Anyone interested in starting a thread about the STUPIDEST thing you have ever done while hammocking--to make me feel a little better?
I just got back from my first below zero hang this winter. Grouse hunting has always been my favorite because you don't have to bundle up. Just walking through the forest keeps you warm. Since "dispersed camping" is allowed in state forests in MN I was able to park and hang in the middle of nowhere. Excellent!
The woods was gorgeous with one day old snow and I was really, REALLY enjoying sauntering through the deep woods by myself. Found wild turkey tracks everywhere. Nice to see them thriving because they are new to this forest. Even though I've hunted this area before I discovered a gorgeous river that I did not know was so close (a new winter camp in my very near future). Didn't hear or see anyone else all day except during lunch when I met my nephew who was bow hunting in the area. I only got lost a couple times. Lost = actually having to LOOK at the GPS to confirm I was headed in the right direction. I probably walked 7-8 miles altogether through the woods. Only saw one grouse (very disappointing) but I was able to share the final result of that encounter with my nephew who had never tasted grouse before. Delicious over an open fire! Suffice it to say I was enjoying every minute.
Speaking of fire (you knew it was coming), during the lunch break it was rather windy so we had a fire to keep warm but, sitting in my camp chair, I got a chilly butt/back. Being a brilliant person, I thought "Hey! I can rig up my $400+ UQ to my camp chair and be toasty warm!" I was right! It was easy to do and worked great! Brilliant! Not only was it windy but the wind was switching direction a lot. So, when I had to get up to gather more firewood--being a brilliant person--I carefully laid the UQ's cotton laundry bag over the UQ in case an ember made its way to my chair. In hindsight, maybe simply moving the chair away from the fire would have been a better idea!!!
I did learn something new, however. I learned that cotton laundry bags are VERY FLAMMABLE! About 5 minutes into the wood gathering task I saw smoke pouring from my camp chair. It took a second to realize THAT IS NOT RIGHT and for dread to pour over my body as I recalled what was in that chair. Sure enough, the laundry bag was almost in flames and the -40 degree CA Reaper was smoldering. I stomped on it once thinking that was the best way to put out the fire but a cloud of 900 fill down found a new home in the wind so I quickly changed tactics, grabbed the UQ and put out the rest by hand. Lucky I was wearing thick work gloves.
Once I knew the UQ was no longer burning I bunched up the quilt around the area and tied it off so I wouldn't lose any more feathery gold. Then I carefully put it into the laundry bag--which now has a very big burn hole in it because I ignored that while tending to the UQ.
It ended up "only" being about an 8 inch diameter hole in the UQ so I think it is repairable. I have already contacted George at Loco Libre for repair advise but wanted to share my brilliance with folks here in case someone ever thought "Hey, this cotton laundry bag will protect my expensive flammable equipment from embers".
!!! MY STUPID QUOTA IS FILLED FOR THE WEEK !!!
If anyone knows a good quilt repair shop in the Twin Cities, leave me a private message in case George's recommendations are too expensive/whatever.
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