During lightning storms, how safe am I in my hammock?

[Cjkittrell]

Newbie poster here.

The wife and I have backpacked into the Sierras 4 times this summer, probably the highlight being a two night stay at Grouse Lake in Desolation Wilderness about a month ago. Today, we just got back from camping at nearby Wrights Lake and for my first time as a hammock camper, the weather turned stormy and we had about 20-30 minutes of lightning and heavy rain, followed by another 30 min of steady rain. My tarp did a great job of keeping me dry during some fairly heavy rain, my only regret was not pitching my hammock about 6"-12" higher. Splatter from heavier downpours were able to splash bug net and UQ from below. Lesson learned.

Ok, one sort of wisdom says having your hammock strapped to two of the tallest objects in the area during an active lightning storm might be taking a serious risk. Another path of logic says I'm insulated as long as the water breaks you installed (yes, I'm proud to say they worked well) keep you dry....note to self: look up conductivity ratings for Dutchware straps and Amsteel Whoopies.....

So here's my question: what do experienced hammock campers do during lightning storms? Do you think your risk of being struck by lightning is offset by other factors and you stay put (in your hammock)? If so, what is your logic.

If not, and you believe there is a heightened risk off being struck be lightning, what do you do? Where do you go?

BTW, I stayed in my hammock and there was a small stream/puddle eventually taking over about 2/3 of my covered area making a dry exit unlikely. Fortunately, all my gear was safely stowed elsewhere, so my primary concern was how safe am I in this hammock? Say there's a serious storm at 2 am...what to do?

Thanks in advance for your insights.

[Mittagsfrost]

I think it depends of the environment. If you hang on the only two trees on top of a hill - go away! It's likely the lightning will hit one of the trees and will harm you.
If you are hanging in the middle of the woods and your trees aren't the biggest - stay in your hammock and enjoy the spectacle!

[joe_guilbeau]

Don Raingear and hightail it to a lower elevation for peace of mind. Ice particles in the clouds get bounced around and create static charges. The earth is positive charge and like a magnetic it repels positive charges in the clouds. This eventually makes the bottom of the cloud more negative, until the cloud passes over a spot where the earth's positive charge is large enough to discharge the cloud's built up static charge.

Here is a simple video:

https://youtu.be/A_FxTricy0c

[TrailSlug]

I witnessed first hand a good friend get hit on what we though was a perfectly sunny day. We were in the backyard of his lake house and he was in a hammock holding his 7 month old daughter. We didn't see a cloud in the sky and flash/boom all at the same moment. Ten seconds later once we recovered from the stun of what just happened his daughter was fine and he had 3rd degree burns to both butt cheeks where the arc came down the tree and out the lowest point of his body closest to the ground. He was lucky that day but this was simply being at the wrong place at the wrong time. It was around 30 minutes later when the clouds rolled in and we had a small thunderstorm. The odds are in your favor but you never know when this is going to happen.

[SilvrSurfr]

I'm usually in a forest, so the odds of one my trees getting struck are fairly low.

When I was a kid working on the farm in Alabama, we always stopped working in the fields during a thunderstorm - no sense being the tallest object!

[MinnetonkaBoater]

At 2am I am going to stay put...and probably pray. I have thought about this from an electricians stance, and yes the straps being non-conductive offer some protection, normally. However lightning doesn't really care. If it can cut through the sky (air is a good insulator) it could follow straps, especially wet. What about a tent? Metal poles shoved into the ground...lightning rods. not much better if any.

Sudden death by lightning in the wilderness doing what you love. Not a bad way to exit this world.

[hangino]

If lightning is a possibility stay away from the taller trees.

I have been in close proximity to a couple of lightning strikes and they are not for the faint hearted.

First you get the white light as if the heavens have just opened up, then the bang as loud as the gates of hell slamming behind you.

[rweb82]

If lightning is a possibility stay away from the taller trees.

I have been in close proximity to a couple of lightning strikes and they are not for the faint hearted.

First you get the white light as if the heavens have just opened up, then the bang as loud as the gates of hell slamming behind you.

And if you get both at the same time, you know you're right in the thick of it

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

[jabraso]

And if you get both at the same time, you know you're right in the thick of it

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

Only time I've seen/heard that was riding in an enclosed gondola to go mountain biking. We were near the top when the storm came in from nowhere. The power went out, the gondola stopped, and we watched lightning at eye level accompanied by instantaneous thunder claps. We weren't too scared since we were supported between two lightning rods (towers) and basically inside a Faraday cage (gondola).

I've never been able to sleep during lightning once I know its there. My procedure when camping is to lie awake contemplating all my sins and how I might reform my life. To pass the time I like to count the seconds between flash and thunder to see how close my doom is (5 seconds = 1 mile). I can usually convince my self of my safety as long as its more than a mile away.

I've seen the aftermath of a tree hit by lightning, it looks as if a stick of dynamite was detonated in its core... I wouldn't care to be hanging from such a tree, the shrapnel would damage my tarp.

[rweb82]

Only time I've seen/heard that was riding in an enclosed gondola to go mountain biking. We were near the top when the storm came in from nowhere. The power went out, the gondola stopped, and we watched lightning at eye level accompanied by instantaneous thunder claps. We weren't too scared since we were supported between two lightning rods (towers) and basically inside a Faraday cage (gondola).

I've never been able to sleep during lightning once I know its there. My procedure when camping is to lie awake contemplating all my sins and how I might reform my life. To pass the time I like to count the seconds between flash and thunder to see how close my doom is (5 seconds = 1 mile). I can usually convince my self of my safety as long as its more than a mile away.

I've seen the aftermath of a tree hit by lightning, it looks as if a stick of dynamite was detonated in its core... I wouldn't care to be hanging from such a tree, the shrapnel would damage my tarp.

I almost got struck by lightning the first year I lived in Louisiana. I was a Junior in HS playing baseball at a complex with multiple fields- set up in a clover leaf pattern. We all saw lightning strike in the parking lot over right field. They pulled us off the field at that point and had us wait out the storm in the dugouts (metal roof with chain link fence all around...real safe). They wanted to see if we would be able to finish the game once the storm passed.

Anyway, while we were all huddled up in the 3rd base dugout, lightning struck the 1st base dugout on the field directly behind us- no more than 40ft away. The flash and bang were instantaneous, and I could feel the hair rising on my head and could smell the ozone in the air. It was one of the scariest experiences of my life up to that point- having only lived in the PNW where we hardly ever had a thunderstorm. Needless to say, we never finished the game

That said, I love thunderstorms now, and always watch them from my front porch when I can!