So I might be done hanging for a while...

[KBr00ks]

Glad you're relatively OK! It may take a while, but I hope you can hang again. Good lesson in caution for all of us..

[Tigglet]

That sounds pretty scary to me...Glad you were able to walk away from it.

[Staleym]

I just had a hammock camper's (or any camper's for that matter) worst fear realized...
I was hanging at a campground off of the Gunflint Trail last night and the high winds took out two trees simultaneously, that then fell into one of the trees I was anchored to. (I can still hear the cracking in my mind.) They ripped the suspension off the head end of the hammock as well as the the tarp ridgeline tie-out.

I was very fortunate that I curled up into a ball and was only covered my a heavy pine branch. Luckily, I was car-camping and not hiking, or cycle-touring as I had originally planned. I was able to make it to town eventually. (After the Hwy Dept cleared several downed trees on the county road leading out)

I know we say on here to always look around for suspect branches and trees where we hang, but even healthy looking trees can snap in high winds. I was very lucky that I escaped only with a bruised hip and damaged gear...and a severely shortened vacation. I just wanted to say please be sure to check the weather closely when camping and never underestimate the winds up in northern Minnesota. Be extra cautious in remote areas...I hope to see you guys out on the trail someday.

Sent from a hotel in Duluth...

I also am Glad you weren't hurt more significantly! They say it's best, when falling from a horse, to immediately get back on. I was a young teen, I fell from a horse and broke my elbow. It was awhile before I had an opportunity and when it came, my Grandfather, one of the last horse cavalry troopers gave me strong encouragement to get back in the saddle. I'm glad he did.

Maybe there's some hanger near that can loan you some gear and other support to get you back out there.

[sidneyhornblower]

Very glad you made it through that experience and thanks for posting about it. That's a sobering reminder to all of us who love the woods.

[MDCrab]

Wow! What an experience. So glad to hear you came out of with only bruises to your body and pride. I hope you didn't take a bath in damaged gear. Keep enjoying life, it's too short not to.

[Five Tango]

Glad you are ok.Trees falling are a safety issue for everybody.I think at least one person was killed in their home during Hurricane Florence recently from a downed tree.When Irma visited central Georgia last year there were several homes severely damaged by downed trees.I have had a home affected by storm damage before but so far have not had an issue while in the woods.It does not have to be a particularly bad forecast storm either as a random downburst can wreak havoc in a narrowly defined area.Experiences like the one you just had certainly give us all pause.Glad you walked away from it and I am sure it was traumatizing.

[brady1]

Hey everyone!! Thank you so much for the compassion and well wishes!!

I didn't necessarily mean I was done hanging...just that my lack of gear will prevent it for a while. HOWEVER, I am still a bit shaken... Despite that, I don't want this incident to keep me from something that I truly enjoy. I sincerely hope this does help any one of you...taking extra time to scout trees may prevent this from happening to you. That said, these were pretty healthy trees that snapped. Perhaps another lesson is, if you think it's unsafe out there in the high winds, it probably is.

Thanks again, all, for the encouragement. See you on the trail...

[Shug]

Hey everyone!! Thank you so much for the compassion and well wishes!!

I didn't necessarily mean I was done hanging...just that my lack of gear will prevent it for a while. HOWEVER, I am still a bit shaken... Despite that, I don't want this incident to keep me from something that I truly enjoy. I sincerely hope this does help any one of you...taking extra time to scout trees may prevent this from happening to you. That said, these were pretty healthy trees that snapped. Perhaps another lesson is, if you think it's unsafe out there in the high winds, it probably is.

Thanks again, all, for the encouragement. See you on the trail...

When those tent campers were killed off Duncan Lake in the BWCA a couple of years ago I made this video to get folks to be a bit vigilant when setting camp. Tent or hammock.
Shug

[TominMN]

...

Tom you were in on '99? My condolences. I missed that one but got to fill my drawers in the Ham Lake fire of '07.

In '07, I was well north of the fire while it burned.

No condolences needed! Getting out of Quetico wasn't easy but no one was injured in our group. In fact, no serious injuries at all that day. Several folks limping a bit in and around Ely on the following few days.

As no one was hurt and there was no loss or damage to gear, I'm actually glad we got to experience it. It was exhilarating to say the least.

[TominMN]

Hey everyone!! Thank you so much for the compassion and well wishes!!

I didn't necessarily mean I was done hanging...just that my lack of gear will prevent it for a while. HOWEVER, I am still a bit shaken... Despite that, I don't want this incident to keep me from something that I truly enjoy. I sincerely hope this does help any one of you...taking extra time to scout trees may prevent this from happening to you. That said, these were pretty healthy trees that snapped. Perhaps another lesson is, if you think it's unsafe out there in the high winds, it probably is.

Thanks again, all, for the encouragement. See you on the trail...

You make a very valid point about the issue of high winds. It's not just the weak trees and branches that come down in a serious storm. When truly bad weather strikes, it's important to get away from the trees to the extent possible. It's not an easy decision to make in the middle of the night, but the safest thing to do is get up and out and move away from any nearby trees.

The death I mentioned in an earlier post in this thread occurred when a tree fell on a tent and killed the occupant. In our campsite, we were out sitting in the open observing the powers of nature.