1st Annual Colorado Winter Hang; Feb 26-28

[freefall]

Originally Posted by DanaMac

I'm thinking of hitting the one off County Line rd, near Park Meadows on my way up. Just means I have to go back that way to return them. I was thinking of going the other way home through Fairplay, Woodland park, etc. But I think I will try to stop at that REI and get some shoes.

Cannibal - I will call if I'm running behind in the morning, and may just have to meet up there at the camp.

I just called them earlier today but didn't think to ask about snowshoes.

[KnittingMelissa]

I'll be staying until Sunday as well, though I have to return the snowshoes back to REI in Ft Collins by 6pm. I'd rather not make the trip down on Monday.

Woo! Now I need to pack.

[Mustardman]

Looks like the Cannibal Caravan should be arriving at the campground soon... I hope one of them can check in on a cell phone or something and tell us the conditions of the roads and how much snow is on the ground

[plowhorse]

enjoy yourselves for me I really wanted to be there

[Mustardman]

Well, we are on our way home - didn't get to spend the night. The dogs didn't handle the cold and the hammocks very well. I was worried that might happen, but we wanted to give it a shot. Next time, we will get someone to watch the dogs

[Bushcrafter84]

Ya military work schedule sucks didn't get o make the trip like planned :-( bummer sorry ppl hope that we get another chance to hang again

[Just Jeff]

People should be getting home about now...it was a GREAT time and the weather was PERFECT. I showed up about 10:15pm Friday and it was about 3F with absolutely no wind. I set up the hammock near DanaMac and poked around the area a bit...the moon was so bright that I didn't even use a headlamp.

Sevens was up b/c he got cold (someone loaned him a Yeti but didn't show him how to put it on (Cannibal) so he had it on backwards). I gave him a Downmat 7 and Warbonnet fixed his underquilt, and he was great after that.

Since no one else was up and moving and I wasn't tired, I went to the Jeep to grade papers (hey, it's the only way I could go in the first place! ). When I got back to the hammock the temp had dropped to 1F and gone back up to about 12F...so the low for the trip is about 1 degree. It was windy so I put the tarp on and went to bed.

In the morning Sevens and I got the fire started while everyone else started rumbling out of bed. After food (the hiker) showed up, here's the final count:

Just Jeff
food
Sevens
LittleSevens
Kaliram
Genuine Draft stopped by but didn't stay...she had to go get Cannibal some boots!
Cannibal
Warbonnetguy
freefall
Mustardman and MrsMustardman came on Saturday and set up, but took off about 9pm Saturday night b/c the dogs weren't working out in the hammock.
KnittingMelissa
DanaMac

So 10 campers for the First Annual Colorado Winter Hang, with a few day visitors. I bet next year will be bigger!

We basically sat on our butts talking all day Saturday. I took a quick 6 mile hike while Warbonnet and Melissa napped. There were rumors of alcohol consumption but I don't know if they're true or not.

Saturday night was a feast...chili, clam chowder, tamales, hot apple cider, corn on the grill, cobbler, pie, etc...all over a nice warm fire.

Saturday was much warmer than Friday, and it was about 20F when people started going off to bed. The low Saturday night was 11F. Folks started moving around 7am and by about 9 we had warm cinnamon rolls and leftover tamales for breakfast. Not long after, we all packed up and went to a restaurant in Bailey that turned out to be closed, so we ended up at Hog Heaven for some pretty decent BBQ.

Something funny happened on the way out of the campground but I don't remember exactly what it was.

Pics and videos to follow.

Oh, and Cannibal's new trailname is Tinkerbell.

[Sevens]

Awesome weekend! Despite the learning curve and the cold Little Sevens (my 10 yr. old) said he'd do it again. And I completely agree. Good people, good stories and hammocks...YES!

Thanks to Tinkerbell, Warbonnet Guy, and Just Jeff for the gear that made our first hammock outing so much fun.

I'll be posting some pics in my album soon.

-SEVENS-

[slowhike]

Originally Posted by Just Jeff

Sevens was up b/c he got cold (someone loaned him a Yeti but didn't show him how to put it on (Cannibal) so he had it on backwards). I gave him a Downmat 7 and Warbonnet fixed his underquilt, and he was great after that.

Oh, and Cannibal's new trailname is Tinkerbell.

Cannibal... I mean Tinkerbell... how could you

[DanaMac]

Thanks everybody. I don't think I could have been introduced to Hammocking from a better bunch of people. Thanks for the loaners, and the tips for hanging. I must say, I was VERY comfortable in the hammock. I am usually awake at 5:00 a.m. everyday, but slept in until after 9:00 Saturday, and 8:30 Sunday. I was warm, comfortable, and RELAXED. Verrrrry impressed with hammocks.

Good time, good people, good food. Can't wait for the next one.