Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 18
  1. #1
    Senior Member brambor's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2012
    Location
    Maine
    Hammock
    Warbonnet BlackBird 1.7 Double
    Tarp
    HG Winter Palace
    Insulation
    Zeppelin
    Suspension
    StrapsBeetleBuckle
    Posts
    264

    Double Widowmaker

    It has been 3 weeks since the Great Pumpkin Hang in New Hampshire. I have gotten out every weekend since then and been generally busy otherwise but I do have to confess to something I am not too proud of. :-)

    I have been a hammocker for over a year and I do get out fairly often and I have never have had issues with widowmakers - trees crashing onto a hammocker or dangerously close to a hammocker.

    Previous reports from our members made me aware of site selection and tree selection. HOWEVER - I have to say that when I set up in the dark and when I am distracted during hammock pitching by talking to someone else .... I tend to make mistakes. I have to confess that I have had not one but TWO consecutive weekends when my poor tree selection caused the tree to crash on me.

    First time at the Great Pumpking hang - I set up at dusk and I was talking to another member.

    Second time the following weekend in the White Mountains when stealth camping near a trailhead - again setting up in the dark and talking to a friend.

    Both times I would get ready to go to sleep, get into my hammock, get comfortable and about 5 minutes later hear a cracking sound (almost like a lightning), my hammock buckling to the ground, me covering my head with my hands, fetal position. Both times the tree missed me by a foot. Really close. Broke right at the stem, close to the root. Dead tree.

    So let this be a notice to anyone out there. Do a better job than I did and don't tie your hammock to a dead tree.

    Swinging in the air with a flair.

  2. #2
    Senior Member camoxjeep's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Berea, Kentucky
    Hammock
    WB BlackBird DL 1.1, HH Scout
    Tarp
    Modified Chinook
    Insulation
    UQ Incubator 20'
    Suspension
    Dutch & WBBB setup
    Posts
    276
    Glad your ok and def makes you think twice or even 3 times about what tree you hang from. Love your new sig

  3. #3
    Senior Member nyhiker50's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Location
    Brooklyn, NY
    Hammock
    Grand Trunk Double
    Tarp
    Standard Blue
    Insulation
    pad and sleep. bag
    Suspension
    Tree Huggers
    Posts
    185
    I was going to start my own thread, but this seems to fit here nicely. During this time or year and in the winter how can you tell if a tree is a dead widow-maker. At this time of year it's hard to tell.

  4. #4
    Senior Member darkbyrd's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Pisgah Nat'l Forest, NC
    Hammock
    WBBB XLC
    Tarp
    WBSF
    Suspension
    whoopies
    Posts
    374
    Push on it. Hard.
    The mountains are calling
    and I must go...

    -John Muir

  5. #5
    Nighthauk's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    Chesterfield, Ma
    Hammock
    WBBB RR DBL 1.1 / DIY Multicam SL
    Tarp
    Superfly/HG CF
    Insulation
    Downy Goodness
    Suspension
    Whoopie/Dutch Clip
    Posts
    4,077
    To tell if a tree has decay you will have to look at the branching and the trunk for any type of fungus. Fungus will often be a sign of decay within the tree and under the bark. Also look at the branches. Do they look stubby or misshapen by branches big or small haven fallen off. Is the bark peeling back or loose any where on the tree. You can also look around on the ground to see if there is an excess amount of branches lying around the base of the tree. Not always a sign but possibly an indication. These are just some of the things that i have learned. Hope they help.
    Husband, Father, and Friend.
    Scout Master and Cub Master for Troop/Pack 705 of
    Chesterfield


  6. #6
    Senior Member olddog's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Lakeland, Fl
    Hammock
    WL Snipe
    Tarp
    WL Tadpole
    Insulation
    WL SS UQ, WL SS TQ
    Suspension
    Dutch speedhooks
    Posts
    4,323
    Images
    3
    This brings to mind what we used to do back when we climbed telephone poles. Not sure if it will work on trees but on poles we would beat on the base of the pole with a screwdriver handle. Lot of times what looked like a perfectly good pole would be rotten inside and sound like a drum. Might be something to experiment with but then you could be calling in a squatch.
    Most of us end up poorer here but richer for being here. Olddog, Fulltime hammocker, 365 nights a year.

  7. #7
    Senior Member Bubba's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2010
    Location
    SW Ontario, Canada
    Hammock
    WBBB 1.7 SL
    Tarp
    WB Superfly
    Insulation
    WB and UGQ
    Suspension
    Whoopies or Straps
    Posts
    7,184
    Images
    248
    Thankfully you were not injured. Good reminder about setting up and particularly a good reminder about setting up in the dark.
    Don't let life get in the way of living.

  8. #8
    Senior Member tri-pod bob's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2013
    Location
    Somewhere in the wilds of Western Mass.
    Hammock
    HH Explorer/BIAS Weight Weenie
    Tarp
    HH Asym/HH Hex
    Insulation
    HHSS/0* Incubator
    Suspension
    HH stock/UCRs
    Posts
    240
    Look at the neighboring trees, too. Not just the ones you want to put the straps on. We had some pretty good winds/gusts here a week or so ago & I found the top of a dead beech laying between the trees I usually hang from. The bottom 2/3 of the tree is 28' away! Glad I was having some noob issues with the whoopies (learned they're UCRs, not WSs) that came with my recently bought BIAS WWM, 'cuz the new kit would have been hanging there.
    Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect.
    Chief Seattle

  9. #9
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Elmira, NY
    Hammock
    WB Ridgerunner, Dangerbird
    Tarp
    Big Daddy
    Insulation
    HG 3 Season/IX UQ
    Suspension
    Straps
    Posts
    1,965
    Images
    10
    Similar story on my AT hike in 2012, and yes I was in it when it came down. It also landed less than a foot away from my head. I was also trapped in the hammock for a good twenty minutes. I couldn't reach the zipper and I was alone.
    Attached Images Attached Images

  10. #10
    Senior Member rcam1977's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    Indpls,IN
    Hammock
    DL with Bug Net
    Tarp
    Guid Gear Cat Cut
    Insulation
    Down UQ, SB TQ
    Suspension
    Whoopies
    Posts
    475
    Images
    7
    glad you didn'tget hurt, me and a couple friends setup in broad day light one day at a nice little spot off Panther Creek and we didnt even look up at the trees to check for widowmakers, we just saw 3 perfectly placed trees in a triangle that we could all 3 hang from, after we were done and all setup we somebody looked up and noticed all the trees ound us were pretty scary looking, we chanced it and luckily survived the weekend without any issues

  • + New Posts
  • Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

    Similar Threads

    1. widowmaker close call
      By default in forum General Hammock Talk
      Replies: 20
      Last Post: 07-17-2012, 05:41
    2. Widowmaker awareness
      By Tamah in forum General Hammock Talk
      Replies: 28
      Last Post: 02-29-2012, 13:29
    3. Cape Chignecto. (Widowmaker) NS. Can
      By Tancrad in forum Trip Reports
      Replies: 6
      Last Post: 08-29-2011, 15:19
    4. Replies: 0
      Last Post: 09-09-2010, 19:31
    5. a widowmaker is vanquished (attached pics)
      By spklbuk in forum Trip Reports
      Replies: 15
      Last Post: 03-30-2010, 20:24

    Bookmarks

    Posting Permissions

    • You may not post new threads
    • You may not post replies
    • You may not post attachments
    • You may not edit your posts
    •