Been waiting on this for quite a while and just recieved it the other day. I was one of the very first backers for this project and ordered the Spruce Tip Nube, winter walls and floor. I already have their single and double hammocks. So as soon as I got the package I started hanging to see all the goodness wrapped up into these little balls of fun. Also need to note about what SMR does: SMr is fighting the water crisis, (one) product at a time. When you purchase (one) product from Sierra Madre Research you are supplying (one) person with clean water for (one) year! We build water wells in Central America with a portion of the profit from each piece of gear, and it's amazing how far just (one) purchase can go.
Whats not to like about helping out a great company, buying a solid product and helping out other people with clean water all for just one purchase?
Unpackaged Impressions:
The compression bags are made of KryptoniteJust kidding but they are bulletproof! Not one stitch out of place. Great to get them really small.
Each are labeled and also have the QR code right on a label so you know how each piece of equipment is used.
The Nube:
All I have to say is wow on the craftsmanship, quality overall and especially the engineering that went into this thing. The tie outs have velcro so you can roll up your string so you dont have any loose strings to get wrapped around everything. They also installed reflective points on all tie out points so you can see them at night.
You do have to set it up as high as you can so the gear loft doesnt sit on the ground. Tieing off to the trees wasnt bad at all. Of course you have a QR code to scan to watch a video. On one end I did tie off like they had in the video. But on the other end I used Dutch's Tarp Flyz which made it a breeze to get tight.
It also comes with stakes in a stack bag velcro'd to the stuff sack of the Nube.
Once you hook up the amsteel for the gear loft it does bring it up some more and it allows you to add up to 200 lbs inside the gearloft. They recommend you to hook up the amsteel! The pic here shows where you hook up the amsteel. It also has a QR code on the label for a video! (how thoughtful)
Everything on the Nube is well thought out and built. Here's the sky hook and where the hammock suspension goes thru the Nube. Again there is a QR code so you can see how it works.
On both sides are storage pouches with a hook to hook up your hammock to open it up. Only downside is if you remove the netting and tie it off to the side, the one storage pouch with hook also go with it so you can no longer hook your hammock to it (a SMR hammock that is). I do wish the hooks were sewed to the Nube itself so it helps open the hammock more.
Hammock going thru the Nube.....I did notice that with my suspension setup that even when cinched down all the way there was still a gap for water to flow into the Nube. Dont know if yarn or some other way to help keep it out. Maybe if you used amsteel as a suspension if that would be better
Winter Barrier:
So I installed the winter barrier and it was fairly easy to install. Again a QR code for a video for install. Didnt get the point of looping the attach points and then closing it all the way up but maybe you can leave more room between the nube and barrier for more air flow. But it did install easy. Here it is installed!
They installed the same type velcro attach points for the tie outs which I love. They attach to the Nube tie out points to help keep the walls open.
I dont know what the low temp is for this without an underquilt. Seems like it would hold in more heat than nothing at all.
Floor:
I did get the floor kit also but did not set it up. Its for when you go to the ground when theres no trees. You use your walking sticks as trees!
Again the quality looks great.
Overall Pros and Cons as I see it:
Quality, Quality, Quality. It is built to last and to be used. I love it and def need to spend more time in it.
I dont have a scale to weight everything but my personal opinion this is not for the weight conscious hiker. Its definitely not heavy just not lightweight. I would say average for the whole kit. They do have weights on their website also.
Still unsure about the water traveling down the suspension but you have that problem with most hammock setups. I will have to set it up again and maybe hit it with the hose to see how it does. Maybe try some different hammocks and see how they do.
Here's some extra pics so you can check them out.
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Originally Posted by rbpratt
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