I recently decided it was time to finally act on my long-standing interest in hiking/camping/backpacking type activities. Like any good student, I started off the project with some research, beginning with gear. I quickly learned about hammock camping and Leave No Trace ethics. I liked LNT, and hammocking seemed the best way to go about it--not to mention that hammocks are lightweight and quite comfy (in my experience with backyard, spreader bar types).

Well, during my research, I was up late one night. It was nearly 3 AM and I was pretty satisfied that the HH Expedition Asym was a good choice, so I started pricing. I went to eBay and found one on auction at $80. Sounded like a great deal, and since I was half asleep at the mouse&keyboard, I went ahead and bid $105 on it. I didn't realize until I woke up the following afternoon what a mistake I had made, given my financial situation.

Much to my dismay, my competitors stopped bidding at $104.46.

So I have a brand new HH Exped Asym . Though I do miss the money, I'm thrilled to have the hammock. My only regret is that I hadn't yet given much consideration to other hammock makers like Speer or JRB. And the money.

I've been lurking on HF for a while, since before my eBay adventure, and have found a lot of helpful information. Now that I have a hammock of my own, I figured it's time to come out of the shadows. I have yet to sleep in it, though I have been able to hang it between a big oak and a small plum tree in my backyard where I have lounged in it for an evening.

The plum tree likes to bend about four inches when I get into the hammock o_o; . Makes the straps slip if I don't wrap 'em tight enough. And the oak is too big for the tree huggers, so I end up using two feet of rope just to get through both ends of the strap (consequently I'm in the market for the 96" tree huggers).

I'm pretty neatly located in NORCAL: it's a two hour drive to either the El Dorado or Redwood National Forests, so I expect most of my hammocking to be in those environments with occasional jaunts elsewhere when time and money permit.

Right now my biggest concern is four season insulation, as I don't intend for a little snow and cold air to keep me from enjoying nature or my hammock. I can't really afford the HH SS, let alone the JRB Nest (which definitely looks like the better option). I'm open to DIY, but I must admit that the most sewing I've ever done was manually attaching a couple patches to my paintballing BDUs.

But that's why I'm here . I know that I can find all the help and info I'll ever need about hammocking within five clicks .