Most comparisons of the pro's and con's of under quilts and air mattresses seem to favor under quilts. For me, who does not toss and turn much during the night, a mattress is a must have (with or without an under quilt). I can't sleep when my shoulders are squeezed medially or if I do sleep, I'll suffer by morning.
Does anyone else tie their mattresses in place?
I tie my mattress(es) to the side of the hammock, about 47" from either opposite end. It's easiest to set things "just right" by pushing while in the hammock, if the head end overlaps with but is separate from the foot end (2x 3/4 size mats). However, after several nights' experiments, I prefer to attach a full size (72") mat diagonally to both ends.
Because my mats are about 20" narrow, I slide an additional mat underneath laterally. This keeps my elbows warm. I probably only need about 10" x 35" for this purpose. Because my mats happen to be much bigger than needed, I either fold and tie away some inches of length or just let the long end hang up off my head side (lest it messes up the diagonal foot side shape).
In warmer weather, I fold a 3/4 mat in half and tie it to one or two points at my head end (35" and 47" inches from the end). This creates a stiff flat square or diamond shape, with my head near the top of the diamond and shoulders at opposite points of the diamond.
Specifically, I use two 60" lengths of soft rope to firmly attach the ends of the mat(s) to the inner-most plastic loops on a DutchWare Chameleon. I tie a small bowline loop to the hammock. Then I loop around the mattress and gently tighten an overhand slip bend to the first bowline loop.
If knee hyper-extension is an issue, the under quilt (or any bundle of cloth) can be re-purposed under the knees. Otherwise, the tied mat(s) provide a very stable flat sleeping surface.
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