Blackbird foot room question - current Hennessy owner experiencing ankle pain

Hi All. I posted the following in the Hennessy forum, and received some good feed back. I wanted to post it here as well, to see what Blackbird owners thoughts were, as the Blackbird was suggested to me by a friend as a possible solution.

I have recently spent my first few nights in the woods in my new Hennessy hammock (my first hammock) which I purchased after trying out a friend's Hennessy briefly. He is a big guy (6' 4" probably 220 lbs if I had to guess) and has always said its the most comfortable he sleeps anywhere. I am not a big guy (5' 10" 165 lbs), so I figured I would have plenty of room in an Expedition Asym.

I had a nasty ankle injury back in 2005 which required a few surgeries, and long hikes will cause the ankle to stiffen up. After just a few hours the first night in the hammock, my feet and legs became pretty uncomfortable. There was constant pressure on my ankle from some direction unless I crossed my legs.. it just feels like (even laying across the axis as recommended) my feet are gathered into a single point tightly no matter how I squirm around. I found there to be plenty of room for my shoulders and the rest of me, and enjoy the other features of the hammock.. but if I can't figure out how to free up my ankle a bit I may have to seek other options.

The questions that come to mind - Am I perhaps laying in it incorrectly? Hanging it incorrectly? Do I need to slide up towards the head more perhaps? Are there other hammocks which might solve this issue? If all hammocks do this, perhaps they aren't the answer for me..

It has been suggested by a friend that the Blackbird might be a good alternative.. thoughts?

Thanks in advance for any advice! - Zack

I do not own a blackbird, but perhaps may be able to offer a few suggestions.

I have run into issues on my DIY's with pressure on my heels, but found that it was more of a pull on my Achillies tendon. Using some suggestions for those with knee pain, I started using a small (4" round) roll under my knees to create more of a bend. This did alleviate much of the problem, in addition to stretching.

Another suggestion would be to try to sleep on your side, even just a bit to be able to turn your ankles to the side. If your feet are too bound being together, you could make a custom top quilt. I've seen some with separate legs that looks more like a show suit.

I don't have the bad ankles that you do, but do have a lot of arthritis in my knees, hips, shoulders and lumbar back. I did find that hammocks work much better to alleviate the pain.

I've got a BB and really don't have heel or ankle problems but I do use something under my knees and I sleep great. I think it's like sleeping in a new bed you have to get used to it, that's why I hung my hammock in a spare room in my house and practice sleeping in it. I still have to find my sweet spot every time I lay in it but when I do it's lights out!
I'm 6' 235 lbs btw.
Practice practice and then practice some more.

I imagine the footbox of the WBBB would take pressure off of your ankle, but before you go and buy a second (fairly expensive) hammock, it would probably behoove you to go to a local hang where you could put it to the test first. Alternatively, I don't know where you are in the USA, but if you're near GA, I'm happy to try to meet you with my blackbird. I'm sure there are plenty of people on the forums who would likewise help you wherever you are.

It could be that you need to change the angle of hang a bit. I have an expedition as well as several DIY hammocks. I found with my Hennessy if my head was too high I wouldn't have any foot space. If my feet were too high I would feel cramped around my head and shoulders. In my DIY that I use most of the time it has a footbox like the blackbird I don't notice the cramped feelings but if I hang it wrong I get a ridge under my knees. If you can setup in the backyard you could try adjusting foot and head heights and see if that makes a difference.

I’m 5’10”, ~196lbs and also started out in the Expedition. My experience with ankle pain seems very similar to yours. I purchased a WBBB 1.0 DL and the stress on my ankles was reduced significantly…but, not all together removed.

The solution I found was to place a small pad under my feet. Something with enough rigidity to take the remaining pressure off my right foot.

This past spring, I placed a full length thermo rest pad in my Expedition and it was a completely different experience than what I had started with. I prefer quilts, but the pad in the Expedition eliminated all the ankle pressure I had experienced before.

I have a surgically repaired left ankle (Brostrom repair) that doesn't tolerate some positions well. In my BB I tend to do the Jethro Tull pose. :) This also seem more comfortable for my lower back.

David

I have a torn ACL, MCL and a lateral fracture and I hung my Blackbird at the girlfriends house to relax because I miss it haha. And I was very unfortable, thinking at first it was my injury. It was actually I had it hung wrong. Suspension was to tight. That could be one issue you were having, either its to tight or to loose, it happens to the best of us, no one gets it perfect everytime. Or it could possibly be how you are laying it it, to far toward foot end or to far toward head end or not at the right angle. There are so many variable in hammock camping. But my first suggestion is check your suspension angles and taughtness and go from there.You could always try a full pad or a sit pad as a foot pad as well as other users have mentioned

Good luck and happy hangin

-Jeremy

Rofl bout the Jethro Tull pose! I know what you mean, and trend to do the same thing.

I agree with bobson. See if a member is nearby. If you are near Jersey I would be glad to meet you somewhere so you can try mine out before dropping money on a new one. also try what another member suggested, messing with the angle of the hang.

I used to own an expedition but I too had felt like my feet were under a bit of pressure. I switched to the wbbb and I do not have problems with heel pressure anymore. However, with that said I am a small guy at 5 foot 6, 145.

I don't remember if I posted in your other thread. But, while I find mt HH Explorer UL quite competitive over all with my WBBB - with a list of pros and cons - still one of the benefits of the WBBB is more room for my feet, no doubt. Whether that would help with your problem I can't really say, though I suspect it might.

A JRB BMBH Dlx with a Neoair pad in the pad pocket would probably give you a whole lot more foot room. ( EDIT: oops, can I say that in this WB thread? If not mods just remove/edit as needed )