What made you a "hanger"?

[dryer]

Been a hanger about 15 years now. Bought a cheap net hammock in Walmart for the patio and one evening fell asleep in the thing. Then started taking it on summer hikes and car camping trips. With a Thermorest, it worked great in winter with a plastic tarp draped over me, and a bug net to keep out the critters. Made a few hammocks from ripstop and learned how to sleep flat (diagonal). Bought a second generation Hennessy (now called a "Scout") directly from Tom and never looked back. If trees, we hang....if not, we tarp. My shelter is never heavier than 2 lbs. I'd put a hammock in the bedroom if my wife would let me. ;-)
Paul
Texas

[opie984]

Me and a buddy have been planning a hiking/camping trip. I have a really big tent that I love, but is obviously out of the question for what we were wanting to do. I had been looking for a really good backpacking tent that wasn't outrageously priced. While I was at the Army/Navy store I saw a surplus "jungle hammock" that was used during Vietnam. However, I didn't want to pay what they were asking for it so I went home and googled "jungle hammocks" and found Clark's site and Hennesy's site. From there it was non-stop research for about a week followed by a trip to the store to buy some fabric, rope, etc. and have been working on my DIY HH clone.

Just got really excited about all the possibilities my hammock will open up for me.

[lama3646]

I have enjoyed backpack camping for years, but the pain from sleeping on the ground kept getting worse each year. I tried combinations of different mats, pads, and bags and could never find anything that would help. After whining to my brother, he suggested that I try a hammock. So I began searching for options on the internet. Thankfully I stumbled onto this site!! I bought a Warbonnet Blackbird and now the pain is totally gone. I will NEVER go back to a being a ground dweller.

Thank you to all the members here!
~Lori

[GaHammockGuy]

My camping buddy and I were looking to hike into a spot in the National Forrest here in GA and my pack was just too darn heavy. my 4-season two-man tent weighs 8lb and with it strapped to the top of my pack it just killed me.

So I invested in a lighter down-filled sleeping bag amd I wanted to find a light-weight small-to-pack tent and found the hammocks. no polls and easy to set up. (2.5lb)

I bought my Hennessy and have set it up a few time to get the routine down and am ready to hike in now.

I have not slept in it, so this will be another first for me in 2010. There are many others but that is for another thread.

[Indy576]

I'll introduce myself under the newbie post but thought I'd answer this one. Our Troop does a backpacking trip every year where everything you carry with the exception of water has to fit into a 1 cubic foot box. If it doesn't fit, it doesn't go. Makes it a challenge to get a tent, bag, rain gear, clothes, cooking gear and food all commpressed into that box. Lot of great ideas come from the scouts and a lot of them end up taking hammocks. One of the other adults had a Hennessy a few years back and the rest is history. Been using one ever since. Unless I know we're going someplace where there won't be a tree in site I've got the hammock with me. Now I'm researching ways to make myself more comfortable all year round since temperature and weather conditions don't stop us.

[Hodeman]

Well hello from Central Indiana. What made me a hanger?...well I'm always looking for the easier way to do things. I love being outdoors. I've camped every which way there is except for hammock camping. I subscribe to the "less is more" theory. I've also always had the statement "the ties that bind us confine us" quote in the forefront of my mind. A hammock is the most logical way to backpack camp because its just plain lighter to carry and more comfortable. I went camping in a tent one time in the Pennecamp Coral Reef State park and endured one of the worst rain storms of my life. The bottom of our tent got completely wet and I was miserable. I now wish to be above the ground level when I sleep in the woods. Hammock camping also will lend itself very well to camping on chickee's in the Everglades Wilderness Waterway while Kayaking. To me hammocks are just a no brainer. I can't believe it took me this long to get one. Now more kit to purchase...thats where this site will come in handy.

[bobsmith]

I use a hammock because it has more options than a tent.

Being the boy scout I am I went to crazy places often off the trail or away from campgrounds. Having a hammock allowed me to set up anywhere with two trees. I didn't have to find flat ground or clear the brush away. Having a quick setup time and being able to set up relatively easily in the dark has it's advantages too.

Overall way more comfortable than a tent.

My other scouting friends convinced me to be a hanger. Watching them sit comfortably in their hammocks while I struggle to get my tent setup made me wonder. "what is so much better about that?" So i asked if i could bowwor it and found the joys of hammock camping the next issue was finding the right gear. That christmas i got Ed Speer's book and a new hammock and I was off. I soon after found this site.

[Trout]

I have two solo hoop bivys - that require a reverse caterpillar crawl. I kept being one of the last guy's out of camp and hated the feeling of having to catch-up. Yeah,, I know all about hike your own hike, but for me... I felt less secure. The idea of a comfortable sleep, with a fast setup and take down, and light weight/compact is the draw for me.

[HanginTom]

Well I guess I may as well actually post something since I signed up here. I've been hanging for only a few years. I don't get out nearly as much as I'd like to (college student). I originally bought a ENO doublenest mainly for hiking but not as a primary shelter; just something I could sit in by the campfire on hikes before bed and stuff like that. Din't take me long to realize how comfortable it was. Now i just stick a CCF pad in there, string up a tarp (originally one that i took off an old tent that works suprisingly well since it isn't too curved) and snooze away. Recently bought the ENO bugnet too. Isn't the best system obviously, but I make do just fine.

Looking back I can't believe I actually enjoyed hiking/camping in tents.

[finskie]

I hadn't camped since i was a kid, and did all day hikes. When I was laid off from my job during the summer months, my buddy(swoosh) invited me to hike the PA section of the AT. He was already commited to hanging, and filled me in on the details. It seemed that it would be ridiculous not to hang, even based upon weight saving alone. Overall, as it has been stated, why be on the ground when you don't have too.