setting up in the dark

[titanium_hiker]

So, this is embarrassing.

Hammocks have been my hobby since high school. As I went through university I would spend ages on the forum, procrastinating about this and that and dreaming about camping in a hammock. It never really worked out to go camping beyond the back yard- any expeditions seemed to be at places without trees. I haven't been able to hang out here so much as I've moved to a rural town, not much internet and a full time job.

Finally I have a free day and time to go out to Kurth Kiln regional park in Victoria, and as I struggled to set up the hammock in the dark, I had to give up and sleep in a tent.

So, what went wrong?
* not being familiar with my gear.
* darkness.
* tree selection: arriving late at the campsite didn't help. Lots of dead branches. Trees that were safe were too far apart.
* hard to centre tarp properly over hammock.

once I'd stuffed around in the dark- I was too fed up to get my nest and bug net (no ridge line) working properly. The hammock was too tight.

What went right?

*As always, the wonderful JRB goodness was toasty and warm, even as I was in the tent.

*Whoopie slings and remembered the marlin spike hitch. Worked really well.

Next steps
Hoorah, more hammock tweaking!
I need to find my dynaglide ridgeline (missing, grr) and I think I need to indulge in some dutchware and the kind of ridgeline for the tarp so that I can move the tarp around more easily.

Anyway, it's pretty humbling to get out in the field and to find that your skills aren't up to where you think they might be.

TH

[gargoyle]

Nice that your alive and able to go out TH.
Been wondering where you went.

[Banjoman]

Yeah I still am on the upward swing of the learning curve and find that I get smoother every time I set up.

[Suede]

Your experience is not that uncommon to me. I feel like I learn something new every time I go out and not all trips are successful, but you can improve from experience each time. When I was younger, my wife and I would go out and there was always something we forgot to bring - one time it was rain gear and we got caught in a deluge.. I have a spreadsheet checklist now. I belong to a club now also that has backpacking trips. I get to meet new people and learn from them as well.

Thanks for posting.

[DuctTape]

At least you got out there. Thats the most important to me. Happy hanging.

[sturgeon]

Don't be embarrassed. First time I hung in the dark i was all proud of myself until the morning, when i discovered a huge "widowmaker" (partially fallen snagged tree-- we usually call them snags) right above the hammock. Yikes.

[Jayson]

Keep at it... it gets easier with practice.

[mattblick]

This is one of the reasons I'm fan of a carrying a very bright flashlight.
There are folks that say all you need is an e+Lite or Zipka; 40 lumens doesn't cut it for me.

I currently use this light, it gives me 360 lumens for less than 3 ounces including a 2900 mAh capacity battery. (A zipka with batteries is about 2.5 ounces and provides 40 lumens.


The light will shine up in the trees to find widowmakers with ease. I also carry a .45 ounce diffuser tip that turns the light into a highly functional lantern to assist in setting up my hammock.

[mbiraman]

Everything in your own time. I've been wanting to practice setting up in the dark, no flashlight or anything. Haven't gotten around to it but one of these days.
And forgetting things. I need to color code things a bit better. Most of the time it hasn't been a big deal but i put my hammock back in the closet by mistake one time and another time forgot my tarp. Now i could claim sometimers but that doesn't really change things.

bill

[SilvrSurfr]

I used to be able to set up in three minutes, but now I usually take 10 to 15 minutes. I'm as slow setting up in the daytime as at night.

Last summer I night hiked into a campsite kinda late and there were already several ground dwellers present. With my headlamp on, I was walking around looking for the perfect set of trees for quite a few minutes, and then began setting up in my leisurely style. First the hammock, then the tarp.

Eventually, this woman comes walking up and says, "Why are you staring at trees?" She was thoroughly freaked out by my activities, even asked her boyfriend to come over and find out what I was doing, but he was too afraid I was some kind of psycho. So she came over herself.

Hammock Hangers - The Men Who Stare at Trees.