Congrats Shrewd! Two full thru's without washing means not just clumpy, but RIPE! We got a topquilt back for a few mods a couple of years ago that a guy used on the PCT for two weeks and it smelled awful!
Congrats Shrewd! Two full thru's without washing means not just clumpy, but RIPE! We got a topquilt back for a few mods a couple of years ago that a guy used on the PCT for two weeks and it smelled awful!
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Huge CONGRATS to you on Thru Hiking the PCT! Very cool & impressive!
He (Two Speed) spoke of you when we did the Massanutten Loop earlier this year, so it's great to hear you finished, and see yer post.
Thanks for posting up some info on your hike and hammocking on it.
Now TWO hammock forum members have hammocked (<~~ yeah sure, that's a word - lol) the PCT and posted about it. Awesome! Thank you to you, and Two Speed for sharing the experience/info.
willin'
Good info Shrewd. I like your style. Sometimes you just go with what works & its not always about having the lightest piece of gear. And I can see how it would be important to hang with your trail family. I'm sure that helped pass the miles.
Do you think the wet foot end of the TQ was due to no doors on the tarp? Or sleeping in clouds?
If your tarp had doors, do you think that would have helped when cowboy camping in the desert? Or just easier to setup a tent at that point.
Anyway thanks for sharing your experience & congrats on completing the trail.
Thanks for the AAR Shrewd. I’ve been researching the PCT to consider the possibility of hanging, and your report confirms the challenges that it holds. Also, I hadn’t considered that the giant conifers in OR and WA would be a problem for 15’ suspensions.
What was your base weight through the Sierras?
Congrats Man! Two HUGE accomplishments
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Alright I’m going to try to go through questions one by one:
I think the standard hex tarp was sufficient, yeah. Honestly I used it way more on the AT. Sure I wouldn’t mind doors, but back then I’d have rather had more width before I had doors. If Hg had an option to add an extra foot to both sides for width I’d have paid for it.
Doors would totally help; on the AT you’re usually deep in the woods so wind is often not a big deal - out west it’s much more of a factor. If doors gave you more comfort, or even peace of mind, they’re worth the grams and dollars.
I only set my tarp up with trekking poles in the desert maybe 5 times. 4 of those times were a precaution because I didn’t trust the sky. The 5th time all my stuff got wet anyway. I even did everything right - low foot end, bushes as windbreak....it was a real solid pitch but that wind and rain was just nuts. What can ya do?
I admit that storm was one of the last straws that led to me just getting my tent.
Long story short; if you’d rather have doors, or already have em but are worrying about weight...might as well get doors!
I should also add that I loved Two Speed’s UQP primarily as a wind break, the moisture benefits were a bonus.
Someone mentioned down vs synthetic. If I were to do it again I’d still go down. I really like the merits of synthetic insulation and would happily go down the rabbit hole with you if you like (my initial puffy was synthetic and I quite enjoyed it), but for sleeping I’d go down. Sure Washington sucked, but it’s worth noting that it was damp but not so wet that it didn’t do its job. It just sucked crawling into at first and eventually my body heat did it’s job. You really can beat these quilts up, and now you know George will work on them even if they smell like monkey butt
But wet foot boxes isn’t a hammocker issue. In the worst of Washington it happened to everybody; even those in double wall tents. It’s just a condensation thing I suppose. If you’re sleeping in a rain cloud things are just going to be wet and you just plug in those headphones and watch an episode of Peaky Blinders and try not to think about it. I should stress that when I say wet I mean damp and crappy, not soaked through.
I did not continue carrying the pad for the whole trail. After mammoth, when I got my hammock kit back, I committed to it and found a place to hang every night. That brings up my 15’ straps. They were ok; if I did it again I’d still bring em. Many nights I hardly used half their length, but there were a few times I was tight. But, like the AT, these problems can always be solved by walking a little bit further.
Regarding my Sierra base weight; I don’t actually know. Shoot I don’t even know my starting baseweight.
Let’s see, I added my Patagonia thermal weight leggings and hoody, micro spikes, ice axe, a bear can, snow gloves and a second puffy (by accident)
I also swapped my nice SWD Long Haul 50 for my old ULA circuit, mostly to fit the bear can. And all that food, god that sucked.
The bear can is silly; we were all carrying so much food we filled our cans AND our bags.
On my heaviest day, with water and food, I was easily at 45 pounds
That was me that mentioned synthetic, so thanks for the answer. Just wondering if it would have helped when everything got wet, though the price would be more bulk and a bit more weight. And it doesn't sound like you had any spare room after all that food. But another thing that occurred to me: do you know, did any one have a version of dry down, and if so were they any better off?
About those foot boxes: I remember years ago, when the folks at Backpacking Light(BPL) were planning a long, mostly off trail and very remote, trip across Alaska in the summer. If memory serves, that's when they developed their synthetic Cocoon series, because they had so much previous trouble with - as they put it - the foot boxes in their down quilts collapsing(in tents and/or bivys). They were especially concerned since they anticipated a lack of sunshine for drying, on such a long, remote trip, and they had the foot box problem several times before. Something about foot boxes apparently. Had it happen to a buddy of mine once, inside a 2 man double wall North Face West Wind 4 season tent. We never did see any or much moisture inside the tent, but the foot box of his down bag was soaked. I ended up guessing it might have been from condensation or sweat from his feet, which apparently crank out more moisture than the rest of the body? Also, happened to me one time in a hammock, where only the foot of my synthetic bag and OCF pad were soaked(but both still warm enough), and nothing else wet(no rain, so condensation?) Oh, guess where I was for that last example? WA state, ONP. I guess WA and moisture go together. But the longer the trip, the greater the challenge to stay dry. And boy did you guys have a challenge! Sleeping in clouds and all!
Most companies use some form of treated down, to my knowledge. All mainstream companies and I think all but a few cottage companies.
I don’t know specifically if anyone used an untreated down quilt or bag; the most common quilts are from enlightened Equipment by far, and then zpacks, both of whom use down-tek
Actually here’s a list on reddit discussing this. It seems some companies like nunatac prefer it and others like UGQ have gone to untreated
https://www.reddit.com/r/Ultralight/...tm_name=iossmf
Last edited by Shrewd; 10-21-2019 at 09:05.
Hi Shrewd, big achievement. Congratulations man. Especially the year it’s been! We met that camp just out of Big Bear - ‘Ireland’ here. You remembered me from the AT when i’d carried a Uke. You look so different in your pre-beard pic! I remember I was stoked to see you as you were only the second hammocker i’d met. I was really missing mine.
I got off at Wrightwood and will continue on from there next year (weather & finances). I’ll be bringing my hammock next time but maybe bounce a tent to Acton or Lake Hughes and then pick up hammock again at Onyx. Your thoughts? I have been looking at every available photo on Guthooks. I thought about all my tent camps up to Wrightwood and think about 60% of the time could have hung, and that was coincidental without looking since I was in the tent. But I get the sense around the Mojave it could be going to ground a lot?
So few managed a linear thru this year - the Sierras must have been something. When you passed me at the river the next morning after our camp I knew I wouldn’t be seeing you again! You were powering!
All the best, Ireland.
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