DIY 11'x12' Cat Cut Hex tarp in silnylon. I wanted to make an 10'x12' tarp but the material came a little wider and I just went with it. I wanted to go with a larger tarp than the Hennessy Standard tarp. I liked the coverage of the 10'x12' poly tarp I used at a Winter Hang. With the addition of 2 DIY Grizz Beaks it makes a nice winter setup.
My original hammock tarp was the Hennessy PU-coated hex tarp. I was bike camping at the time, so weight was less of a concern compared to carrying it on foot. Since the hammock was going to cost me upwards of an hundred dollars, I decided to go with the free upgrade to the hex; it would let me park my bike under it if inclement weather got bad--or so I thought. As it turns out, my bike is just too big to fit entirely under the tarp comfortably with me in the hammock. The back end will fit, though, which is where all of the water-sensitive (relatively speaking) stuff is.
My Foothills Trail attempted through-hike, though, changed my mind about the whole "ultralight" hiking philosophy. Due to budget constraints, cuben was out of my reach. So, I decided on a sil minimalist asym tarp and a poncho/undercover combo to take on serious wet weather and still remain as light as possible. So far, I've been very happy with that combo; it stood up to pouring rain on the Pine Mountain Trail (even if the rain was straight down and not blowing) without the undercover and the outskirts of an hurricane in my front yard (where the winds were 15 to 25 mph) with the undercover. The only complaint that I had was the tendency for the hammock's whipped ends to come out from under the tiny corners of the tarp and allow water intrusion through capillary action. A suggestion from Black Wolf of using a mini-biner to hold the tarp in line with my suspension has worked out well so far to fix that.
I'm happy with this set-up for longer hikes, though I think I'll keep bringing the Hennessy for my bike camping trips (I spend more time in camp on those, usually, and the Hennessy has a better porch mode).
"Just prepare what you can and enjoy the rest."
--Floridahanger
I started with an ENO DryFly, because I hadn't found this forum yet and only knew that I wanted to get up off the ground. It didn't provide great coverage, was tough to pitch, and it weighed a lot (19oz) - but it kept me (and my ladyfriend) dry through several rain storms:
ENO DryFly by thegreatjesse, on Flickr
Moved to the HH Asym because it came with my HH UL Backpacker..
HH Asym by thegreatjesse, on Flickr
I used it for quite a while and it provided adequate coverage for the HH, and it was light (10.7oz) but I started using a DIY hammock for most backpacking trips, so I switched to:
MacCat Standard by thegreatjesse, on Flickr
HH Asym by thegreatjesse, on Flickr
A MacCat Standard! I loved this tarp and still do, honestly. Coverage is perfect, it is pretty darn light (12.8oz), and the craftmanship is fantastic! Brian does great work. My girlfriend has inherited the MacCat though, because I heard of this amazing product called... Cuben!
HG Cuben 3Sided by thegreatjesse, on Flickr
I had this made with doors on one end only, to save weight and fiddle-factor. So glad that I did - I haven't had any issues with wind or blown snow, but I am careful to pitch properly. Otherwise, it is the HammockGear 4S Cuben Tarp. Mine, including guylines, weighs 6.7oz. I highly recommend cuben - durability has not been an issue at all, despite ~30 nights under this thing in varying weather. The only drawback is the price.
I entered the "hammock zone" just this year, and went with the HG 4S cuben only after nailing down financial endorsement from my crack team of four-footed oracles (Pebbles barked a quick 'yes!' and Keller waited two days then mewed "ok, whatever") .
For backpacking, the light weight and versatility can't be beat.
I got the Warbonnet Big Mamajamba. It provides more than enough coverage, porch mode is awesome, and it's nice not to have to carry extra weight and deal with doors tying back doors when it's 65° and sunny!
When weather is somewhat questionable, I'll carry two doors to either close off one end and block wind, or one on each side depending on the weather.
If I'm pretty sure the weather will be nasty, I'll take all four doors and button up tight!
Started with a HH Asym 'cause the price was right (A most generous forum member donated it to me). Bought a Kelty Noah 9x9 at my last hang and that's what I'll be using for my camping trip this weekend.
I used to be a somebody, now I just camp.
Out of curiosity, where are you going camping this weekend?Originally Posted by Gresh
Kelty Noah 12' here. Since I camp off my motorcycle or car weight was not an issue. What I wanted was the ability to pitch it low for coverage from driving sideways rain, have good size porch for setting under, and a place to stow gear off the bike. Kelty did that for me at a good price since I also purchased it on sale.
Started with a HH big hex. Still have it and its a fine tarp. In the past few years its been joined by a warbonnet BMJ and a superfly which see the most use. BMJ for 3 seasons, superfly for winter.
I'm using the Vertex from Clark, tarp comes with hammock and I up graded to this one for the size. While new to hammock camping, I have lingering memories of camping with inadequate coverage i bad weather. I am just not interested in smaller. It may be all in my head, but it is there to stay, seems like. One of these HG cuben 11 x 10 circus tents might work well,
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