Hammock Bug Net v. Simple Head Net

[deadeye]

If you don't mind the bug net on your face, the headnet might do, but I prefer things away from my face, so it's a Blackbird with net for me.

Besides... bugs crawl

[mountainmatthew]

I have been able to do some experimenting, and want to report back. Sleeping in the head net is bothersome, but the comfort is not a deal-breaker for me. The real challenge is keeping the net far enough off off my face that the mosquitos can't reach through and get me. Even wearing a baseball cap doesn't keep them from getting me, and I still get bites through the head net.

I made my own modification of Derek Hansen's Half Bug Net (https://theultimatehang.com/2016/09/...-instructions/), and that was an improvement. This set up covers the upper half of my body, but leaves my legs exposed. Since I typically sleep in long pants and in a top quilt, this gives me reasonable overall bug coverage. However, while most of my backpacking is at high elevation where it gets cold enough during the night that the mosquitos are not biting, the bugs can still be out in droves during the day. Especially at dawn and dusk, I found myself wanting to take refuge from the bugs in my hammock, even before going to sleep. At those times when it is not yet cold enough to tuck into my top quilt, and even with long pants on, the half bug net allows mosquitos to bite me through my socks.

My conclusion: the full-length integrated bug net is worth it!

[ccrowhurst]

I wiggle so much I feel sure that an arm or a leg would pop out from under my quilt and I would be eaten alive without my full bug net. But mozzies are the state bird of MN....