I took out my new AMOK XL this past week to the Northeast Georgia mountains for an initial trial run.
I knew rain was coming in, I just had no idea how big the storm was going to be and how early it would arrive. The forecast said rain on Friday, it began raining hard at 2 am.
I hiked on the AT to a campsite which I thought was fairly secluded. I set up camp, gathered some wood and looked up to see 4 people standing in front of me. They were tent camping and couldn't find a flat spot. Heading down an old logging road they spotted me and came on down. One of the guys told me a storm was coming in that was expected to last about 6 hours. He was off by about 6 because the storm raged for 12 straight hours.
I set up the AMOK. After testing it at home, it was very easy to set up. I had not tried the tarp before but had no problems getting it up and ready although looking at the picture, I may have set it up backwards.
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I practiced getting in and out. One trick I learned is that if you reach up and grab hold of the ridgeline, it makes getting in and out much easier. But there is definitely a learning curve for new users.
I went out hunting for animal tracks before it got dark. I couldn't find any bear tracks but did find these prints which I think are raccoon.
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I had a nice fire rolling and finally went to hammock around 11 pm. I have several hammocks including WB XLC, DH, SLD which are all very comfortable. But the AMOK is obviously different. Once you get in and settled, it is very comfortable in its own way. I was soon out.
Right on cue at 2 am, the rain started. This wasn't just any rain, it was an absolute deluge. At 3:30, I felt that horrible feeling of wetness on my right side. I shined my light to the right strap and sure enough water was coming in. It was my fault, I assumed the storage sack would stop the water from coming down the suspension line which is flat. The water was trailing over the top of the line and down into the hammock. On the left side, the extension strap had a tab which blocked the water. My left side was entirely dry. One positive about the pad, it kept my body elevated so that very little water got on my clothes. I was mostly dry even though the hammock was not. I got up and wrapped the end of the strap around the suspension to block the water flow. It helped but I think water was still able to get by and in the hammock.
If I had tied a shoestring to the right strap, no water would have come in. Stupid rookie mistake. This picture shows the side where the water was coming in.
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Rain was also blowing in from the right side and that may have caused some wetness. Next time, I will put my rain kilt over the end with blowing rain and that should solve that problem. Overall, the tarp provided very good coverage. That was about as severe a test as a tarp could take.
It was still raining in the morning hard but I had to pack up and go. One advantage of the new tree straps is that the hammock can be separated. So I was able to take the hammock down under the tarp and pack up. Once I had everything ready to go, I pulled down the tarp and put it in an external bag outside of my pack. Everything, but most importantly me, was able to stay fairly dry.
The hike back to the car was interesting. The creeks were flowing harder than I have ever seem them flow. This is a picture of the Appalachian Trail that I was hiking on.
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On a scale of 1-10, I would give the AMOK a 7 1/2. The design and construction are top-notch. Getting in and out is a bit difficult as was folding up the pad. But I was also trying to keep it clean in a roaring storm. I also wish the pad was not in white. That is not a good color for camping equipment. I also wish the tarp was slightly larger. What keeps me coming back is the comfort and it is actually fun to lay in. I can't see me taking the AMOK XL on a multi-day trip, but for an overnight hike and camping outing, it will definitely be in the arsenal. Hopefully in better weather.
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