View Full Version : Noob question about camp sites.
OK - I am a convert had my DoubleNest out now for the third weekend and am loving it. Actually getting good at hanging it too.
Question is I am getting ready to take a motorcycle trip on a small bike over very back/dirt roads from PA down to Tennessee and back with several ground dwellers. I am taking the hammock but am concerned about finding campsites that will let me hang or have trees to hang - I don't want to take the tent now that I have been in the trees I do not want to go back also it is a small bike and room is very scarce. That is one of the reasons I tried the hammock to begin with.
Can anyone reassure me or am I going to find i difficult to hang everywhere?
Thanks for any input or ideas.
Roy
swampfox
07-06-2009, 06:07
From my experience, unless you are camping in open fields with no trees close, you'll have more trouble finding good tent sites. You won't care if it's level, you won't care if there are rocks or roots, you just need two trees. I suspect you will have some converts when you get done.
gargoyle
07-06-2009, 06:22
Some campgrounds can be fussy about tying anything to their trees, probably a good idea to call first and ask, if your sure which campground you'll be at. Or STEALTH yourself and hope you dont get caught. If your in the back woods pick a spot with suitable trees, and very rocky. that way you can watch your freinds suffer.
Just Jeff
07-06-2009, 07:12
Agree with the previous posts. Plus, you'll have a tarp so just set that up as a ground setup if you need to. Or find better friends, who hammock. :jj:
Remember: Its' always easier to ask forgiveness then permission.
gargoyle
07-06-2009, 08:48
True, but don't we want to be politically correct. lets not give the hammock community a bad name. I would hate to have a bunch of rebel hammock people ruin it for an otherwise wholesome community. we should all put our best effort into creating a good karma about hammocks.
Thanks --- Let's see how many converts I can create on this trip!
But I refuse to let anyone "borrow" my hammock during the trip - I refuse to sleep on the ground again.
Cannibal
07-14-2009, 11:10
There is almost always a place to be found to hang. Sometimes it involves using your imagination, but even urban areas are rich in hanging sites. They'll be begging you for help in ordering their first hammock after a few days. :D
I have almost the same question, but about state/national parks/forests. How do I know the rules about where I can set up, and do I care? For example, when do I need a permit, and when are straps required for hammocks? I'm thinking of just getting an extra camouflage tarp to hide my motorcycle and take my chances. It might take them a long time to find my body if I get eaten by a bear, but it might be worth it if I can avoid some red tape.
Hey SEF, Not sure where you're at in CA but I haven't found a spot that doesn't allow hanging. Most rangers are even inquisitive when you talk to them. As for when to use straps, the answer is always. Rope isn't good because it cuts into the bark. One could make an arguement that the damage is minimal, but why take the risk of "ruining it for everyone" so to speak. Beaurocrats tend to act first and never think, so please use straps. Permits are only required in heavily used areas such as Yosemite, Desolation, and Shasta, but you would require one if you were tenting also. Not sure if you were joking about the bear but I wouldn't worry about it, you taste the same in a tent.
KerMegan
08-03-2010, 18:54
on the up side, hammocks (done well) are even more LNT than the lightest tent- no mat of crushed grass, no disturbance of the area to get rocks out from under you; and straps at least 1"wide will leave little -if any- mark on tree bark. (possibly a slight depression, if the tree is tender skinned.) it might help convince any irritated camp supervisor, when they gripe about "attaching" something to their trees; you can persuade with the fact that it is not a permanent attachment; more like a hair-tie on a pony tail.
hope that helps! KM
Done. Just bought some straps with a 1,000 lbs. work load limit. Big improvement over the 75lb limit rope I bought first.
Not really too worried about bears. In fact, I was talking with a co worker today about that. I actually think you're a little safer in a hammock. A tent might be ripped open to see what's inside. And once it is, a person might be killed for being in the way or startling the bear. I figure, in a hammock I'm just what I look like - some dude - and the bear doesn't need to do a whole lot of investigation. Unless it's a bear that likes to eat people, I'm fine. And if it is a bear that likes to eat people, I'd be screwed anyway.
Anyway, this weekend I'll be around Klamath National Forest, and maybe Umpqua, Deschutes, or Willamette in OR. Later in the month I'm going to be heading to Chicago from Seattle and probably taking US 2. WA is all good. Northern ID too. Glacier is in there. But after that, it looks like a lot of farm land. Ever done a corn stalk hang?
bambooguerilla
10-23-2010, 00:14
Sef, I used to live inthe same area, and the answers to most of your quesitons are, "they don't know either". Just do it. I've learned very quickly that the quickest way to find an answer is to do it anyway and someone will tell you if you're breaking the rules or not.
And by breaking the rules, I mean, "something I don't like/understand" which was the one time I got questioned by a park ranger in the Klamath area.
Silverlion
10-23-2010, 00:26
Between PA and, well, south of there, You should have no lack of trees whatsoever. At least from my experience in the late 90's. Well, unless they cut them all down. It's been a while since I've been east.
gratefuldanny
01-13-2011, 14:29
Just my opinion, I've camped at 4 sites that were not hammock friendly. After showing the ranger how I hang they have all let me hang my hammock. Huggers and not being an idiot really go a long way.
Have no issues with national parks here - unless I am in the car campgrounds, then they want to make sure I am in an "established tent site" - which is ludicrous, the tenters have their tents in those.
National forests, again, no difficulties. State parks are a mixed bag. Some forbid hammocks and some have no official opinion on the matters.
It's like anything, road conditions, trail conditions, water sources - you should probably call and ask right before your trip so you know what you're getting into.
Rhapsodist
02-21-2011, 11:30
True, but don't we want to be politically correct. lets not give the hammock community a bad name. I would hate to have a bunch of rebel hammock people ruin it for an otherwise wholesome community. we should all put our best effort into creating a good karma about hammocks.
hahahahaha. rebel hammocks people. this just made me laugh...
But seriously, as long as you are being respectful of the property and it is apparent you don't have any other shelter, I doubt anyone is going to bust you.
If I were you, I'd just bring a pad with me in case the need to go to ground arises. Some of the inflatable pads can take up very little room (I got a Stoic 2/3rds pad off SteepAndCheap for $20 or so and it's about the size of a 20z bottle). Plus, you can use it as extra insulation for your hammock should the temperatures drop lower than you expected.
If you hang from a tree and someone gives you a hard time about it, you can tell them that the suspension system's webbing is designed to leave the trees unharmed. Show them that the tree is undamaged and that you're a responsible camper. If they still can't be persuaded, I wouldn't push it and just go to ground instead.
Pack a bivy bag.
I doubt you will have to use it, but it may be worth the peace of mind.
Dewey