Awesome...thanks everyone!
Awesome...thanks everyone!
"Always pass on what you have learned" - Yoda
I like to use a 2' x 3' sheet of Tyvek as a place to put my water bottle, camp shoes, backpack and anything else. I like that it's white so I can easily see what's there and don't forget to repack anything.
That being said, I've given up the last few times I was out because it was a drenching rain and the area under my tarp turned into a mud pit. It didn't seem worth the effort to put anything down in that mess so I hung my backpack and kept everything inside it. Only my boots where left on the ground.
I'm going to try a gear hammock in the near future as a way of keeping stuff off the ground and under the tarp.
No ground cloth or gear hammock for me.
When car camping, pack can be on seat of folding chair. And when backpacking, pack is inside large black trash bag-on ground under tarp. Either way pack is secured somewhat with zingit—me thinking pack is less likely to be carried away by a dog or coyote.
Maybe this is why I have a time looking for gear in pack.
First time I ever went hammock camping, it rained five inches overnight. There was a river underneath my Hennessy Expedition Asym Zip hammock, and if I had left my pack on the ground, it would have been swept away in the rushing water. I just clipped my backpack onto the ridgeline, inside the bugnet on the right side of my feet, and never noticed it was there since I lay head right, feet left.
After the Hennessy, I moved to netless hammocks and Fronkey bugnets. Again, no problem clipping the backpack onto the ridgeline with a carabiner - never noticed the pack was there. Now I use a Dutch Chameleon, and I imagine I would also clip the pack onto the ridgeline if the rain was bad. Most of the time I'll just clip the pack onto the end of the hammock, outside the bugnet. It rarely gets wet (I have a 4-season HG Winter Palace tarp with doors), and I kinda like how the pack blocks any wind or precipitation from entering my happy place.
Nowadays I mostly backpack with my beagle Joey, and I probably wouldn't want to have the pack inside the bugnet since he is prone to chewing on stuff. Ninety percent of the time, I just leave the pack on the ground with no ground sheet. As others have said, that's just more weight and I don't see the point.
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
I got one of kitsapcowboy's War Bags, but I haven't tried it yet.
It's a gear hammock that's supposed to hold at least 40 lbs and stay waterproof by just looping one side over and weighting its pocket with a rock or a water bottle.
I plan to hang it from my main suspension (below the drip lines?) with some dog bones or UCRs. I think I'll try to bias it toward the foot end of my hammock if possible.
SilvrSurfr’s clipping pack to hammock suspension, might be best option—high and dry enough and will not be carried off by a critter.
Also no extra gear needed other than a carabiner that is probably already clipped on pack. Less weight, less bulk, less to carry, less to store at home.
There is another thread going on that here. I really don't know what happened, and only had cause for concern when he didn't respond to my emails. He's usually very responsive. I just mention his name once in awhile because I have some of his excellent handmade gear and to keep him in our thoughts.
I've done it every time. There are probably lighter options but I just use a carabiner to hang my pack off my suspension and it's still under my tarp. No issue. I hang by shoes off the other end just by tying the laces together and laying them over the top. Easy Peasy. My tarp has doors but otherwise the pack would provide a bit of protection, too. Just make sure your food isn't in there.
Best Kind
I hang my pack off the tree webbing if it's dry.
I use my Frog Togg poncho on the ground for my shoes, sometimes my bag. Super versatile, that thing!
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