A year or 2 back, I got hold of a HH Safari No Net. I did a small right up on it then, and had it as a spare up at Neo's Fall TN hang out, and Neo tried it and declared it pretty comfy, the only HH he had ever been able to get comfy in. At least for the 5 minutes or so he was in it, he felt "not too shabby". I did not sleep in it, but rather in my Explorer with Supershelter.

But for some reason, I was never able to get quite comfortable in it. I just couldn't seem to get situated quite right. I was more comfortable in my smaller and lighter Explorer UL. Though the Safari was SUPPOSED to be more comfortable. It made me wonder if the net had something to do with the HH structure and comfort, though this seemed unlikely. This theory kept me from ever altering my HH by removing the net or getting a zipper mod.

So I have never spent more than a few minutes in it, never sleeping in it even once.

I gave it another try today. I don't know what the deal is, but today it seemed great. I hung it both from my Byer hammock stand ( a real challenge height wise- hard to stay off the ground) and attached to my front yard trees, giving the neighbors a reason to call the police to get the homeless guy out of the neighborhood. It was very comfortable either way. Based on a short trial, I am going to put as a tie with my other best hammocks for overall comfort.

First, I could lay on the mid-line with pretty darn good comfort with minimal shoulder squeeze. It caused a slight natural bend in my knees. I think it is better than (and certainly as good as) any of my other gathered end hammocks in this position. I'm pretty sure I could spend the night this way.

On the diagonal, my knees were plenty flat, at least as flat as any gathered end and maybe more, no hyper-extension at all. It was not as flat in the upper body as my bridge, but very close. I think it was this upper body comfort (in the Safari) that I never could get quite right before, but it was just fine today. I don't know what my problem was before. I didn't tie the sides out this time- wonder if that made a dif?

I am going to declare it the hands down best of all gathered end hammocks (in my experience) as far as not having any left calf discomfort from the foot end center ridge, my personal main #1 problem with all gathered end hammocks. The ridge ( and Velcro opening) is there all right, but either this hammock is long or wide enough that my left leg is a good distance from it. I can't necessarily declare it as free of this problem as the JRB Bridge, since I only lounged in it for 30 minutes or less at a time. But it usually only takes me a few minutes ( or less than one minute), to feel that discomfort that requires something under my knees, in my other hammocks. And I never felt it at all today. I could see the ridge quite a few inches left of my leg, but didn't feel it.

Side position was as good as any other gathered end with legs straight, as well as in fetal. It definitely felt like I could sleep comfortably this way.

So, I think I have been missing a comfort contender for #1. It must now be added to my Claytor No Net( really, SURPRISINGLY good!), JRB BMBH, and WB BB for a more or less tie comfort wise. Though each of these hammocks might be more comfortable in one area than the others( ex: zero calf pressure or knee extension on my back in JRB BMBH), I have decided that over all they are pretty close. Especially if you are willing to put something soft under your knees, though not needed in the JRB.

And my HH Explorer UL is just as comfortable as any on your back with something under the knees, though definitely not quite as good on my side as the others, though workable. For me it remains a contender for best when I feel in the mood for using the Super Shelter.

Which brings up keeping warm in the Safari. SS won't work, I don't know if it would be too big for a JRB MWUQ and probably would be for the PeaPod. Maybe the WB torso length UQ would work. A pad in an SPE would probably work as good as possible for a pad in a hammock. No double layer though.

It is definitely a bit heavy for the UL crowd. Even with no net and single layer, just a few oz over 2 lbs. Though that is not really much heavier than my WBBB or JRB BMBH, though they both include dbl layers and a net, and even spreader bars for the JRB. However, the Safari will handle a good bit of weight and is big and roomy both width and length. For the big boys ( or girls) out there.

So, who uses the HH Safari( with net or No Net) and what do you think of it? This is a hammock we really have not heard much about on this forum. I'm betting mainly because of the weight, especially with the net and large tarp it comes with.