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  1. #1
    New Member
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    Dec 2015
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    New to Hammocking advice and tips please

    In the past few years I've been going to RRG(red river gorge) using a tent and as everyone here knows, it's bulky and uncomfortable. I recently purchased an Eno Doublenest due to the amazing reviews. I set it up with 2 12'X1" straps and it is phenomenal. I have a 10x12 ripstop reinforced tarp I purchased to cut costs that I have yet to set up. My questions: do I need a pad or UQ in the 3 seasons? Bug net?(do bugs get in if cocooned) and cheap fixes for both. Also any stories and do's and dont's of hammock camping are more than welcome.

  2. #2
    gunner76's Avatar
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    Dec 2009
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    Murphy NC
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    If there are no bugs then you do not need a bug net. If there are then you will need a Fronkey style bug net. Bugs can get in but once you cinch it up is is very hard for them to get thru. I prefer a hammock with an integrated bug net to keep the bugs out and it also helps to keep my gear inside the hammock. When I use my DIY Fronkey bug net I tend to kick my TQ out of the hammock, wake up cold and have to reach under the hammock and preposition the TQ, repeat a couple of more times that night.

    Once the temps drop below 70 degrees you will need some sort of insulation under you be it a pad or UQ ( UQ are way more comfortable and pads tend to shift a lot in a single layer hammock ) .

    Depending on you height you may find the ENO DN too short to be comfortable ( I have used one for years but only on day hikes )

    Since you are new to hanging I strongly recommend that you test your intended setup in a controlled environment like your back yard so you have an escape option if things don't work out vice being out in the woods. Also try and find a group hang in your area and visit it even if you can not spend the night. Take your gear and set it up and ask the more experienced hangers to look it over and help you tweak it.

    At one of the group hangs The Terminator and I hold we had a person new to hanging bring a just finished DIY UQ to use and did not ask anyone to check out her setup. She ended up sleeping in her car as the UQ was not rated for the temps at the hang. I let her use a 3 season UQ the next night and she was fine. Her husband brought a tent to sleep in but forgot the tent poles so I set him up with a spare hammock and UQ and he was toasty both nights.


    I am still 18 but with 52 years of experience !

  3. #3
    Moderator
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    Aug 2012
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    VA, Oh, and FL
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    My best advise for you is:

    1) Read all the sticky posts at the top of each section here at Hammock Forums. You will find all of your questions answered plus questions you have not thought of yet.

    2) Go to this LINK and watch all of Shug's videos. He will also answer all your questions but make you laugh. Leave lots of times to watch these

    3) Go to this LINK and read Derek's The Ultimate Hang pages. He does a great of explaining things you did not even know you needed to know. He also does great diagrams so it's easy to understand.

    4) Attend a Hammock Forum group hang before you invest any addition $ in your gear. There folks will show you and let you check out their gear so you can make educated decisions based on your own comfort levels

    4) Lastly NEVER take any gear to the field that you have not completely tested in controlled conditions such as your back yard in the temps/environment you expect to encounter in the field. A set up that suits one person will mostly likely not suit another so don't assume that just because I like/can be comfortable with a specific piece of gear that you will. Really. We are all very different when it comes to hammocks and what works/what does not work.
    Deb
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    "The older I get, the more I appreciate my rural childhood. I spent a lot of time outdoors, unsupervised, which is a blessing." Barbara Kingsolver

  4. #4
    New Member
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    Dec 2015
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    alright will do thanks guys

  5. #5
    Senior Member Dublinlin's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2012
    Location
    SW Missouri
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    SLD Trail Lair
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    ENO makes a bug net (Guardian) which is excellent for an ENO or similar short hammocks. However, if you later decide to get an eleven foot hammock for the flatter, more comfortable lay, you won't be able to use the Guardian bug net with it because it will be way too short. Your most economical option would be a DIY Fronkey style bugnet (as recommended above) and if you made it long enough you could use it later with a longer hammock, too.

    For a budget friendly entry level insulation for your hammock, you can purchase one of the blue foam (CCF--closed cell foam) pads in the camping section at WalMart. The cheaper ones are $7 or for $14 you can get a wider one. I've used both--go with the wider one! OR if you want to be way more comfortable (no fighting with shifting pad under you), you can purchase a SnugPak hammock under blanket on line to suspend under your hammock. Properly secured, that underblanket will make ALL of your hammock warm, not just a narrow strip (as when using a pad). You can purchase it online from Barre Army/Navy for full price $49.95 plus shipping normally, but today they still are running their holiday sale of 15% off and I think shipping is also free, but I'm not sure. Their shipping is kind of steep so I always wait until they are offering free shipping. http://https://shop.vtarmynavy.com/mobile/snugpak-hammock-under-blanket-p18254.aspx

    It took my SnugPak underblanket about a week to arrive. It fits my daughter's ENO DoubleNest perfectly and also fits my eleven foot Warbonnet Blackbird XLC perfectly. This underblanket is great all by itself (no pad) for temps from 70 F down to 34 F. Under 34 F you will want to also put a pad in your hammock. Paired with a cheap Wally World pad, the SnugPak is toasty well below freezing. I camped out last night using the SnugPak underblanket paired with a pad between the layers of my double layer hammock (double layered hammocks help keep your pad from sliding out of place). The temp was 27 F most of the night and I was quite comfortable. My experience has been that even in windy, stormy conditions the SnugPak is great until about 34 F, then I start feeling vaguely chilly. Throwing a pad under me when it is going to be down to freezing or below fixes that. Of course, sleeping WITHOUT a pad (just the under blanket) when it's warmer than that is way more comfortable.


    UPDATE: Just now checked. It is still free shipping. So, total cost would be $42.46 calculating in the sale's price. From what I've read, folks who have used both the ENO underblanket and the SnugPak say the SnugPak is much warmer. I've only used the SnugPak...but I do know it's MUCH cheaper and I've been very pleased with it.

    Having said all that, though, a DOWN underquilt from one of the cottage vendors here would be way, way, way nicer (more compact, way lighter to carry, and warmer), BUT you're talking a couple hundred dollars or more to get one of them.
    Last edited by Dublinlin; 12-31-2015 at 14:50.

  6. #6
    Senior Member sidvicious's Avatar
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    Aug 2011
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    Arkansas. The Delta & Little Rock
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    i'm going to fast forward the OP just a bit.

    pretty soon you're going to wonder about your hammock. it's fine. however, you may find that the cottages here suit a backpacking hammocker better. so; here's where i'm going.....

    get a dutch system, right out of the gate. for roughly $100 you can get a great 11' hammock and full suspension. you can find dutch at dutchwaregear.com. he's a regular here and you'll see his name over and over again. there's a reason for it.

    other guys here make hammocks too. i do business with several of them. BUT; for a starter rig that'll take you all the way to the professional leagues and beyond, you cannot go wrong with jumping straight into a dutch system.

    let me qualify this by saying that this is what i would have done, many years ago, knowing what i know now. Ooo'la'la. [props; ronnie wood].

    good luck and welcome to the forum.

    oh; spend lots of time with shug like dkurfiss said. he's right on the money. i've never seen a better video compilation for any endeavor that matches what shug has done for backpacking/hammock-camping. he's the godfather without arrogance. but as you pay attention you can see his experience shine; along with a polite touch of silliness

    cheers,

    sv-

  7. #7
    Senior Member
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    Feb 2011
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    Chicago, IL
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    One note on the ENO Guardian.....I use it on my WL Nite Owl 11' and it does work just fine. Sure it would be great if it were a few inches longer but I've never had a problem with it.

  8. #8
    Member
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    Great advice and info! I'm trying to soak up as much as I can. I'm not aware of any hammockers or group hangs in my area so learning from the forum is all i got.

  9. #9
    Senior Member The Tree Frog's Avatar
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    All of the answers and links can be found in the first couple replies. May as well close this thread cause it is done! I have nothing to add. That's all I have to say about that!
    NJ Hammock Club Facebook Page - Come join the party!

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Murt85 View Post
    Great advice and info! I'm trying to soak up as much as I can. I'm not aware of any hammockers or group hangs in my area so learning from the forum is all i got.
    There is a section for group hangs, look for northeast and look for Maine. There is one being planned for kezer falls,

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