How much pack space does your

[4shot]

hammock/tarp/quilts take up? Normally, I lash my tarptent to the back of my pack and my sleeping bag and pad goes inside. I just got a hammock and am now looking at tarp (a must) and an underquilt (at minimum).I have tried the CCFpad but it just seems too large/bulky for a backpacking trip.

so, if I choose to hang on the next trip, my pack will now contain a tarp, hammock, UQ and TQ or sleeping bag plus all the necessary rigging Am I going to need a larger pack too? When you pack (assume a spring or fall trip, 4-5 days) what size pack do you use and how much of it is occupied by your hammock system? thanks.

[Boothill]

well i guess it depends on your gear as to how much room it will take up, down is going to compress much more than synthetic for quilts and a asym tarp will take up less room than a winter tarp

my suggestion would be to get the equipment together and take it all to an rei or similar, most places will let you pack up different packs to see what size you need

i myself have a ULA Circuit and my hammock/tq/uq/tarp/ probably takes up 50% or maybe a little less of the main compartment volume

boot

[gargoyle]

If your coming from a UL tarp camper background, you will see a difference in pack weight/gear.

But for most, the added weight vs. comfort/better sleep is the deciding factor.

[dakotaross]

Hard to say accurately since I don't know what you have, but I'll suggest that a hammock and tarp should be about the size of the tarptent, if not smaller... an UQ/TQ combo should probably pack about the same or better than the sleeping bag/pad combo. If you're keeping the sleeping bag, then there's a good chance the UQ is a little more bulky then your pad, possibly a little heavier depending what you have - doesn't have to be, though.

Don't psyche yourself out with the "all this additional stuff" mentality. Just slow down and realize we're not all crazy with what has become a standard hammock setup. There are plenty of hangers out there using small packs, so I'm sure getting the right setup for you will be just a matter of going through the options so that you don't have to get a new pack.

[Catavarie]

As others have already stated it is going to depend upon the specific gear you carry. A UQ & TQ combined will take a bit more room than a comparable sleeping bag, but you won't have the pad to worry about either.

For my personal setup, Hammock and quilts takes about half of my pack's internal space, my tarp takes hardly any room in an outside pocket. Most of my stuff is DIY and not with the lightest/thinnest materials available, or even what is used by our wonderful manufacturers.

[Hangandy]

Having come from a wet climate on the coast, a tarp was always a necessity even if you had a tent. Setting up a tent in a downpour and expecting things to stay dry is a bad idea. So for me a hammock setup was not only more functional and comfortable, but it was as light or lighter than UL tent systems in the end. A tent still needs bottom and top insulation, stakes and lines, poles...

[hk2001]

Depends on what time of year.. almost all of my multiday hiking is done in the summer.

For a tarp, I use a HH sil Asym, it weighs 8 ounces and packs up about the size of a 20 ounce soda bottle. Coverage is good, as long as you hang it with your hammock centered in the tarp. If I'm expecting really bad weather, I'll bring the HH sil hex tarp, which packs down to roughly the size of a 1 liter soda bottle.

For quilts, during warm weather, I use an AMK Escape breathable Bivy that weighs 8.5 ounces, and is about the same size (volume wise) as the hex tarp. It's warm enough to use into the low 50's comfortably.

For a hammock, I'm currently using this: My SL 1.1 10' long hammock with dynaglide suspension


A google Nexus 7 tablet shown for comparison... weighs in at 9.3 ounces with a half bug net

Those three things will fit easily into the lid of my Exos

For a Spring of fall trip, Expecting lows in the low- mid 40's, I'll add in a pair of fleece throw blankets ($3 walmart specials) that I modified.. on I added suspension to for an UQ, and the other I added a foot box to. Those, in conjunction with the escape Bivy has taken me down as low as 42* comfortably. It could go lower, I'm sure.. but I've never tried it..

Edit: As far as pack size, during the summer I use an Exos 34, and I've gone as far as 5 days on it without resupply. For fall or spring, I jump to an exos 46, the longest I've gone with that is 4 days, but that was not limited by pack size, it was simply the planned duration of the trip.

[pgibson]

As others have said it depends.

If I am pushing for the minimum possible pack size I can get away with a smaller pack with ground camping gear. But I don't sleep on the ground well. The little bit extra volume that the hammock gear takes up is far made up for in the ability to sleep. For a 4-5 day trip I usually am using a 50 litter pack. For 2-3 days I can cut that down to a 38-40 litter pack.

[OutandBack]

Summer 30L



Spring/Fall 55L



Winter 72L



hth

[vampiresmiley]

I've actually reduced my pack size following the switch to hammocks. As listed on my profile, my 3 season gear is an UL 6oz hammock, light/highly compressible down quilts, and a cuben tarp. The hammock and suspension packs down to the size of a baseball, the tarp folds up flat to about a 6x8 rectangle, and the quilts compress down to about the size of a football, no larger than any of my down sleeping bags. I have loads of extra room in my Osprey Exos 58. It is possible to reach UL weights and packability based on gear selection.

In contrast, I could pack my 6 lb 90x156 DL tablecloth hammock with heavy weight tree straps, and my ultra cold quilt set, winter tarp and pretty much fill my 85L Osprey Argon pack. In reality I'm more likely I'd be pulking this setup rather than carrying it.

Michael