Hanging at home, fall /winter 2017-2018

**Johnnystriple** · 11-19-2017, 17:03

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All ready. I had to jack up the stand so I can look at the stars instead of my house. Do I need to ad another block? Here in Ky. we known for putting things on blocks.

**mirrorslap** · 11-19-2017, 17:32

Originally Posted by bkrgi

....and you learn a LOT about your gear in the meantime which in the back woods is critical.

Spot on!

Until about 2 weeks ago, 55 degrees was the coolest I had hammock in to date (1st year hanger). I slept perfectly warm using a 30 degree UQ, Winter tarp (not real low to the ground), and a synthetic down bed spread as a TQ (my real quilts should be here this week!).

So when the weather forecast showed a low of 35 degrees for Saturday night a couple of weeks ago I took it as a perfect opportunity to test the UQ at the lower rating. This time the set up was the same hammock (SLD Tree Runner w/ a Therm-a-rest bug shield), Winter Haven tarp pitched very low to the ground, and that same bed spread as a TQ (I had no idea what the "rating" for the bedspread would be but it was the warmest option I had at home).

Per my thermometers, the temp got down to 34.8 degrees outside of the tarp (temp gauge hung on the tarp's ridgeline) and, surprisingly enough, the temp inside of my hammock only got down to 41 degrees (temp gauge hung on my hammock ridgeline which was inside of the bug shield which was of course under/inside of my winter tarp).

At 4:50 am I had to call it quits and move back indoors. My underside was getting very cold and nothing I could adjust made it any better. Topside, I was perfectly fine. So my do-it-all UQ was, in my opinion, a bit overrated. It makes sense to me now that it would not be as good as a dedicated UQ because it is very wide and a lot of the down fill is hanging to the side of me instead of under me where it was needed most.

So I am glad I tested it at home and was not out in the woods when I figured it out. Would I have survived if I was out in the back woods instead of at home? Well sure. It would have just been very unpleasant for the last couple of hours of my night. But since I tested it at home I now know that I will not depend on that UQ for probably any forecast temp of under 50 degrees or only use it in tandem with another UQ for colder temps.

Part of it to me is "Practice makes Perfect" (think back to awkwardness you may have felt the very first time you hanged your hammock, tried new hardware, hung a UQ or tarp for the first time, tried a new stove / cook set, etc). We practice so we have the "know how" when it comes to our gear / process and so we can use that know how efficiently when needed. And part of it is just knowing your gear - it's uses and limitations. And in some cases, not all but certainly some, that knowledge can only come from personal experience.

Frankly, the mock hangs, making fires w/o using a match or lighter, practicing tying knots even though I will typically be using hardware that eliminates the need for tying knots, and doing things like using my cook stoves at home when I have a perfectly good oven/stove inside the house is all part of the fun of it for me. Plus, besides the fun of it, doing all of that at home will help better the odds of having a good, successful, experience out in the woods.

**Johnnystriple** · 11-20-2017, 05:26

TrailSlug. The prediction was wrong for last night. It was 26 this morning at 3:30 AM.

**Skytow** · 11-20-2017, 14:13

Originally Posted by Skytow

Going to give it a shot here tonight! Supposed to get down to 32. Looks like I’ll have my first foray into the 20s Wednesday night. I’ve only been a covert to the hammock for a year now but skipped last winter. This year I’m hanging 4 seasons!

So I did get out and temps got down to 30 and was pretty windy. I was way too hot and peeled back the TQ (sleeping bag) about an hour after climbing in. I think this bodes well for going significantly colder but I will do it stepwise at home so I can bail if needed. It is tricky to get just right!

**curlymaple42** · 11-20-2017, 15:29

Time to try out the XLC top cover!! I think we are going to hang one night soon. Need to get in my November hang!! Only Nov and Dec and I accomplished the 12 month challenge!

**Chesapeake** · 11-20-2017, 16:38

Originally Posted by curlymaple42

Time to try out the XLC top cover!! I think we are going to hang one night soon. Need to get in my November hang!! Only Nov and Dec and I accomplished the 12 month challenge!

I love having the cover for my XLC And Ive found that even though it doesn't zip on , having it overtop of the netting like I have it tends to keep more heat in AND I get the added benefit of a vent by my head where the cover is stopped by the lines connected to the netting. It works but I'd still rather have one that actually zips on. Maybe I'll just have to get a new XLC 2.0 and not have to worry about it anymore! Although, with HG coming out with a hammock soon, I'm holding off . I'd love to have a HG hammock to match the new quilts! I'm glad this thread is serving it purpose too, its great having one thread to post it all in . I love hanging at home, and now that its FINALLY cold at night I'll be doing it more often then not!

**curlymaple42** · 11-20-2017, 16:52

Originally Posted by Chesapeake

I love having the cover for my XLC And Ive found that even though it doesn't zip on , having it overtop of the netting like I have it tends to keep more heat in AND I get the added benefit of a vent by my head where the cover is stopped by the lines connected to the netting. It works but I'd still rather have one that actually zips on. Maybe I'll just have to get a new XLC 2.0 and not have to worry about it anymore! Although, with HG coming out with a hammock soon, I'm holding off . I'd love to have a HG hammock to match the new quilts! I'm glad this thread is serving it purpose too, its great having one thread to post it all in . I love hanging at home, and now that its FINALLY cold at night I'll be doing it more often then not!

My plan is to leave the zip on top cover open a little to vent. I am guessing that is a good idea from what I have read. I'm curious how it all will pan out actually as last winter when it was 14 out I had essentially snow under my tarp from the condensation! This will be interesting for sure!

**TxAggie** · 11-20-2017, 17:37

Originally Posted by Chesapeake

I love having the cover for my XLC And Ive found that even though it doesn't zip on , having it overtop of the netting like I have it tends to keep more heat in AND I get the added benefit of a vent by my head where the cover is stopped by the lines connected to the netting. It works but I'd still rather have one that actually zips on. Maybe I'll just have to get a new XLC 2.0 and not have to worry about it anymore! Although, with HG coming out with a hammock soon, I'm holding off . I'd love to have a HG hammock to match the new quilts! I'm glad this thread is serving it purpose too, its great having one thread to post it all in . I love hanging at home, and now that its FINALLY cold at night I'll be doing it more often then not!

Wait.....
HG is coming out with their own hammock?!?

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**curlymaple42** · 11-20-2017, 17:55

Originally Posted by TxAggie

Wait.....
HG is coming out with their own hammock?!?

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I caught that too. Interested...

**Chesapeake** · 11-20-2017, 19:16

Shhhhh! If you listen carefully to his HYOH podcast, Adam spills the beans. Is not official yet, but I've heard it direct from the source, if you look at some of my posts where I talk about ordering the new quilts you'll know who I was taking to, so its pretty reliable.

I don't think its nessesarily a secret though. He didn't say exactly when it would be out, but he did tell me its definetly happening and already in the process soooo....... I'd take that as a HG hammock coming out very soon! I'm sure if you were to ask them directly they'd tell you and I'm sure I'm not the only one who knows about it. I just jokingly mentioned wanting a new hammock to go with the quilts and he said to hold off because ill be able to get one from them very soon. I think they are keeping it kinda quiet until everything is ready to go.