Lady Hammockers thread

[grannypat]

At night in bad weather a heavy duty zip lock bag for me.

That's a good idea too.

[Syrrka]

Great Thread! Lots of good info. Thank you for starting it.

[lilprincess]

I have the go girl too, but if you wait to long it can overflow if your not careful. 😳
I've found that squatting can often be simpler. And less dangerous. A quick tip. Squatting too low can construct the flow, so try to squat a little higher and it won't go all over as much. But not so much that you splash all over you shoes. Lol

[OldnSlow]

My wife tells me that squatting with one's back against a tree helps hold one up, and keeps things "tidy"

[HappyCamper]

Yes! Just pick one with smooth bark! Same as sitting on a log. Smooth bark is the secret.

[Playapixie]

This thread cracks me up. Maybe we liberal northwest girls do it differently, but I never worry about who can see me when I change in the back country. I might call out "don't look if you don't want to see" first in case it makes *them* uncomfortable, but I couldn't care less if other campers see my back naked.

I was hoping this thread would have more practical woman-specific information, like what works for staying warm, hammocks especially suited to women, keeping the pack weight light, etc...

[Insaniac99]

I was hoping this thread would have more practical woman-specific information, like what works for staying warm, hammocks especially suited to women, keeping the pack weight light, etc...

I fail to see how staying warm or light pack weight is female specific or how a hammock would be specially designed for a woman; would you mind expanding on those?

[Playapixie]

I fail to see how staying warm or light pack weight is female specific or how a hammock would be specially designed for a woman; would you mind expanding on those?

Sure: ladies are often smaller, may sleep cooler, distribute our fat weight differently on our bodies, etc. We may need less length in hammocks or quilts, and maybe even might find different-shaped hammocks preferable vs men (many of whom outweigh me by a hundred pounds.) All reasons why many gear makers produce woman-specific gear for us ladies (sleeping bags, for example, with more room in the hips and loft in different areas where we lose more heat.) We, being (generally) less muscular and more slightly-built than our men-friends also may have a greater interest in keeping our packs light; a few extra ounces on our backs is a greater percentage of packed-weight to body-weight for us.

Oh, and in response to the woman who asked about periods in the woods: double zip-lock baggie with some baking soda inside. Store inside a non-see-through ditty bag and hang it with your food at night (mark it so it's clearly not something your companions will accidentally open when looking for snacks.) I've hiked in grizzly country with this method no problem. You can also use a diva cup or instead cup, but I find that difficult to manage in terms of hygiene/keeping the cup clean, so prefer tampons with the method above.

[lijn]

This thread cracks me up. Maybe we liberal northwest girls do it differently, but I never worry about who can see me when I change in the back country. I might call out "don't look if you don't want to see" first in case it makes *them* uncomfortable, but I couldn't care less if other campers see my back naked.

I was hoping this thread would have more practical woman-specific information, like what works for staying warm, hammocks especially suited to women, keeping the pack weight light, etc...

While I, too, don't care if I'm seen or not, I think for some ladies, this IS an issue, and one that is specific for hammock camping at that. So I'm glad it gets addressed.

A lot of the woman-specific issues aren't so hammock-specific. Earlier in this thread there's a 'stern warning' from a moderator that it should stay hammock specific, or else the thread gets moved to the member-only area, where, most likely, aspiring female hammock campers will never see it. I agree it would be nice to chat about some of the more generic issues, and it would be nice to do it here. After all, this forum is my favorite hangout when it comes to talking about being outdoors. But the 'generic talk goes into the member forums' policy is quite bit older than this thread, so I guess we shouldn't complain too much
I think no-one would stop us if we started a ladies' thread in the member section, and there's always the female section of some big AT forum that has tons of info too.

[lilprincess]

This thread cracks me up. Maybe we liberal northwest girls do it differently, but I never worry about who can see me when I change in the back country. I might call out "don't look if you don't want to see" first in case it makes *them* uncomfortable, but I couldn't care less if other campers see my back naked.

I was hoping this thread would have more practical woman-specific information, like what works for staying warm, hammocks especially suited to women, keeping the pack weight light, etc...

My best friend in from Oregon and now is stuck in New England. There's a lot that cracks her up about us.

I would love to talk about insulation. I had to have my TQ custom made from HG because I'm only 5'2" and the extra long normal wasn't going to work. I got the longer foot box too. It's perfect for me now. I'm thinking about getting a smaller UQ though. Right now I have the 0* incubator and it's loner than I am. When it's cold I can't keep all that down warm so I get cold spots. (I don't generate much heat on my own) I'm considering getting a Phincubator, half way between a 3/4 and full.

As far as periods, I agree with the baking soda bag. Works great for me too.