SLD Trail Lair and DH Darien

**SLG45** · 05-22-2020, 19:59

I'd like to hear any thoughts, pro or con, about these two choices. Assuming both are 11' and around 58" wide, in the same fabric, is one "better" than the other? Thanks very much.

**bcliff** · 05-22-2020, 20:10

love my trail lair and have heard great things about the Darien. You can't make a bad decision here.

**cmc4free** · 05-22-2020, 22:05

Because of the way the net works, the Trail Lair is actually a better apples to apples comparison with the Dream Hammock Dangerbird. The Darien has a zipper on only one side and the net is not removable or retractable to one end.

But I agree you wouldn't be going wrong with either, or in fact any of those three hammocks. I have a different hammock and a couple of tarps from Jared at SLD and it's all top notch as any other customer of his would tell you. I also have 2 Dream Hammocks including a Darien. I just wrote about it in a different post, here:

https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...=1#post2019146

**cmc4free** · 05-22-2020, 22:19

In case it factors into your decision, you're also basically looking at the opposite ends of the cottage industry spectrum of lead times. Dream Hammock, while worth the wait, has one of the longer lead-times, while Jared seems to miraculously crank out his production while you sleep and has it in the mail already by the time you wake up.

**SLG45** · 05-22-2020, 22:22

I know the net setups are different, but the weights are very similar for the setups im looking at, and both of them seem to be very highly regarded in terms of comfort.

**cmc4free** · 05-22-2020, 22:37

Those are probably the 2 hammock vendors that specilize the most in customization, so if you talk to them about fabrics and sizing, either one will steer you toward something that should be really comfortable for you.

**JollyRoger70** · 05-22-2020, 23:29

People I know with Dream hammocks seem to like them, but I’ve been totally satisfied with my Trail Lair. It came with exactly the features I wanted, and Jared seems to have magic powers for getting things in the mail quickly. I would add that having the zipper that opens on each side is wonderful when getting the UQ dialed in.

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**SLG45** · 05-23-2020, 06:34

One problem with "choose your own width", is that you never know what it's like till you have one. I would assume that wider is always better (look at Brazilian hammocks), but maybe it needs to be longer than 11' if you are going to go wider than x? So, what is x? At 5'6", I think 62" wide can be confining at times, but people tell me that you really don't want wider. Others say 58" is better, even for taller people.

**cmoulder** · 05-23-2020, 07:40

Originally Posted by SLG45

One problem with "choose your own width", is that you never know what it's like till you have one. I would assume that wider is always better (look at Brazilian hammocks), but maybe it needs to be longer than 11' if you are going to go wider than x? So, what is x? At 5'6", I think 62" wide can be confining at times, but people tell me that you really don't want wider. Others say 58" is better, even for taller people.

For a Darien, I would just contact the Smurfs and ask their recommendation. I wanted a 10' Darien and asked what they'd recommend for width for my height 5'9" and they came up with 64" which was spot-on for me.

BUT if you browse the forums enough you will see a mind-boggling range of preferences... people who are 5'3" and found happiness with a 12' hammock and people who are 6'3" sleeping in a 8.5' Hummingbird.