Skipping insulation in summer heat

[outdoorsguy]

I came out to hang at 7 this morning, and it was 74 with a soft breeze. I had been been up, moving around and drinking coffee since 5 AM and I was chilly on my back/butt. Imagine at 4 AM, waking up, no coffee or moving around, I'd have been freezing. It's now 7:51, 77 deg with 8 mph wind and I'm just now OK. BTW, no insulation top or bottom, I'm in my front yard hanging from a hammeck stand, wish they were still in business.

[Dead Man]

The last section hike my son and I did was the Standing Indian Gap to NOC section. The weekend before Memorial day so technically still Spring. We got into a shelter the afternoon of the last night before we hiked into the NOC the next morning. We set up and were just hanging out and talking. It was still in the upper 70 low 80s, pretty humid that day and I had the UQ pushed to the side. A little cool but not so much so that I was bothered. I wasn't trying to go to sleep at that point either. Later that night when we went to sleep, I still used the UQ but the TQ was on standby until around 1 a.m.when I had to pull it up because I was getting chilled. Low that night may have been in the upper 60s if that.

I know I, like others, will pack my fears. I hate sleeping in really hot humid weather which is why my hiking camping season is at an end in the south until October/November through April/May. I prefer to winter camp more than anything else. That being said, I know I'll have a lot of research to do if I'm gonna Goldilocks this aspect of a thru-hike. May miss it by a mile but worth the effort otherwise.

Thanks to the OP for getting this discussion started. Lots of valuable experience coming to bare here.

[TrailBlaser]

My 20d TQ and UQ weigh so little and don't take up a lot of space in the pack (I stuff them loose in a compactor bag in the pack), that I would rather be assured that I will be warm on the sometimes cool Adirondack summer nights.

[dkurfiss]

What amazes me is the difference when each of us feel the cold. Example. My brother and I are hanging. At 70F I am cold and looking for my down quilts. At 70F he is sleeping with just a fleece blanket that he curls up in. What is really amazing is when we are out and about in cold weather (below 32F) I will be fine with a base layer and light wool pull over while he is bundled up like he is going on a arctic expedition. Guess that just proves he sleeps hot and I sleep cold.

[MoeTCrow]

I'm in the hot and humid South. when it's summer I've done a couple of things...
get one of those foam and silver windshield shades from the $1 store. put something over it and just plop into the hammock. they are flexible enough to not be uncomfortable.
I've rigged my poncho so that I can hang it under the hammock, I've then used that and a space blanket as an insulator garlington taco style.
when none of the above work, I may combine both and sleep on some clothes as an extra layer.
and sometimes if I know it's going to get cold I just grab the underquilt and vent it.

just my $.02

[GreatBigDave]

I start many July-August nights in New Jersey miserably hot with my UQ pushed completely to the side. I have never made it through a night without waking up cold and pulling it under me.

[Floridahanger]

My only insulation is 20* set top and bottom quilts
Can I skip insulation on hot summer nights without freezing?
What would nighttime lows have to be and be above for me to be warm enough to sleep through night without great discomfort? I know everyone is different. Have you tried skipping insulation and considered it a success on hot summer nights?
No guessing—has it worked for you?
Thanks Y’all

OK. Just so we're on the same page, I'm in Florida. We camp in the Ocala National Forest in July(No UQ Hang) and September(Summer's Last Gasp) for comparison. I try to skip the insulation both hangs and almost always end up with my thin, synthetic DIY Summer UQ and TQ deployed in the AM. Also no bugnet do to the nice breeze.

The reason is I hang on the last trees before a wide open pond. There is an open corridor to the next pond so I almost always get a breeze and the chilly's wake me up around 3am to slide the UQ under me and TQ on me. They are usually ready to deploy if I need them. Some nights the cool breeze keeps me at the low end of comfortable and don't need the quilts.

For temps, without breeze it's usually mid 70's and don't need quilts but do use bugnet. With the breeze and in the lower 70's I definitely use the quilts because the breeze robs the warmth like standing next to the AC and no bugnet is needed.

I usually have the UQ set up but pushed aside and the TQ next to me or at my feet so there is little fumbling in that early AM if I need to deploy them.

Hope that helps.

[dakotaross]

On great, clear camping nights, seems I'm always a little too cool in the wee hours for no insulation, even on the hottest days. I've only had good luck going without insulation in muggy conditions ripe for thunderstorms, and always at lower elevation in those conditions. Riding out a thunderstorm is a real joy in an uninsulated hammock. Seems like the nights in those conditions have more stagnant, warm air, making it more conducive to going without insulation.

[Winnie]

My underquilt protector helps keep cool breezes off my backside when I go underquilt free.