First hang- Sunday

[ame]

Well, it's been a while (since I got my hammock), but a window of opportunity has opened and I will be able to hang for the first time on Sunday night. I am going to a place at the base of Mt Fuji (Japan) and the owners say that there are two trees perfect for hanging my hammock.

It's going to be a wild test. I see that people normally try in their back yard first, then they can dash inside at the slightest hint of trouble. I don't have a back yard here...

I have a Claytor Jungle Hammock & Fly, and I have replaced the stock straps with the ring buckle system. I did try the stock straps and everything worked, but I haven't yet tried my ring buckle arrangement. I will take the stock straps with me, but really, what could possibly go wrong.

I also have a Mont Bell Ultralight Super Stretch #2 down sleeping bag, which is probably going to be ridiculously warm (the forecast is for fine weather, with a low of 14C or 57F). I don't have a pad, but I am taking a sheet of metallised foam (it's about 3mm thick with a layer of aluminium foil on one side). I might not need it, but it will act as a wind barrier if required. I will also take an inflatable pillow.

I'm pretty excited. If I have a poor night's sleep I shan't give up. I will try to analyse why, and search this site (or ask) for more help. I am fascinated by the idea of hammock camping, but this will prove its effectiveness to me.

So, I have a hammock, fly, sleeping bag, pillow and wind barrier. Have I oversimplified it? Any hints and tips that are not obvious from reading the rest of this forum?

Comments are welcome, and I will report upon my return.

Thanks,

A

[NCPatrick]

Good luck!

We definitely need pictures of your hammock at Mt. Fuji. I hope you get clear weather there for the picture, although I realize that it's a rare day when that happens.

We were stationed at Okinawa when I was very young, and I still remember the one sunny day when we saw the whole mountain. My Dad had a fender bender while taking a look.

[CanadaEast]

Good luck....as long as night temperatures aren't an issue...no real reason to have an option for safe haven (such as running into the house). I'm sure it'll be great.

[headchange4u]

Hammock at Mt. Fuji would be an awesome pic. Have fun on your hang.

[slowhike]

sounds great!!! looking forward to hearing about it... & seeing those pictures too<G>.

[ame]

Wow, thanks for the quick and positive responses. I am not sure if you can see Mt. Fuji from Mt. Fuji, but indeed the thought of it does conjure up a pleasant image. I'll see what I can do.

A

[Rat]

You can have a bail-out plan and not need a house to run into But it sounds like you have it covered (pun intended)pretty well. Have fun and take pictures do we can all live vicariously through you!

[ame]

Well, it was great, but I was cold. I didn't think 14C was "cold", but it was. The problem was that I had only a thin 'pad'. I knew I needed something, but all I had was a 3mm thick aluminised sheet. In the night I pulled it out from between the double layers and was immediately colder, so it was having some effect, but I really need a CCF pad or a self-inflating pad.

So, it was my first night in a hammock, and I have to say I found many comfortable positions, which would have been great if I didn't feel the heat being drawn from me. I did sleep quite well considering, and I have learned a lot already.

Here are my action points:

1) A better pad.
2) Somewhere to stow gear
3) Shorter guylines for the tarp.

All of these are easy to fix. It's frustrating that I can't hang in the garden, since I don't have one (and I even tried hanging from the railings at either end of the balcony, but they are not far enough apart). It means a slow learning and refinement process. Never mind.

For stowing gear, I found it annoying that anything I threw to either end of the hammock would roll or slide back towards me. I will make a fastening point at the inside of each end of the hammock and get two mesh bags. I can put stuff in the bags then the fastenings will hold them away from my head and feet.

Shortening guylines is easy. I was pleased that my quick deployment method seemed to work, and the mini LineLoks are great.

I'm afraid I couldn't get a picture of the hammock in front of Mt. Fuji. The trees were too dense between me and Fuji-san. The attached pictures show Fuji-san on Sunday after the clouds lifted in the afternoon; my hammock, deployed, and demonstrating that flat ground is not required; my home-made tarp-tensioners (and mini LineLok); the rigging on the tree. At the top the quick rigging for the tarp, with LineLok, below, the net support line attached to the main biner, and below, the ring-buckle system, with a half-hitch to stop the buckle slipping (don't know if it was necessary, but it worked).

A

[NCPatrick]

Thanks for the pictures. Just as I (vaguely) remember...

Sorry you got cold. You should look into some of the underquilts, a thicker pad, or an SPE (but I'm sure you knew that already).

Glad everything worked for you besides that.

[ame]

We were very lucky. Fuji-san was shrouded with cloud when we arrived on Sunday, but it cleared up completely in the afternoon, so some great views could be had. On Monday morning it was cloudy again, and then it tipped down with rain in the afternoon. Fortunately I had packed and stowed my gear before the rain started.

Although it last erupted in 1707, Mt Fuji is still classed as "dormant". Eek!

A