I get a neck pain just thinking about squirming into a sleeping bag while in a hammock... ouch!
I get a neck pain just thinking about squirming into a sleeping bag while in a hammock... ouch!
"I wonder if anyone else has an ear so tuned and sharpened as I have, to detect the music, not of the spheres, but of earth, subtleties of major and minor chord that the wind strikes upon the tree branches. Have you ever heard the earth breathe... ?"
- Kate Chopin
One thing that new folks assume is that sleep is sleep and you can just pass out. But your body actually gets used to certain things...things that are different in a hammock. Be it a bed or a seat in your car or the couch cushions support your body in a different way than a hammock, the movement you experience in a hammock is different and those differences can keep you from drifting off to sleep. It can take some of us a few nights before our bodies get used to the change in feel of your sleeping environment. For me and a lot of other a Tylenol PM or ZZZZQuilt tab goes a long way for first few days. It can help to relax you and give your brain and body a chance to adjust. A long day on the trail or in your case biking can help too. Get you worn out a bit. Keep practicing. The learning curve is steeper than most folks think it will be but it's also a pretty short curve if you keep at it. Don't expect it to be a flip of a switch, there are a lot of things to get used to and learn to do in a way that makes it work for you...most of that just comes with some experience and before long you will get a feel for what works.
Arrowhead Equipment -- For all your hammock camping and backpacking gear
Arrowhead-Equipment.com Visit AHE on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Check out pictures on Instagram
Sign Up for Arrowhead-Equipment Gear News: Click Here
Set hammock ridgeline at 83% length of hammock--as a starting point--if that's not comfortable lengthen or shorten hammock ridgeline one inch and check for comfort. If your hammock already has a fixed structural ridge line or you can't add a hammock ridgeline, ask other hammockers at a group hang to help adjust your rig. And try to hang at a 30 degree angle. Good luck.
I just got a 12x6 custom hammock from Wilderness Logics made with Dutch's new wide Hexon fabric. Good luck again, and what they said!
^^^^thisOriginally Posted by pgibson
It takes until the 3rd night for me to sleep well. Now, I still drift off enough to get sleep, and even feel more rested than if I had slept the night on the ground, but I don't sleep through the night until night 3. Like Paul, I take a Tylenol PM or some other sleep aid to assist. It's all in my head and because it is different than what I am use to. Once I get by that.... It's over.
I skimmed over some comments, so I may be repeating some:
1. Double check the hang angle. I like 30-35°, without making the straps/suspension really short (trees close together). Mathematically it shouldn't matter as long as you're at 30°, but I still find a longer span more comfortable - like trees spaced 16'.
2. Don't put too much, or anything, under your head as a pillow. Usually just an extra shirt is enough, or nothing at all. In a hammock you may never be 100% flat, so if your head is already being propped up a bit, the last thing you want to do is increase that angle with a pillow. Obviously it's not the same deal as a bed.
3. Hang foot end a good 10" or so higher on the tree.
4. Move slightly towards the head end. I find the most comfort when I can reach up and almost feel the end of the hammock...maybe 3" from being able to touch the gathered end.
5. Don't feel like you have to turn your body at a crazy angle like so many photos online. Those are either people that don't know what they're doing, or just lounging and more concerned at getting the selfie or photo of their girlfriend. Try pointing your body at a slight angle, say 10°.
I spent several Sunday afternoon's relaxing, reading and napping in my hammock before I tried a full night. By then I was very familiar with where my "sweet spot" was, plus no stress about falling asleep. Also making an adjustment to your setup in the daylight is easier. Good Luck!
Might be too much to read at this point but I'll chime in.
In my Hennessey my best nights are when the hammock is just barely foot end high. Too high and I slide towards the head end and end up with a crick in my neck.
Second secret is a very small thin pillow under my neck. Support the neck, not the head. The curve of the hammock fabric will give your head enough support. (this assumes back sleeping).
Stock suspension on the Hennessey actually needs to be less than the touted 30 degree angle in my opinion. It will settle as you put your weight in the hammock.
"...the height of hammock snobbery!"
So you leave for Japan in a couple of weeks? I get the feeling that time is not on your side, especially if you'll be sleeping in this hammock for two months, considering the problems you're having. Even if you returned the sleeping bag, I doubt you could get quilts in time for your trip. Besides, you're also complaining about squeeze, sore neck, pad slippage, pad not wide enough, etc. That's a lot to overcome in a short period of time.
I was lucky in buying a HH Exped Asym Zip for my first hammock trip of five days in the Adirondacks. I had the time to test a few nights in the back yard. I had a ccf pad and 0* synthetic sleeping bag, and no matter what problems I had, I knew that it was a massive improvement over ground pounding. You don't seem to have the level of comfort to place your faith in a hammock setup, and not enough time to develop that faith.
I wouldn't bet on that SOL emergency blanket helping you much either, and once you hack it up, you can't return it.
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
Eh, those blankets are cheap -- but i'm probably not going to go with that solution. Seems like it creates "tolerable dampness" for even the people it works best for. I've pulled a light closed foam pad out of the garage, adjusted the hang slightly and am going to try again tonight using my sleeping bag as a quilt. If it doesn't better for me tonight and I'm not more confident, I'll have to return it and suffer through using the ground. I still think that after i'd adjusted a hammock would be better, but it's probably not wise to force that adjustment during a trip when I don't have other options.
It's also sounding like it would be ideal if I had the time and funding to get a proper underquilt and overquilt set, and I just don't have enough of either. This all seemed a lot simpler going in, haha
Did one more night, and it was better, but I'm not sure it was good enough for me to trust it without more prep time for my trip.
hangingout.jpg
I used a blue CCF pad for insulation this time and my Marmot 45 sleeping bag as a top quilt and it was PRETTY good -- where I was on the pad (it's a little narrow for me) I stayed pretty warm, and after I lowered the hammock from the previous night's angle, I had an easier time finding the sweet spot. It took me a long time to fall asleep (maybe 40 minutes) and I think I was about three hours.
Then I woke up kind of cold, repositioned a little (not easy with a pad!) and slept for a little longer before deciding my bag wasn't warm enough to take the situation unzipped. -- my sleeping bag is pretty compact, for backpacking, and it doesn't make the best topquilt. With a winder pad and a better topblanket, or better still, a proper under and over quilt, I could see this easily being an ideal sleeping system, but neither of those are in my budget right now.
It was kind of a bittersweet night. It's clear the potential this sleeping system has, but the investment and time to adjust / learn to use it right doesn't fit with the timeframe for this upcoming trip. We leave in the first couple days of April, and I don't have the funds or time to get everything I need to make it work. I'd really like to, though. Alas, I'll have to put it off for another trip. Luckily, the seller I bought it from has a good return policy and I should be able to get a refund. When I get home from Japan (and start working and saving again) maybe I'll start putting away a little money for a ideal system for next time.
Thanks for all the help everybody. I'm really sad to let this go for now, but considering my situation, I think it's probably the best option
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks