Originally Posted by Brooklyn
That could be the answer to the OP's dilemma.
Can't lie... I have been doing some DCF projects lately and have pondered a DIY KISS Glasgow Asym.
That could be the answer to the OP's dilemma.
Can't lie... I have been doing some DCF projects lately and have pondered a DIY KISS Glasgow Asym.
Yes, my pack weighs 70lbs, but it's all light weight gear....
Bob's brother-in-law
I think the only issue is having to make a seam to get the size you need for the Glasgow. The DCF doesn't come big enough (wide). Still doable but more work. That's why I'm against buying the one Dutch sells, price and size. I think I have that right, someone correct me if I'm wrong.
made an asym tarp last winter. used it during the hot days of summer. mainly for shade. lol. definatly would rethink using this for any kind of multi day hike. Spent a couple days in the rain, but it was only a light drizzle. 1 down pour, did the job but was no wind. That thing barely covers, any kind of wind and rain mix, your done. I don't care how low you try to hang that thing.
My worst night in a hammock was still better than my best night in a tent!!!!
I've followed the same migration as SilvrSurfr but may go back to something like a WB MiniFly to "learn my lesson" again. I mostly kayak camp so weight isn't an issue. But unlike a hiker who can roam about. Sometimes I need to use the closest trees possible. And what would work for the hammock is too close for conventional (big) tarp rigging.
When I travel to a launch point - usually a two day drive - I often stay in a campground. An epiphany I had last summer was I didn't need to find two good trees. I just needed to find one good tree the proper distance from my jeep. One end of the hammock to the rack on the top of the jeep, the other end on the tree. In the past, I've made countless passes around campgrounds looking for two trees the correct distance.
Because the hammock is so quick and easy to put up, I might wait until dark-ish, after all the campground host's rounds are made, to setup. In the morning, I'm de-camped and on my way before most others are up.
By myself, I'd seek out bad weather. What fun to be dry, under a tarp with the wind and rain blowing around. If I'm lucky, some of the wind would rock the hammock. But with others, I have to plan for good weather. So in those campground situations, I seldom put up a tarp - but I would use a sock. This summer, I'm going to get my SnakeSkin act together so I can deploy it almost as fast as the hammock. I haven't decided about guy stakes - If I set the tarp up, stakes in the ground, then contain the tarp back in the skins, the guy stakes will be ready. But they are also something to trip over, with no warning guylines attached (not that that seemed to make much difference).
Last edited by cougarmeat; 03-02-2019 at 19:52.
One thing I've learned about Hammock Forums (or any Internet forum) is that there is a tendency towards GroupThink, or mass hysteria, as I like to call it. Somebody could post a thread about a whether a diamond-configuration tarp is sufficient, and if the first five posts are "thumbs up," then anyone who feels differently is unlikely to post since they don't want to rock the boat and be in the minority.
The worst example of GroupThink - mass hysteria was several years ago with the Guide Gear 12 x 12 tarp from Sportsman's Guide. There was nary a negative review of this $20 tarp - it was the best tarp value ever! There were hundreds of reviews on HF about what a great tarp it was. So I naively bought a couple, thinking, "How could so many positive reviews be wrong?" Well, the Guide Gear tarps leaked like sieves. You don't hear about the Guide Gear tarp anymore because people realized that they were psyching themselves into thinking that a crappy tarp was a great tarp through GroupThink/mass hysteria. I don't know how so many people fooled themselves into thinking the Guide Gear tarp was good. Didn't anyone ever take them out in a real rainstorm? Were all the positive reviews by fair-weather campers who wouldn't even go out if there was a 20% chance of rain? Even people whose opinion I respected endorsed this tarp, only to later reveal that they were wrong and it was a waste of $20.
Same thing happens with asym tarps - you can get five positive posts on asym tarps and anyone who had a negative experience with an asym tarp will be afraid to post because they want to remain "part of the herd," rather than stick out like a sore thumb. I think folks also don't want to sound negative in an overwhelmingly positive post.
I can thoroughly understand how some people (especially fair-weather campers) could go many years with a tiny asym tarp and never run into sideways rain. From the research I've done, shifting winds and blowing precipitation aren't that common in interior parts of the country. However, I live two blocks from the Atlantic Ocean and have a giant river behind my house. Shifting winds and blowing precipitation are the norm, not the exception. In my back yard, I often see 40 mph winds that shift constantly, sometimes two or three times a minute, or more. I quickly realized that an asym tarp or a diamond-config tarp wasn't going to cut it in my back yard.
Another place I often camp is the NJ Pine Barrens. I'd say that 90%, maybe even 95% of the time you'll get straight-down rain and an asym or diamond-config tarp will work fine. However, at our post-Thanksgiving hang last year, we saw a hellacious rainstorm with five inches of rain and 50 to 60 mph wind gusts. Out of 40 hangers, probably 15 had to go sleep in their cars or pack up and go home, and some of those people even had 4-season tarps with doors, but the rain just blew in and soaked their quilts and hammock. Tarp stakes were ripped out of the ground, and the rain soaked everything in 15-seconds flat! I survived that night - my tarp stakes held, but the rain did blow in my 4-season tarp with doors and my quilts and hammock got wet. Luckily, the low was only 31* and I had 0* quilts with water-resistant down so I slept like a baby (though the rain was collecting on the inside of the tarp and dripping on my face most of the night). Of course, the forecast called for, at most, 2 inches of rain and max wind gusts of 30 to 40 mph. Needless to say, we were all surprised at the ferocity of this storm.
If you're car camping, and can easily bail out and go home, or sleep in the car, I'd say an asym or diamond-config tarp will work most of the time. I lived in Atlanta, Georgia for a few years, and I'd bet you could get away with an asym tarp for most rain storms. However, don't take that tarp near the coast, or up in the mountains, or near bodies of water, because you're liable to hit shifting winds and blowing precipitation!
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
Considering the multiple ridge tie outs (I have six), I would think two seams, one on each side towards the bottom, would preserve the versatility in choosing various ridge configurations, while conserving raw materials.
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Yes, my pack weighs 70lbs, but it's all light weight gear....
Bob's brother-in-law
I've used an Asym from Zpacks as a what if it rains tarp. Normally on just a few days on the trail. In driven side rain it works only when supplemented with other gear. Issue is with spray / rain blown off edge of tarp. Straight down rain no problem. So for head end I attach my rectangle rain skirt for added coverage. Foot end I zip up rain jacket and pull over end of hammock. So now I am good for a dry night even in hard rain. But... the spot under the hammock if dry is very small. IE the pack has to be dead center under the hammock in that little dry spot. So again supplementing I usually will place everything in a large trash bag to keep it dry if a torrent of rain comes. The application, this is my tarp when doing trail maintenance in warm weather. The chain saw and fuel / safety gear etc are the primary load on a framed pack, then a tiny as I can get it hammock kit for camping on the way through.
http://www.stc-hike.org/ Susquehannock Trail Club web site - PA STS trail info
Wow, Im a little overwhelmed with all the thorough responses.
Thank you so much for all the input everyone!
Still not sure what Im gonna do thought!
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