Last weekend, I went camping in the woods. Got down to 24F overnight (that's real temperature, not counting any light wind robbing me from underneath that likely would have made it colder). I did "pretty good" overall but suffered occasionally spots of coldness underneath. I'm looking for inspiration on how to improve things here... BTW, 49 year old male, 5'10 and about 170-175 lbs.
My Setup:
* Tarp: Winter Palace. It was strung with about a 12 inch gap to the ground. I could have tucked it closer - not sure how much that would help. I also used spreader poles on top to get a bit more space between the tarp and the layers below it.
* Hammock: 11' Dreamhammock Sparrow. 2 Layer with Winter Cover.
* Winter Sock: Warbonnet. Added another layer to internal climate here
* Underquilt: HG 20 degree Incubator
* Topquilt: EE 20 degree enigma
* Middle Layer: Not sure if that's right phrase there but also used a Sea to Summit Reactor liner that I wiggled into
* Clothing: Merino wool 200 leggings and shirt + synthetic light weight coat, stocking gap, buff around neck. Feet had down booties.
* Bonus Items: I put an old self-inflating pad (about 1/2 filled) in between the 2 layers of the hammock and a 16 inch wide sheet of reflectix.
I thought the pad was worthless. I never could tell when I was on it. The reflectix was great (at times) but 16 inches was just too narrow for a side-sleeper and I felt like I was struggling to 'stay on it'. Between the pad and the reflectix, I thought I might be infringing on the UQ setup and breaking the seal partially on the UQ. Around 6am, I tossed both the pad and the reflectix out of the rig and only used the UQ and felt like I was warmer than when I tried to stack everything but I only laid there for another 10-20 minutes before getting up to break camp. The UQ was only rated to 20F which is why I was trying to stack things to get a more cozy environment.
So, I guess my question is - as I know I have some more cold weather hammocking coming up and its likely to be colder than before. As its car-camping oriented, I can bring extra gear and 'play around' with it... and even make some modifications between night 1 and night 2.
1) Anyone have any suggestions for using a reflectix pad inside a hammock (stuck between layers) AND using an underquilt? I can use one 24 inches in width or even combine 2 of the 16's to make a 32 inch width. This would be in series with the UQ, not by itself.
2) Is an underquilt protector basically going to do the same thing as a winter sock? (just not as good as it doesn't do the top side)
3) Is it possible to "stack" underquilts? I have an older one (DIY) that I could put in series with the Incubator
4) Hot Water Nalgene - any suggestions here in a hammock? I've done it for tenting but for hammocking, not 100% sure (other than put it in a ziplock and an old wool sock)
5) Should I try and snug the tarp closer to the ground? Does it really help if there is no noticeable wind? (ie, < 10 mph)
6) Should I ditch the spreader bars on the top of the tarp so it doesn't create as large of a space? (Might make contact with the winter sock)
Anything I'm missing here? Thanks!
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