Hi from the UK

[Hangsolo]

Hello there...I just wanted to say hi and introduce myself to you all.
My name is Kevin and I'm 40somthin, and I have been hammock camping for about a year and a half now. I first got into hammocks after watching YouTube videos on bushcrafting and wild camping as I was looking to do more outdoors stuff and I stumbled upon one of Shug's videos about seat pads in the snow...I can remember thinking to myself "that can't be a thing"..."surely people don't sleep in hammocks in the snow" but after watching some more vids I got more and more interested. I plucked up the courage to buy a cheepo hammock (with a bug net cause I'm like an all you can eat buffet for midges and bitey bugs)...and went into the woods for a test hang and boy was I hooked...
I'm a big guy so I was a bit apprehensive about being suspended off the ground by only some straps and bits of rope. I have swapped my suspension and tree straps for more robust and reliable ones along with climbing grade carabiners I am much more trusting of my gear.

I still have my el cheepo hammock along with 3 others but the one I like most is the £10 hammock I got from Aldi ( a supermarket from Germany that stocks everything from tinned tomatoes to chainsaws). But it's the one I feel most comfortable and safe in. Again I did have to swap the suspension lines for some stronger continuous loops I made and stronger carabiners but I love it.

I love making stuff too. Whoopie slings, continuous loops, dog bones, stuff with paracord and multiple stoves. I also made a PLUQ with the help of krazydog's you tube vids and it works great. But for my bday last year my partner bought my a DD underquilt. But I still carry my PLUQ just in case it gets to cold. I'm looking to buy a dream hammock in the near future but I think I'll have to wait until the bank manager is on a good day or I'll have to start to be extra nice for Santa...

Anyway sorry about the long post ( if you got this far...thank you) and I hope to speak with you all and gain some much needed experience from you soon.

Thank you for your time.

Kev.

[ofuros]

Welcome to the forum, Kev.......and to the gently swaying trees.

[StrungUpNewfoundlander]

Hello! Helpful bunch here.

[Iceiceguy]

Welcome aboard Kevin! Lots to learn here and plenty of big guys who can share their best practices with you!

[Hangsolo]

Thank you ��

[RENDAWG]

Welcome to the forum from North Carolina USA. Check out Shug's videos they are a must see. Enjoy and thank me later!

[Braden]

Cheers from the Great Plains. Hangsolo I see you're from about as far north in England as you can be. I didn't get to see the north, but my British friends told me that some of it looks much like Cornwall, where I did get to camp several days. As well as in the Surrey / Guildford area. Glorious country. Spent 2 weeks there and had but one day of rain, in March and April no less. What are the odds? My neighbor here is from near Birmingham and his family has an estate thereabouts, and my best friend is a Bruce descendant (Scot). So, I've got to come back and spend more time. Aldi's is big here now too, I have some of their outdoor gear and it measures up to what it's able to at it's price point. Be well.