I'm sure you'd have similar luck with loops like that. When setting up in high winds I would string the tarp up and then remove the tarp skins one side at a time, so I could stake out the 1st half before opening up the second half of the tarp. Sometimes I had to retension things a little once it was all staked out, or relocate one or two stakes, but that is what worked best for me.Originally Posted by Gravity
You are welcome to share this on Whiteblaze. I'm a member there as well. Both of these forums provided me with a wealth of information that I am very grateful for.
And another thing I forgot to cover.
Did I regret having an UQ instead of a pad on the A.T.?
No. I only carried a relatively small footpad/sitpad. And whenever I needed something, that was enough.
What about having the option of staying in shelters?
Early on in the trip I was drawn to camp at shelters for the social aspect. It was an easy place to meet other thruhikers. A few times I even tried to get to shelters early, if there was bad weather on the way, so I would at least have the option to stay in one. However, I never hit a shelter in GA where there was an overlap of 'room in the shelter' and 'me being done hiking for the day'. It seemed if there was room in the shelter, it was too early to stop. And when I was ready to stop, they were full. Early on in the trip, lots of people were taking short days, and in general, there were lots of people, so the shelters filled up quick anyway. It didn't matter. My hammock was much more comfortable, and I was always able to set it up in relatively close proximity to the shelter, so I didn't lose out on the social aspect of things. Unless you consider waking up from snoring or people shuffling around in the night to pee to be important social functions.
What about the Smokies?
I was worried that it would be a problem going through the Smokies, as I understood the rules were along the lines of "if there is room in the shelter, you must sleep in the shelter." This seemed like it was pretty widely disregarded, even in the presence of ridgerunners. Everyday I saw tents and hammocks go up outside the shelters before they were full. And even if you did feel bad about setting up outside, you only needed to wait until 4 or 5pm for the shelters to fill up, and then you could set up outside within the constraints of the rules. Maybe this would be slightly different if you don't go through the Smokies with a large bubble of hikers, but there were easily 50 thruhikers at the Fontana Hilton the night before I entered the Smokies. If you start anywhere near April 1st, this is likely to be the case. And I never saw a ranger in the Smokies. they are kind of a rare breed, as only a handfull of them cover the whole park. I saw 4 ridgerunners and 1 park management employee who was carting around a news reporter doing a story on graffiti in the shelters. The ridgerunners were always polite. I had a permit, but they never even ask to see it. Only asked me if I had it.
That being said, I did spend one night in a shelter in the Smokies. My friends were staying inside. It was raining outside, and close to freezing. Some other thruhikers had zero'd at the shelter and collected a massive pile of firewood. It was a pretty easy decision. I did happen to find a Klymit X-frame torso length sleeping pad in a hiker box in Franklin, NC. Like the one in the link below. It only weighed a few ounces, and I carried this as my insurance policy through the Smokies. It helped me sleep through the night in the shelter, through I can't personally recommend it for frequent use. If I were to go through again, I wouldn't worry about a mattress.
https://lightonthetrail.files.wordpr...3/full-pad.jpg
What about cowboy camping?
I did cowboy camp on some rocks at Mary's Rock in VA and The Pinnacle in PA. They were two of my favorite nights on the trail. I zipped up my ZPacks sleeping bag and threw on a head net. Whenever I woke up I had beautiful view of the night sky, and I woke up for two splendid sunrises. I mentioned before that I traveled with two other hammockers. Both nights that I slept like this, I borrowed their footpads (it was warm enough that they didn't need them. So with 3 footpads, I made a makeshift CCF pad for myself.
What about staying in the AMC huts?
If you stay in an AMC hut, you sleep on the floor or on the wooden benches around their tables(even if there are open beds, thats just the way it goes). If its cold, the benches are surprisingly warmer. I'll admit my first night in an AMC hut, with only my footpad, was one of the worst nights of sleep I got on the trail. I was uncomfortable and there was another thruhiker that got up 3 or 4 times to pee, and decided it would be easier/quieter? to crawl across one of the tables, rather than tiptoeing around the other hikers on the floor. It wasn't lol. So this marks the only night on the trail that I wish I had a more substantial mattress.
One good tip, and what got me a good night of sleep at the second hut, is to be friendly and courteous with the AMC staff. It is my understanding that all the AMC are staffed and supplied to respond to people in need of wilderness first aid. That means its not uncommon for them to have ccf pads. They use them for insulating victims against the snow and for padding/rigidity for arm/leg splints(They had them at Madison Spring Hut, and I used them in NY when I took a NOLS WFR course). Anyway, shy of responding to an emergency, they just sit in a supply closet. My friends and I were talking with an AMC staff member and we explained that we hammock, and don't carry mattresses, so they let us borrow CCF pads for the night. That is of course with the understanding that we will give them up in the event of a nighttime emergency.
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