First hang coming up soon!

**Campdavid** · 09-22-2011, 13:10

On the weekend of October 14th a friend and I are going to give this hanging thing a try. Since we live outside of Chicago, the worst place on earth for people who like the outdoors, this is be a basic trial run at the Mississippi Palisades state park. We are going to "backpack" the short distance to their rustic sites and give it a go. If we survive it, the next trip will be to the Porky's!

I have a GT single, replaced the S-hooks with desending rings and am using polyester straps as suspension lines (biner in the loop to secure round the tree). After reading here for a while I finally tried the structural ridgeline and....yep I like it so added that too. Stitched in a couple guyout points too. Tarp is the light gray Sportsmans Guide tarp, single ridgeline, 3-mm cord from REI for ridge and tie down points. Self inflating matress inside the Northface Bighorn bag seems comfy and warm enough (at least it has been in my backyard).

Have an ENO bugnet but doubt I will need it this time of year.

So far I have tinkered around with a few different DIY underquilts. The one I like best is a layer of Stormshield (like Tyvek only better) sandwiched between two layers of some camo fleece I had lying around. Okay, it is not the lightest and probably not good for real cold temps but it is a work in progress and definitely made a diff hanging in the yard.

So after all my tinkering (went through a bunch of different suspensions...Prussiks, JRB Triglides, camlocks, etc....stitching guyouts on the tarp and my GT, etc) my buddy really likes what he sees and decides to give hanging a try with me....but what does HE do? Drops a couple hundred on the HH oversize with zipper. Oh well at least I will have the satisfaction of doing some of my own work and mixing/matching components.

I will post some pictures after our adventure. If it is anything like the car camping trips we have been taking for many years now....it will be cold, windy, rainy and we may even enjoy a little sleet or snow.

Thanks for reading my long post...hang tight and hang safe!

**Joey** · 09-22-2011, 13:32

Sounds like you are ready to go! That's an interesting UQ you've made there. Curious to see pics and hear how that works for you.

Enjoy that first hang. May there be many more to follow!

**Bubba** · 09-22-2011, 13:41

Have fun and travel safe!

**lymphocytosis** · 09-22-2011, 13:43

Good luck on your first hang! It sounds like overall you have a nice setup.

I'm curious if the Stormshield will act as a vapor barrier and leave you damp. I couldn't find anything about the breathability. I know Tyvek breathes a little (not enough), but let us know how it goes.

**dragon360** · 09-22-2011, 13:51

Have a blast! Much of the fun is mixing and matching, tinkering and experimenting!

**Campdavid** · 09-22-2011, 19:12

Originally Posted by lymphocytosis

Good luck on your first hang! It sounds like overall you have a nice setup.

I'm curious if the Stormshield will act as a vapor barrier and leave you damp. I couldn't find anything about the breathability. I know Tyvek breathes a little (not enough), but let us know how it goes.

The Stormshield breathes one way only so it needs to be installed correctly. I run a construction materials distributor and it is a new product for us. The demonstration of how it works is cool. They take a heavy tip permanent marker and rub it in deeply on the breathable side.....the marker bleeds through. Then flip is over to do the same on the none breathable (waterproof) side....the marker does NOT bleed through. It is a great demo showing the one way characteristic. If it ends up breathing well in an UQ it could have a great many uses. The only downside....bright yellow.

**kehlopolis** · 09-22-2011, 21:46

let me know how it goes. I live in Schaumburg and am looking for somewhere to go soon and nearby (for my first hang as well). Have fun

**Avenger** · 09-22-2011, 22:06

Hope you have a great first hang.

**Campdavid** · 09-23-2011, 08:52

Originally Posted by kehlopolis

let me know how it goes. I live in Schaumburg and am looking for somewhere to go soon and nearby (for my first hang as well). Have fun

Man the world is small...I grew up in Schaumburg...even went to Schaumburg high many, many years ago.

**lymphocytosis** · 09-23-2011, 08:55

Originally Posted by Campdavid

The Stormshield breathes one way only so it needs to be installed correctly...The only downside....bright yellow.

Hey, that sounds pretty cool. Thanks for answering! I did some searching and I had trouble finding anything about the stuff in the first place. Apparently it's some kind of weapon for World of Warcraft, but that was DEFINITELY not what I was looking for. If you have good success with it, I'm sure it will be something members here will be interested in trying out!