Hello from Virginia!

[Argent]

Hey Everyone, just thought I'd say hi.

I started looking into hammock camping while planning a hiking trip this past Spring that I ended up having to cancel because my dog needed surgery instead. He's doing fine now, but it was rough on him and took up a huge chunk of my time helping him recover. Anyway, I never did end up making it out there and before I knew it the weather had turned too hot for my liking, so now I'm trying to put together some gear for a trip this Fall.

I've been reading as many posts, forums, blogs and watching as many YouTube videos as I can to figure out what I should get and I figured I'd take a second to thank all of y'all out there who have spent so much time and effort putting all this great info up for newbies like myself! It's helping a TON!

I currently have an old ENO double nest that was a Christmas present probably 10 years ago and only used for the occasional yard lounging. After learning a ton on here about structural ridgelines and diagonal lays, I ordered a structural ridgeline sized for the ENO from Dutch along with a set of whoopie slings to try to get it setup properly. I also nabbed a pair of webbed straps and carabiners from Hammock Gear during their Spring Sale and now I can hang the old ENO from any trees in my backyard and get a nice comfortable lay...far better than the original banana lay I was used to.

So now I'm trying to get some money together to get a Dutchware Chameleon hammock, looking at a single layer wide 1.6 hexon with a bugnet and probably a Hammock Gear Journey Winter Tarp as my actual camping setup. I really like the adaptability of the whoopie slings I got from Dutch a few months ago (even though one was missing a bead when I got it, I don't think I'll pull it through on accident), so I think those combined with the straps and carabiners I already have from Hammock Gear would round out my hammock suspension. Still gotta figure out something for the tarp though. I'll probably get some of their discounted reflective guyline and rig something up, maybe with some Dutch stuff. I think I'd like the privacy/versatility of the winter tarp with doors though, far better than a more open tarp setup.

I haven't settled on an underquilt yet or not. I am a hot sleeper and routinely sleep with the windows wide open or at least cracked even in the depths of Winter, so I wonder if a basic pad would work. Not sure on a top quilt or partially zipped sleeping bag either on top. Still doing my research on both of those.

Anyway, if anyone has any tips or suggestions, please feel free to let me know. I'm still in the planning/learning phase (does it ever end?), so it's all appreciated!

-Argent

[TrailSlug]

Welcome to the forums. My recommendations would be to backyard test any and all insulation prior to going deep into the woods. What may work for me may not work for you so testing is your best bet.

[FLTurtle]

Welcome! Good luck with using a pad...if you're an active sleeper, you'll probably gonna want an UQ in the cooler months.

[Starfish Comet]

Welcome,
My suggestion is to get to a group hang. There are some coming up this fall in VA and NC. People will be happy to show you their hammocks and assorted gear. They will tell you about what worked and didn't work for them. You will get a much better idea about what features you like or don't like before you invest your money. You meet the best people at hangs and even can learn skills like splicing.

[sidneyhornblower]

Hi Argent and welcome. Since you asked for suggestions, here's one:
Use what you have until you know what you need. That saves you money, gets you out in the woods and gives you the experience you'll need to make wise purchases later on.
Cheers.

[Argent]

Thanks for the welcome and the tips y'all!

I've got a few hundred acres of woods behind my house that I plan on using to test things out before I go on a longer trip this Fall, but I'm still at the researching gear and buying gear stage at this point. I haven't bought a pad or underquilt yet, so there's plenty of time to decide which one would work the best. I've been seeing a lot of YouTube videos and posts where people say if they had just bought a quality underquilt, quality tarp, quality hammock, etc. from the start it would have saved them money and time in the long run. On the flipside, Sidney makes a good point about using what I have now before I spend a bunch of money to see what I really need.

I think I'm probably going to split the difference and get a few pieces of quality gear, use them and then see what I need/am missing before I go nuts buying stuff. I've got a nice, but large, external frame backpack I plan on using, so that'll save me some money there. It's not the lightest thing in the world but I have no intention of being an ultralight hiker or distance hiker, just a short trek here and there is all I'm planning.

I had planned on using the ENO that I have rigged up with a structural ridgeline, but I saw that Dutch has the Chameleon and accessories on sale...I don't think I can resist! I still need to get a tarp, but since I'm pretty much 100% planning on getting a Chameleon at some point anyway, I'm leaning hard in the direction of just biting the bullet and ordering one.

I prefer to solo hike/camp because I like the peace and solitude, but I might check out a group hang in the region at some point. I'm a biologist by training, so being able to just go out into the woods and melt away to watch the wildlife is my heaven. That's always harder to do with a group!

Thanks again for the info and the greetings!

-Argent

[Grunt]

Hello and welcome to HF! It looks like you've already been bitten by "the bug", so I'll dispense with the warnings. I miss VA, especially the Tidewater region. Good to have a new hanger from another of my favorite states.

[Zenbudah]

I miss VA...tidewater as well or some may say Hampton roads...others may refer to it is the 7 cities...lived in Norfolk/ VB for 4 years and a proud Alumni of the Cayce / Reilly school of massage therapy!

[oldpappy]

Welcome to the forum. Use whatever you have and get out camping to learn while the weather is good - you can even learn a lot during a quick nap around the house. Break your needs down to the major components and fix one issue at a time by researching it using the forum during bad weather days. Lots of great ideas and experienced hammockers inputs can be found here.