Wind vs Tarp/Hammock. Wind wins.

[Jsaults]

Ummmm...........Earplugs weigh next to nothing. Just sayin'

Jim

[skwatupu]

Sorry to hear about the bad experience. As spring rolls in here in Wisconsin, the last several trips have had lots of wind. I've had zero flapping and noise on my JRB cat tarp - likely due to the fact that it's sil and can be pulled soooooo taught. However, the wind does come through and gently rock my hammock sometimes.

Does poking a hole in the tarp help keep it from catching too much wind? ...snarky...

Seriously though, like one of those banners outside a store advertising a sale. The banner has hole flaps cut into it to let a small amount of wind pass through in a controlled manner.

Anyone tried that with their tarp on purpose?

[joefbtg28]

I generally camp all four seasons in the high alpine above 7000ft. I can handle blizzards, freezing rain, fog, heat, but I agree with you that wind is the biggest pain for hammockers. Also, "just taking a tent" when it is going to be windy is not always an option. I have had the weather forecast call for a calm night, go to bed and everything is calm, only to wake up to 40mph winds and I can't find where my tent stake was thrown! I eventually found it and put it back in with a rock on top and the wind eventually threw it again. Also, the tighter I pitch my cat cut, the more likely the stakes are to get tossed in high winds. Since it wasn't raining (this was September), I just ditched the tarp at that point and didn't actually feel too much wind through my hammock/underquilt. I have leveraged the "no tarp" method up to a low of 15 degrees at 9500ft with success. We have also camped this winter with gusts up to 80mph. We slept in a tent, built snow walls higher than the tent, and had a large bough of evergreen trees to block the West wind. Slept snug as a bug.

I do think the bigger/lighter the fabric the tarp is the easier it is to flap around. I have also had the thought to get a heavier weight/smaller tarp. I have noticed my roomates 1.9oz smaller tarp does a lot better in the wind than my 1.1oz big mamamjamba. With the gear I have the things that have worked for me best have been (in order of importance):
1) Site selection.
2) The orientation of the tarp
3) How low I can pitch it to the ground.

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[ntxkayakr]

Part of reason the D.O.D. sends the troops off to Afghanistan mountains and howling winds of Mid East deserts with 500-1000 denier "cordura" tarps. Then military trains the heck out of them to carry it. Not a lot of fun but it works. Personally I drop suspension as low as possible before I go to sleep in case of hi wind. Preventing wind from getting under is most difficult problem due to no tent floor. So my question is what type of ground stakes and ground I.e. best match possible? My favorite ground stake is a small tree or shrub with deep roots, not always available but they typically hold well.

[VictoriaGuy]

Could you have the best of both worlds by hanging your hammock thru both ends of a tent? You'd have the comfort of the hammock plus the security of the tent... Perhaps the added weight would be worth the tradeoff in your case.

Some of the 'extreme winter tarps' that I've seen here at HF perhaps would qualify...complete with wood stove, stovepipe, etc...but I'm still dubious about how they would hold up in a big wind/blizzard. They do go 'right to the ground, though....

[VictoriaGuy]

I'm just about defeated.... I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around sleeping in a tent again,

A tent is a good tool to have in the 'outdoor toolbox', for me.
When I 'stopped camping' in the 1990s, luxury on the ground was one of the 'thick' Thermarest pads (1" ??). When I started camping again a couple of years ago there was a 'whole new world' of Downmats and Synmats, etc. available. It is really really a different experience sleeping on the ground on a Downmat9 or 7- assuming you have a reasonably level site.
I don't know if this applies to you.....

[CamoDeafie82]

Some of the 'extreme winter tarps' that I've seen here at HF perhaps would qualify...complete with wood stove, stovepipe, etc...but I'm still dubious about how they would hold up in a big wind/blizzard. They do go 'right to the ground, though....

that gives me an idea for an extra extra extra wide tarp....... essentially a tube tarp, but with a whole FLOOR! staked down to the ground......hmmm....would need something like nearly 20 feet of material if you want a 10 ft floor and 12 ft ridge line...so 12x20ish tube tarp shelter? this would enable the user to stake down not just the 4 corners, but 4-8 more stakes around the perimeter in order to keep the thing down in wind......?

[mudsocks]

If you like tinkering I wonder if you could try to incorporate some of Stephenson's Warmlite tent design concepts in your tarp.

http://warmlite.com/tents/tents-technical
http://warmlite.com/tents

https://www.flickr.com/photos/warmli...n/photostream/

Notice the tent shape and wind stabilizers (internal straps).

[nuttysquirrel]

use a hammock sock to block the wind that gets past the tarp, loosen tarp as much as practical to prevent tie out damage, and wear earplugs so you can sleep. works for me anyway

[OregonRafter]

I have had my hennessey tarp with the factory guy lines in 60 mph winds, it was rolling tents with people in them. I swore it was going to rip, it was tense for about the first 2 minutes then I slept like a baby through the rest of the wind. It made it through. I don't use doors so it allowed the wind to whip through and not thrash the tarp maybe