Expendable hammock for get home bag question

[OneClick]

I think the poly tarps and hammocks would be fine even after the temp changes a car sees. The one place I can't seem to trust is my outdoor shed. It's just your basic ~10x14' wood shed with asphalt shingle roofing. Some ventilation. The fabric on the camp chairs I have went to crap after a couple years...dry, brittle, tearing and even delaminating on the bottom. I want to think it would be less extreme in a car that isn't outside 24/7, and maybe less damp/dry swings since a car is sealed up pretty well?

The only thing I ruined in a car was my kayak spray skirt. It is seam sealed exactly like a dry bag or rain jacket (similar nylon material too). While the tape looks fine, there are tiny cracks all along the middle where the thread is touching. It leaves like a sieve now. I'm pretty sure that's due to temp changes/expanding/contracting. That's why you should never store "gear you care about" in an attic.

OK I was all over the place there. One last thing that is important to me is price. I put together a BOB and EDC type kit years ago and used them....ZERO times. So the last thing you want to do is tie up money in gear that may never be used. But sounds like you already know that.

The grand trunk ultralight hammock is cheap, good quality and actually quite comfortable in a pinch.

[dkurfiss]

I should have added that I use the Chill Gorilla 10x10 tarp kit. I prefer the tarps without cat cut edges because it is easier for me to set up as ground shelter if need be. I was using the blue WalMart tarps but starting about 18 mo. ago I have slowly but surely changed the get home bags to the Chill Gorilla tarps. They are lighter to carry, fold up easy, take up less room in my pack and don't make the same noise the WalMart blue tarps do. So far, no leaks have developed in any of the 3 I have.

I should also add that I have picked them all up used for less than 20.00 each with shipping. So pretty cost effective for decent rain cover.

[OneClick]

Actually, that 4th pic down on the Chill Gorilla tarp is exactly what I was referring to with my kayak skirt. The cold/hot ruined the tape where it touches the thread. I only reiterate this since the OP is storing this in a car and likely to have the same failure I experienced.

[OutandBack]

I live in Colorado and I drive in winter so I have a survive the blizzard that has stopped me from getting home bag. No hammock or tarp just food water and lots of down.
I keep it in my trunk and I have removed the open trunk button from the glovebox. Key or crowbar is the only way one gets my stuff.

[Cypheros]

Hey OP, for a GHB, there's a few things you need to think of:
1. Will you be on-foot? If so weight becomes a major concern.
2. What kind of situation(s) are you anticipating?
3. Are you concerned about stealth, or are you moving fast?
4. How much room do you have in your GHB?


I bring up these points because, for me, a hammock doesn't meet my criteria based on the above questions. I have a SnugPack Stratosphere for my shelter, along with a weather-appropriate sleeping bag.

IMO, in a Get Home "Excrement forcibly contacting the oscillating propeller" situation, speed of setup/takedown, combined with stealth are super important. Weight/size are also hugely important to me, as I don't have a very large pack, and I need to fit quite a number of important elements for getting home.

I'm not trying to say that a hammock isn't viable; I'm trying to give you stuff to think about, so you can customize your systems to your situation/needs.

[jeff-oh]

Right now on Vipon you can get a 10' hammock with daisy chain straps for $11.49 and an 11' hex hammock tarp for $20.00. That is not a bad combo for less than the cost of a skeeter beater. If you want the bug net. There is an 10' hammock with separate bottom entry bug net and suspension for $18.00.

Great idea.

[IRONFISH45]

Interesting read.

I have my anything could happen bag. I keep in my trunk or way back depending on what I am driving. I have my ENO (my first hammock $10.00 USD ish). Tree straps, mat, my fist diy down quilt, some odd plasticicy material for a tarp or whatever. Cover-alls or Overalls not sue what to call them, step in and zip em up. Water and fire making. I have a very shabby 1970's pack.

I go through a variety of weather. I have managed to get stranded a couple of times way back before cell phones. Having creature comforts probably saved my life twice.

I travel between Oregon and Northern B.C. a fair amount. Even in Summer part of my route gets blizzards, a person never knows what the weather might do in some of the passes. Plus a lot of the ground is unstable, if a landslide happens a person could be stuck on a section of road until it is open again.

Anyway, I do my best to be prepared AND comdortable.

I only carry expendible gear in my vehicle.
I suspect all up & down the West Coast is a high theft mecca.

[West michigan]

I also keep a “sacrificial hammock in my trunk
It’s an 11 foot diy 4 dollar special I made from Walmart nylon
It dual layer
I keep a Walmart blue pad and a Wally World 40 degree sleeping bag in there
Also my aqua swan 10 x 13 tarp is in the pack also

Then I also have my diy tensahedron stand so I have a complete shelter system in my trunk