Why Are hammocks not more main stream ?

[Buckaroo]

I am 64 and have only been hanging for two years. As most of you, I will never go to ground unless forced.

I sleep in my Hammock every Friday and Saturday night and always wake up with no pains and very minimal stiffness.

I was at a family reunion this weekend and chose to hang outside rather than sleep indoors on a bed , Every morning I come in and they would ask me how I slept and I try to tell them like a baby and they look at me like I am lying.

I try to preach the benefits of the hammock to everybody I come in contact with and I think they just think I am a eccentric old man. Mentally I am 35 !

My wife complains about her back all the time , I got her to talk a nap in the hammock one afternoon and she said she was amazed how good her back felt. I asked her if she wanted me to set up the bedroom with two hammocks and she said no she die not want people to think she was a weirdo.

What is wrong with people ?

OK done venting , I guess as long as we all know !!

[GilligansWorld]

Similar experience here in Colorado - you see it a bunch in parks and off bike trails but it is like a novelty deal though.

At work I am literally known as "the crazy hammock guy" because I sew my own and promote the option for camping.

Rolls off my shoulders now. Neighbor saw me outside after sleeping in my hammock that night - ask me what I was doing - I explained my overnight sleep - to it she replies oh my gosh are you feeling okay?

Like it was some hardship that I had to endure

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk

[cougarmeat]

1) People don't know hammocks are an option
2) Once in a hammock, no one is there to advise on setting it up.

When people are introduced to camping, they often end up in an "outdoor" store. They see tents, sleeping bags, more tents, blowup pads. Did I mention tents. REI usually has one or two tents assembled and on display. Though they also sell ENO, Hennessy, and Kammok, those products are seldom set up. Various colored ENO hammocks might be displayed hanging down from one hook.

Official park campsites create a clearing with a fire ring and flat places for tents. They want to keep some distance from those fire rings to trees. So often any trees are on the boundary between two camp sites.

Since my 20's, I've climbed mountain peaks, hiked the Oregon PCT, and have gone on many, many generic camping trips. In four decades I never saw or heard of using a hammock for anything more than patio furniture - and that was only in catalog photos. Kayaking camping is where I saw my first Hennessy Expedition. I bought one as soon as I returned home and it seems haven't stopped (buying hammock stuff).

I considered starting a hammock Meet Up group, but I am more into providing information than organizing outings.

[Karla "with a k"]

I can only speak to my experience. I got into tent camping as an adult because a friend invited mine and had extra gear to share. We both slept in a huge tent, on her parent's spare blow up mattress. Many people get started camping because a friend invites them along to try it out.

Our local Urban Ecology Center who rents out gear does not have any hammocks to rent.

It's expensive to buy a complete set up just to try it out.

I probably wouldn't be hammock camping if one of my Facebook friends, Swung, hadn't posted about a hang. I attended and planned to sleep in a tent until Goobie, twisted my arm to try out his gear.


I've been hammock camping for 4 years now and only now am I making an extra set of gear to have for a friend who might want to try it out.

I think it's for those reasons hammock camping is not more main stream.

[jeff-oh]

With more people hammocking and if it became mainstream then it would have to be regulated. I.e. Colorado's ban on hammocks in state parks.

[bigdisgrace]

My guess is its because people are slow to adopt change. If you've been tenting for your whole life and mastered it why re-tool with hammock gear?? I recently reconnected with an old workmate I haven't talked to in years. We both showed up at the same group hike by chance. He's been a tent backpacker his whole life so he asked me what made me come to the hike. I told him I hike because of the pleasures of hammock sleeping afterwards. He replied "oh, you're one of those people". The seed was planted. The first thing he asked was "whats a Wooki??"
He told me his plan to do a week on the SHT in May so I asked him if I could come along. We had a blast together. We did the Seven Summits Challenge and crossed off a lot of hiking club loops on our lists.
I never once pushed hammocks on him that whole week. When he poked his head under my tarp and asked then I would answer. Once dusk would fall and we were around the fire I soon would say "my downy nest is calling". That's about as pushy as I got. I learned a long time ago that there is no right or wrong way to enjoy the great outdoors. HYOH.

[Phantom Grappler]

I believe some resistance to hammocks has been caused by hammocks that are unsafe (tippy), and uncomfortable (short and narrow).
Tippy net and canvas hammocks with spreader bars have been marketed enough that many people have gotten in and promptly tipped or flipped out onto ground. Lots of people had these in their yard and lots of their friends neighbors and relatives tried these hammocks and did not like them for good reason—too easy to fall out!
Now about hammocks that are too short and or too narrow. Almost all the big box stores and big box camping and hunting stores sell gathered end hammocks that are too short for most people to get a comfortable night’s sleep. Most are so short that sleeping banana style is only option.
If I’m not mistaken, no where in their instructions is anything about insulation. And for the most part, no topquilts and underquilts are displayed with hammocks in these big box stores and big box camping stores.
I can be wrong, I guess a lot.

[wienerman]

I got into hammocking because I drank the Kool-Aid and bought into the hype that hammocks are more comfortable that tents. after 6+ months of trying, what's going to eventually drive me away from hammocks are the extremely painful pressure points I get in my shoulders and hips and the fiddle factor of trying to tweak it to "fit".

[Halfed]

One thing to consider is hammocks are more expensive than tents in most of cases, sometimes heavier. Although hammocks have a lot of "science" behind, 30 degrees, UQ's, TQ's, suspension, tarps, tarp guy lines and so on.
Tents only need a pad and sleeping bag and of course to know how to pitch one that is pretty easy .

[deadeye]

I try to preach the benefits of the hammock to everybody I come in contact with...
What is wrong with people ?

Kinda haughty attitude, wouldn't you say? Hammocks are great, but after 15 years of hammocking, I'm now more likely to bring my tent than my hammock. Plenty of pros & cons to any sleep setup, but no right answer except what's right for you. And the worst thing of all? Proselytizing - of any kind - on the trail.

Now I'm done venting.