Dealing with Snow

[Stavros]

The biggest trick about wet clothes is to avoid getting wet!

And yes, I know it isn´t easy but depending on what kind of clothes your wearing it can be done.

If you still get wet, even though hard trying to avoid it, try to dry the wet clothes by a campfire before you put them away in your shelter. I don´t know what kind of rules you have on that side of the big water but where I come from a campfire is "standard equipment" on the trail, especially when hinking in the woods.

[WonderMonkey]

Do you have any pics? I'm having trouble imagining this setup.....

Thanks!

-jeff

For simple storage find the cheapest/lightest hammock you can and sling it under your current hammock. It may end up just a few inches above the ground but that is all that matters. Make is shorter than yours ..... that works pretty good for me.

[WonderMonkey]

The biggest trick about wet clothes is to avoid getting wet!

And yes, I know it isn´t easy but depending on what kind of clothes your wearing it can be done.

If you still get wet, even though hard trying to avoid it, try to dry the wet clothes by a campfire before you put them away in your shelter. I don´t know what kind of rules you have on that side of the big water but where I come from a campfire is "standard equipment" on the trail, especially when hinking in the woods.

I've never "hinked" before... is that some sort of special activity? Pics?

[Miguel]

The six huge pockets under my Clark NX 250 is one of the reasons I love it especially for winter camping.

[hikelite]

Ridge line I use to hang stuff to dry and have a peace of tyvek to lay on ground as a flloor mat

I use a ground cloth when I hang too. When the weather is bad, I usually pitch the tarp and hammock lower anyway. This also means the ground under the tarp stays drier. One of the main reasons I've gotten into this habit is because I like to take my dogs hiking. I usually make them a bed of sorts on or near that ground cloth and use all my gear, ie pack and such, to make them a bit of a windbreak on one side. Of course, most nights, they go find a good tree to lie under on their own. When it's wet though, they are usually bright enough to sleep under the tarp.

The other reason I have the ground cloth is to allow the option of sleeping on the ground. I prefer my hammock, but sometimes I'll still sleep on the ground even when there are trees around. On a recent trip in the Weminuche Wilderness, we slept on the ground two nights. I was with another person that was not hanging, so that had some influence. One night was good weather, and I just wanted to sleep in the open near the campfire. The other night was after we had hiked in the rain all afternoon and things were a little soaked. My friend only had a crappy tent, so he was actually better off sharing the shelter of my large (10x12) tarp. The dogs appreciated it too since it rained most of the night, so they were able to curl up next to us. Kept all of us warmer that way.

Like medicjimr, I use a piece of Tyvek as a ground cloth.

[Alamosa]

It's the difference in protected area between a tent and hammocking that raises the question. It is mostly the lack of protected floor space that I am looking at.

Changing activities to keep clothes dry is an option, but I guess I am more looking at the fact that with a large abundance of snow, it gets into everything (much like sand on a beach). The shelter already has 2 feet of snow in it before I started setting up. Wind, stepping, changing, getting gear, etc. in a tarp (even in winter configurations) brings up the likelihood that everything is in danger of getting wet.

I really like the gear hammock ideas and will have to give those a try. I thought about the ground cloth option, but not sure how to keep the snow from covering it as well.

[DannyBoy2k]

For those that use a gear hammock, do you hang it from different trees so it's not leaning against you all night. That was the first thing I thought when I first saw pictures of it up against the hammock - "Man, that thing would be bumping into me all night!". Is that the case?

~Dan

[adkmcmahon]

The six huge pockets under my Clark NX 250 is one of the reasons I love it especially for winter camping.

Amen to that!!

[Shug]

I just toss my stuff on plastic and my pack ........
Shug

[MacEntyre]

"Man, that thing would be bumping into me all night!". Is that the case?

I thought the same thing... however, when I hung it slightly shifted to the foot end, and slightly low, my feet on the diagonal went right over the top of the gear box. I never knew it was there!

The trick is to hang it a little low.