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  1. #1
    Senior Member Bug-Bait's Avatar
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    Winter Hanging When It Is Dark Early

    I have a crazy question. I've always backpacked in the Spring/Summer/Fall months in the past...but never in the Winter. During the Spring/Summer/Fall it usually stays light late enough to make it easy occupy my time before I hit the sack...err...hammock.
    Now, I'd like to give winter camping a try. What does everyone do between, say, 6:00 PM-10:00 PM, while it is dark out besides eating dinner and trying to stay warm? I'm not sure that I want to lay in a hammock and read for four hours.
    Do most people travel with another person when it gets cold in the winter...just for safety sake?

  2. #2
    Senior Member Cannibal's Avatar
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    I took a hiking partner with me the first week the time changed. The next trip I went solo. It was a major difference having someone there to chat with for a couple of hours instead of just setting up camp, eating, and going to bed. It's hard to stay awake late enough that I don't wake-up at 4am.

  3. #3
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    Lots of reading, a little journaling. A campfire is huge. I added a small radio. That helps. But when the temp drops too much, I have to get in bed.
    Is that too much to ask? Girls with frikkin' lasers on their heads?
    The hanger formly known as "hammock engineer".

  4. #4
    Senior Member FanaticFringer's Avatar
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    Sometimes I solo. Other times I have company. I'm usually hiking well past 6:00p.m.........night hiking is cool.
    "Every day above ground is a good day"

  5. #5
    Senior Member headchange4u's Avatar
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    I listen to my iPod, read, or star gaze. I also spend a lot of time by the camp fire.
    “Light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. No matter how fast light travels, it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it." -Terry Pratchett



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  6. #6
    Member Kirkman's Avatar
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    Yep I usually go with friends....But when I go solo a big fire helps to pass the time. I also take a radio.
    A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any invention in human history - with the possible exceptions of handguns and tequila.

  7. #7
    Member snull's Avatar
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    if there's no women around...

    beer and a bonfire, portable dvd player, and i think granite gear makes an awesome glow in the dark frisbee
    :P

  8. #8
    2Questions's Avatar
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    Early darkness in winter always initiates a fire... a big fire, if possible, for all to gather around. Especially if there is a crowd. More hands to gather wood!!Our last trip it snowed a couple and temps got cold in a hurry after dark. I enjoy talking and meeting new people around the fire. When going solo, my mp3 player usually gets the nod. I often skip the fire and retire early staying warm in the hammock with the idea of getting up early for a morning sunrise.

  9. #9
    Senior Member Mule's Avatar
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    I go solo at least 80 % of the time, though I really enjoy going with others too. I just can't find enough people that like going backpacking as much as I do and I never plan far enough ahead to allow others to make plans. I am impulsive about when I go.
    When I go alone I usually have the best time, but for different reasons than when going with others. When I am alone I experience the wilderness in a deeper and more personal way.
    I read sometimes but mostly lay around a fire and eat super slowly, then I enjoy letting the fire die down and getting my night vision going. I always feel so privileged to be able to be out there and enjoy myself in nature.
    The last thing I would personally want is a radio or ipod. I want silence. Finally, I meditate when I cannot sleep or wake up during the night. That's why I prefer being able to see the sky above me. And I always come home refreshed and thinking I should have stayed another day.
    Predictions are risky, especially when it comes to the future.

  10. #10
    Senior Member turk's Avatar
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    Now that I have the JRB heated hammock tent. Winter night ... is party time.
    I will try and get some more pics this weekend. Been snowing for over 36hrs straight. We are good and buried in up here now. Couple feet has fallen in the last 2 days.

    In the hammock tent, the weather is a warm. Cooking is late. A good stiff drink, and something warm to sip on, is always in easy reach on the stove top. And if wood consumption is no concern, a glowing red stove and chimney provide enough light to read by. (however I was always told it is not good to read in low light - is that just an urban legend?)

    With short days to actually hike in, I am hoping that the Hammock tent will provide a central social area for about 3-4 hikers in the evenings. And then of course overnight acomodation for myself.

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