Anyone Tried This?

[txulrich]

This past weekend, I was out with the scouts. We went to Juniper Point on Lake Texoma. BTW, Cross Timbers Trail was written up in Backpacker Mag a few months ago.

I was trying out my version of the ring suspension system, a new mat/sit pad and some homemade python skins that Tango61 had graciously donated my way. In the past, I had always brought my clothes inside the hammock and stuffed them above the ridge line at the opening end. Well, I'm standing at the opening of my HH getting ready to turn in and there, looking me right in the face is this cavernous opening of the python skins. I had a light bulb moment and said to myself, "Self, there is a great dry storage area." I stuffed my shirt and shorts inside the skins. Worked great!

My second great idea was a mat/sit pad. I had an old, blue ccf pad that was sitting around collecting dust. I cut 2 pieces about the width and height of the inside of my pack. Tango61 had some tarp material left from a previous project and made a cover that allowed the 2 pads to be folded for a nice, thick sit pad, or opened for a mat at the foot of my hammock. Opened up, it's about 15"x24". Just enough to stand on and keep some of the dirt and junk from following my feet in at night. Folded, it's the perfect width for a picnic table bench. Enough cushion for my old bones.

[Just Jeff]

Snake skins storage is a great idea, as long as the water can't leak into the skins from the narrow end. Pretty convenient, too - kinda like the blackbishop sack.

Duct tape could replace the sil sleeve for the pads. Would look a lot less classy, but might be lighter. Dunno. Great use for it, though.

[txulrich]

Snake skins storage is a great idea, as long as the water can't leak into the skins from the narrow end. Pretty convenient, too - kinda like the blackbishop sack.

Duct tape could replace the sil sleeve for the pads. Would look a lot less classy, but might be lighter. Dunno. Great use for it, though.

I pulled the tie-wrap tight on the small end, that should keep out most, if not all of the water. On top of that, the end of the skin is just under the end of my tarp. Should be pretty dry.

Duct tape, while great stuff, I don't consider to be a long term, permanent solution. The cover material is not sil though. I work for the local transit agency here in Dallas. We purchased a group of new vehicles and the car manufacturer covered them with these huge tarps. They didn't want to send them back to Japan, so they donated them to the scout troop. They are pretty thin, but waterproof. We cut most of them up for ground cloths, but had some left over and made use of it. I'll post some pictures.