Hi Guys,
I thought I’d introduce myself. My name is Florian, and I am a total hammock camping newbie. I am a 30-year old grad student who rediscovered camping about a year ago. Since then, I’ve tried to get in as many camping trips as possible. Up to now I’ve only done car camping, but that is about to change, with my first through-hike scheduled for later this month.
I first began to get interested in hammocks this spring after coming back from a three day trip to Pinnacles National Monument in which I probably slept for no more than three hours a night. I am an insomniac even when at home, and I also suffer from severe back pain on and off. As a result, no matter what I did I simply could not get a good night’s sleep while camping. Being a methodical fellow (or, as one of my professors once said, a “conscientious plodder”) I tried out the various parts of my camping setup (Tent, pad, sleeping bag) at home, and realized that I just couldn’t deal with sleeping on a pad, be it an inflatable Therm-o-rest or CCF.
After returning from a recent trip that was basically ruined due to my inability to sleep, I was pondering the $150 Expeds online when I decided I had had enough. I joined this forum, started reading, and ultimately placed an order with Warbonnetguy (whose name is really Brandon ) for the following:
Blackbird 1.1 double w/ adjustable webbing
Carabiners
3S Yeti
11x9 tarp (top secret-not on the website yet)
Since I started out with nothing but a sleeping bag a year ago, and have a limited budget to spend on stuff, I am still working on putting together all of my gear. As you can probably guess from the stuff I ordered from Brandon, my general approach has been to do as much research as possible, try everything on/out (REI is great for this, isn’t it), and go for quality rather than quantity. Hence my decision to go with the Blackbird.
At the moment, I am eagerly awaiting a PayPal request from Brandon. In the meantime, I am reading as much as possible, and constantly dreaming up new ways of spending money I don’t have (this site is addictive!)
Anyhow, it’s good to meet all of you, and thanks for taking the time to share your experience and expertise on these forums. If it hadn’t been for your posts I’d probably be condemned to sleep in the mud for the rest of my life
Cheers,
Florian
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