People's Bridge meets Nemo Cloudview

[pdxhanger]

Two different bridge hammock designs caught my attention at the same time: WV's "People's Bridge" and the Nemo Cloudview I saw at REI.

I had never made (or, for that matter, tried) a bridge hammock before, but my pursuit of gathered end (GE) hammock comfort perfection has left me unsatisfied, so when I saw WV's design that doesn't require complicated-looking curves I thought I would give it a go. Thanks to the information WV, Grizz, and others have posted on bridge hammock-making, I surprised myself with a quite successful first try.

I didn't do a "normal" bridge, though. I really liked the look of the Nemo Cloudview, which they market as more of a hammock lounge chair:

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I like the torso-higher-than-the-legs design. I also like the open head area, which gives a good view of the surroundings, and Derek Hansen reviewed it on his Ultimate Hang website as one of the more comfortable bridge hammocks he has tried, in part because of the lack of shoulder squeeze.

The Cloudview has 2 attributes that made it unattractive to me: the hammock alone weighs over 3 1/2 pounds, and the package with suspension and poles = over 5 1/4 pounds, without bugnet or any of the usual accouterments. And, secondly, they won't give you one unless you give them money.

So I experimented a bit, and my second try looked like so:

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(hammock is askew because the grip end of the poles are heavier than the other end)

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Looks weird, with a big hole for the feet, right? But when I'm in the hammock, this is what I get:

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It may be hard to tell, but lying in the hammock there is just the barest whiff of a knee ridge. Less than I was shooting for, actually. The pattern was this:

Hammock pattern.jpg

This hammock is, as the pattern shows, comprised of 100% straight lines. But with the hammock loaded (me in it), this – to my surprise – is what happens:

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One of the benefits of this design was supposed to be less shoulder squeeze. It's hard to take a picture of that, but:

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I'll try to get pictures with someone in the hammock from a distance to give a better sense of it. Basically, on the head end I am more on the hammock, while the feet are more in the hammock, as with the Nemo Cloudview.

Impressions:
I like this. I find it very comfortable. With 30" suspension triangle sides it does not feel at all "tippy" to me, which surprises me a little. If I lower the head end I get a flat lay, or with the ends at the same height I get a reclining effect. This design is excellent for seeing what is around me. I think it will be a primo stargazing platform.

Questions/issues:
I don't feel any shoulder squeeze. I feel a little "elbow squeeze", although obviously elbows are more moveable than shoulders. Depending on how high up on the hammock I am, I can kind of rest my elbows on the edge of the hammock, but I don't know if that would be comfortable for long. I wonder what it will be like to sleep in mummy position. Clearly I need some sleep experience with the hammock!

While I wish the knee ridge was more pronounced, I put an adjustable strap like WV under the knee ridge, and I can use that to dial it up if I want. In my next try I will have to decide whether to decrease the width of the "waist" (narrowest point), which should increase the knee ridge a bit, but any narrower and there won't be much hammock on my sides in that spot. I haven't slept in it yet, and it may be that a big knee ridge isn't that necessary anyway.

I could make the foot end of the hammock even wider to lower the legs more, but I am at the limit of a usual 59/60" fabric width. I am wondering if different fabric would make a significant difference; the fabric I used has a noticeable amount of "give" to it. Also, I could try a shorter spreader bar at the foot end, but...

One of my strong wishes is to use my hiking poles, which I always use when backpacking, as spreader bars to save weight. I made pockets in the suspension for the pole at the head end, and it seems to work great (and would work even better with non-shock absorbing poles - d'oh!) One problem I have is that, using pockets, the minimum width of the foot end spreader bar is limited to the minimum length my poles will collapse down to – about 28 inches. I'm getting around that by using a lark's head around the ends of the pole (whoever on the forum I stole that idea from, thank you!) instead of pockets, but the rope bites into the grip and will surely reduce it's life. Pockets would let me use a branch found at/near my campsite, but I don't think I can count on finding a strong stick/branch the right length in my area, and carrying a saw would negate the weight savings of not carrying spreader bars.

Maybe one pocket for the grip end of the pole and lark's head the other end? Not aesthetically elegant, but it might work. Also, the lark's head has to be retied every time I set up the hammock. Hmm.

In order to be taut enough to be maximally comfortable, the hammock needs more room than my GE hammocks, both lengthwise and widthwise. Major Bummer: I can't get the hammock spread taut enough in my "man cave" to "test" it properly. One of the reasons I resisted trying bridge hammocks was this issue; in many of the places I want to camp locally, most of the spots with suitable trees without obstructions between them seem to involve shorter distances between trees.

My under quilts seem to work great with this hammock, but my lovely GE socks – so great for winter camping – are completely useless with this hammock. I'll need to come up with something completely different to use this hammock in really cold weather. Actually, I expect that socks and bugnets for the bridge will be lighter and potentially better than what I have made for my GE hammocks, but so much time and effort I've spent...

Concerns:

I'm no engineer, but it looks to me like the head end of the hammock, being pulled taut as it is, may be under more stress than the usual bridge hammock. I sewed reinforcing triangles on the corners to try to counter that. I'm crossing my fingers.

I guess this is probably just a bridge hammock thing, but the stresses on the hammock generally seem a lot more intense than a GE hammock, especially since the most comfort comes when the hammock is pulled more taut. Maybe it's just a matter of getting used to it with time, but it makes me nervous. I imagine a failure could send ropes and/or other bits flying in potentially harmful fashion.

[Tikker]

that looks really interesting, be really curious to follow along your journey with this

[Double]

I like it a lot!! Thanks for sharing and experimenting with new designs.

[Bic]

Interesting. I have been toying with a similar idea for for a while now, but haven't put thread to fabric yet as I've been busy. Thanks for posting.

[WV]

Good work! Keep it up. If I'm reading your pattern right, the narrow end is the head end. Try making that wider, and you'll get more of a knee ridge. Then you get to experiment some more on spreader bar lengths. I use a structural ridgeline that's adjustable to get another way of changing the feel of the hammock. I agree with all your observations.

[Artful]

Pedro liked the Nemo's "foot box" as the head end as it keeps the pillows from escaping.
Here's his test of DIY Conduit stand with it.

Says best hammock he's tried for car camping.

[pdxhanger]

First, pictures with my wife modeling the hammock. She is shorter than I by several inches and has her feet down at the very end of the footbox; I position myself higher, so that my knees are at the strap you can see underneath the hammock, and my head is near the head end of the hammock. Also, note that this is "sleep mode", with a flat lay. If I raise the head end I get more of the Cloudview recliner effect.

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I slept in the hammock last night, and I am VERY pleased! I did figure out that my shoulders are more comfortable with the tautness backed off just a bit; other than that, I don't really know what to say other than that I was really comfortable and slept like the proverbial baby.

I'm not sure about side sleeping, which I do occasionally. I definitely can't do full fetal, but I don't really do that anyway.
It seems that I can get a little change of position by sliding my head/shoulders a little to one side or the other, which raises that shoulder just a bit. Since my sleeping-on-my-back position is so comfortable, I think that small amount of movement might be all I need to remain comfortable through the night.

Looking at my wife from the side view, it is clear that there is more of a knee ridge than I am feeling when I am in the hammock. (The knee strap is loose in these pictures and not actually doing anything.) I probably don't feel the ridge because it is not narrow, and therefore subtle. But after sleeping in it I think it is just right. My knee isn't noticeably bent, but I'm definitely not hyperextending, and my legs and heels were always comfortable through the night. I have the knee strap if I want a little more, but I doubt that I will use it much.

[pdxhanger]

Good work! Keep it up. If I'm reading your pattern right, the narrow end is the head end. Try making that wider, and you'll get more of a knee ridge. Then you get to experiment some more on spreader bar lengths. I use a structural ridgeline that's adjustable to get another way of changing the feel of the hammock. I agree with all your observations.

WV: again a thousand thanks for your People's Hammock postings. I may have never done this without them!

Correct, the head end is the narrower end.
As I say in my sleep report, I think the knee ridge is a non-issue. I think it is perfect (at least for me) the way it is. And I like the head end the current width, so that my upper body is more on the hammock than in it. I suspect it minimizes shoulder squeeze as well as giving me more of a view. Eventually I need to find a "real" bridge hammock to try for comparison.

[Otter1]

I really like what you did here. The shoulder squeeze issue (or lack thereof) is great.

Please keep us posted.

[pdxhanger]

Pedro liked the Nemo's "foot box" as the head end as it keeps the pillows from escaping.
Here's his test of DIY Conduit stand with it.

Says best hammock he's tried for car camping.

Interesting. The exact opposite of what I am going for, but lay your own lay! (I love his carpet!!!)

I did wonder if quilt, pillow, etc. would roll off the hammock when getting off. So far it seems to be much less of a problem than I expected. Time will tell.