How do you make the wife's first hang the best?

[Nighthauk]

FOOD..FOOD...FOOD. Go out of the way to take care of this.

BACKUP..BACKUP...BACKUP.. Have a tent pitched and ready in case she wants to lower her elevation in middle of night and even a hotel reservation nearby if weather goes to crap. Plan for worst trip ever with a perfect finish so she remembers it turned out a good time.

All my wife says when she tells stories is great food and my husband takes care of me. We have had some crappy trips thanks to weather and other campers, but I have always made it about her(with backups). She has seen the photos and videos of my other trips and sees how she gets treated royally.

Space4dpappa as you know from the last hang food will not be an issue. lol

My wife has no interest in hiking, camping, or hammocking, but she is becoming increasingly jealous that all three of my kids enjoy hiking and hammocking with Dad. She feels left out. Luckily, my kids are united that she would not be able to handle any of the trips we've gone on and refuse to include her.

Wife: I'll go if it's car camping.
Me: I don't do car camping.
Wife: I'll go but I'm not sleeping in a hammock.
Me: I don't own a tent.

Round and round it goes, a circular argument. I suppose we'll have to take her once just to shut her up. Maybe we'll start out with a canoe trip. She should be able to handle that, but she'll have to go buy her own tent!

Funny thing right now is that my wife (Lil' Princess on the forum) just took her mom and our two youngest on a 3 day backpacking hangin' trip and left me home. Some one has to bring in the money. lol

I've been reading posts here for a few weeks.

I'm still looking for a picture of a hammock setup where my wife would consider getting changed/undressed *. When thinking about this scenario, please add the good 'ole boys sittin' in their camp chairs at the adjacent campsite......

The lack of privacy when hammocking is definitely a 'deal-breaker' for many people - not just women. You can't depend on having your camping area 'all to yourself'.....

*The wall tent (with woodstove) 'tarp' is excluded.

Thanks for that info.
That's a WB Superfly?
With 60" (less the cat cut) from ridge to ground (measured diagonally), it's pretty low.
For undressing, does one sit in the hammock, or??

In a tent, it would be 'sitting on the floor' but there's no floor here......

'Just getting my answers ready for the inevitable questions....'

A warbonnet superfly is a big tarp. 11' ridgeline 4 full size doors to close tight and will reach low to the ground. Pretty easy to change in.

[Suede]

Space4dpappa as you know from the last hang food will not be an issue.

Definitely not!

The response to this thread is amazing to me and its good to see the huge amount of great suggestions! I am taking them to heart but its even more interesting to see what a bunch of great husbands there are out there, even the ones that have wives not particularly, or even remotely, interested in camping, giving their all to get their families involved in a great activity.

I think the biggest obstacle with my wife may be the cuddle factor and that I am not next to her in the hammock. Not much of a way around that one, except to consider the rest of the night and waking up without soreness, feeling good from a comfortable nights sleep. ...that and possible claustrophobia but that I think we can overcome...

[HURTHEART]

Lucky. My wife thinks camping is staying in a Best Western.

Three kids, two of them female. The middle child, a female would win an award for being the worst camper. Her fellow forgot to ask me about taking her camping, guess what the engagement was off when the returned to the city. That kid is so not the camping type I can not even begin to express it. She was a major PIA about it as a three year old and never out grew her feelings about camping.

I would as already suggested get her comfortable at home, getting in and out is sometimes tricky.

Most important, hang the darned hammock correctly for her needs. I have had several crummy nights in my HH Safari. A lot of the problem was how my daughter hung it for me. I have times when I can not use my hands above my head, since I am short my daughter had to hang the hammock, she is not particularly into being sure things are balanced. The hammock or tarp not being hung correctly can ruin a otherwise very pleasant outing.

Also be sure she has her book, light and whatever else she might want in the middle of the night. I cheat some nights and take a pain pill, so I do not wake up in pain.

[VictoriaGuy]

A warbonnet superfly is a big tarp. 11' ridgeline 4 full size doors to close tight and will reach low to the ground. Pretty easy to change in.

My geometry says that it's about 4' high at the ridgeline. So, it's definitely higher than a tent, but you can't sit on the floor to change. OTOH, you do have the hammock there to use as a chair, I guess.

And, here's hoping that you have a semi-clean tarp on the ground as well, if the weather was wet before you set up.....

[Nighthauk]

My geometry says that it's about 4' high at the ridgeline. So, it's definitely higher than a tent, but you can't sit on the floor to change. OTOH, you do have the hammock there to use as a chair, I guess.

And, here's hoping that you have a semi-clean tarp on the ground as well, if the weather was wet before you set up.....

I have been camping in a hammock for over two years now and it is pretty easy to adapt and to learn how to change your clothes with out being seen. I also am able to change clothes without them touching the ground. It is not that hard of a learning curve and the ladies I am sure are pretty adaptable.

[Floridahanger]

My geometry says that it's about 4' high at the ridgeline. So, it's definitely higher than a tent, but you can't sit on the floor to change. OTOH, you do have the hammock there to use as a chair, I guess.

And, here's hoping that you have a semi-clean tarp on the ground as well, if the weather was wet before you set up.....

Remember, you can have the tarp touching the ground, a few inches off the ground or even higher. It's up to the user. And porch mode with 1 side almost parallel to the ground, or double porch mode. A tent cannot compare in the adjustability.

The hammock makes a great chair when folded in half or even a recliner when not folded. It's the go-to for putting on socks and shoes if you didn't bring a stool.

Most do bring a small ground cloth, tyvek or other plastics to have a nice dry, clean spot for your use.

[cougarmeat]

Depending on how much you want to "share", remember that the tarp - depending upon color - is not completely opaque; you can see shadows. In fact, even a tent with a rainfly can show a certain amount of "activity" if the interior is illuminated with one of those chemical glow sticks.

Don't ask me how I know that.

But if changing in normal light - no artificial light from inside the tarp - it should be okay.

Women can get in and out of their clothes surprisingly fast when they want to. My hiking partner is always changing in the front seat of the car. Of course she doesn't have a steering wheel to contend with. Hey.... that's an idea. Just because I'm the driver - doesn't mean I have to sit in the driver's seat when I change, huh.

Paul

[dakine]

My girlfriend was on me for a year to get a hammock in my back yard. I was not interested because the sofa is so comfortable. We visited Mexico last spring and hammocks are everywhere! So we bought one, but I didn't set it up for weeks. Finally strung it up in the back yard and was hooked. It's great for camping solo but the tent is better camping with the girlfriend, with a hammock or two for lounging and sometimes sleeping.

So give her time, let her discover for herself the pleasure of hammocking.

[Suede]

Well I think I got this one right. My HG 20* Burrow arrived yesterday in argon green! What a beautiful and functional quilt! My wife looked at it and really loved the look and tried it out on the couch. She asked me if she could use it and of course I said yes! I will have plenty of opportunities on my solo trips. GREAT top quilt and fits me, and her, perfectly at 69"!!

Thank you Adam and Jenny for another top quality product and customer service!!!!