck, I started making a video on Saturday morning, my batteries ran out down at the "watering hole", and I just never got back to it - too busy doing the hike to the different parking lots OVER AND OVER AND OVER again. I barely took another picture. And Walks In The Dark, you earned your name again. It was a pleasure hiking out in the dark with you on Friday to the parking lot, and it's too bad you didn't use the Clark that first night. Heck, If I had known that Stormcrow and Thorwren had showed up with more of my extra gear that they weren't even going to use, we wouldn't have even had to make that walk.

I will probably get around to thanking everyone eventually by name, but for now I have to give a shout out to Jeff, Slowhike and AngrySparrow, for being the quiet gears behind some of this machine - especially at the packing up/cleaning up stage. And HappyCamper and Thorwren, you are truly amazing women, and very happy, pleasant people to be around. I rarely run into happy women in the woods - you two are a rare breed.

**NCPatrick** · 01-26-2009, 08:29

Hope everyone got back ok.

I had a great time this weekend. Good to see so many folks make it, visit with friends and meet new ones.

I won a few things at the raffle, so my string of good luck continued. Lots of other folks won multiple things as well (Hooch, AnimalControl, Slowhike, etc.), and Mule won the grand prize JRB MWUQ (read up on your acronyms). Thanks again Ed, Pan, Smee, and everyone who helped make the raffle a huge success for HF.

I won the posolutely, absotively last pair of unopened JRB Python skins, although I'm sure Pan'll find just one more set in the warehouse for next year's raffle

At FishinFinn's suggestion, I took a pack of venison bacon to take home, then learned next day that I almost got visited by a pitchfork and torchlight mob to get it back. I would have shared

. Great stuff, by the way. We had fantastic stew made by Thorwren and Stormcrow, venison, brats, more great food than you could possibly imagine. Nobody went hungry, that's for sure.

Headchange made videos of folks explaining their setups, and interviewed the Jacks and Ed Speer. Should be a great vid to watch once he's through piecing it all together.

When the ponies were out in the field, they were "cute". When they were mooching and pooping at the shelter, they were a bit more annoying. I saw one go through the campsites and munch on whatever he found (he ate someone's tea-bags they had left out). Had to drive them out before they finally decided to move on.

I don't know what the final count was, but just about everyone who said they'd make it actually did make it. We even had a surprise appearance by Angry Sparrow.

Had a great time, looking forward to next hangout!

**thorwren** · 01-26-2009, 08:49

I was impressed but not surprised with the generosity and camaraderie of the "Internet weirdos". What a relaxing weekend with great folks. I know we had concerns about me keeping warm this weekend, and I had my doubts. After a 10 degree night, I can solidly attest that a chronically cold person can achieve warmth with the right gear! NOW your wives have no more excuses.