Widowmaker - Watch out!

[_jstevens2010_]

It may look like a surface scratch but it was actually like a blunt force blow to my leg and lower abdomen. I had read about this happening to others but didn't pay it to much attention but i do now. The weird part in this event was that i couldn't see where it came from. Alot of guys post reviews and what not but in this case i felt it was important to post my experiance with this so that others can benefit from it.

[MAD777]

Glad your injuries weren't worse and thanks for the reminder for us to always be cautious and pay attention to our surroundings. In your case, everything looked nice and green and healthy, so I think any of us would have hung there. But, we need to always be on the lookout for potential threats.

[Agfadoc]

Just think, your chances have improved drastically now that it will likely not happen again. Glad you are ok, I still get a little twisted mentally when the wind starts up, laying in the hammock. You just never know.

[The Tree Frog]

I've seen perfectly healthy pines drop large branches under the weight of snow and wind. Specifically those type of pines can drop branches from a dirty look! Be careful.

[Hangin'Yankee]

OUCH!

I once had a 6 to 7 foot long white birch branch about that thick hit me in the hand and upper thigh when I was looking for a place to set up. Looked about the same as yours. You just never know when or where it's going to happen.

HY

[Montexan]

Widowmakers are definitely a concern of mine in higher alpine terrain where the trees take a lot more abuse, fewer selections and death winds roll off the glaciers--despite previous amazing weather. So it's not uncommon for me to run longer spans under exposed sky.

Thanks for the reminder, especially this time of year. And I second the bit on snow-laden branches. However snow bombs are always hilarious.

[Demeter]

Yikes! Glad you are okay to tell the tale. I am always nervous in a mature forest, especially in the winter. My favorite trees are smaller diameter - less to fall on me...

[Tonykarter]

Pines. Almost always pines. I live in the East Texas Piney woods. In the miles I have walked through these woods over the years it will be nine pine limbs like that to one of all other species that I find on the ground. Pine limbs 2,3, four inches in diameter. The large majority of them are healthy, living limbs with vibrant pine needles and small, inch-long emergent cones, limbs snapped off for no apparent reason other than possible violent wind at tree-top level. I guess they prospered so much and produced such excessive mast which gave it a kiting effect beyond that which the limbs torsional ability could deal with. I seldom see that with hardwood limbs. What I fear more and what is much more likely to happen hanging under a pine is a pine cone dropping on the tarp and punching holes in it in the wind. While I am sleeping. So possibly I don't notice the holes are there until the next rain.