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  1. #11
    Senior Member u.willie's Avatar
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    In my own experience, and other hangers I've spoke with about it over the years - Both Trail Runner and wbJohn are "spot on" with their suggestions.

    Yes, you can pull the (your) structural ridge line - or - hammock, to tight. I prefer my foot end 12-ish to 18-ish inches higher than my head end. Never once thought of it as "extreme" either, LOL. It does work amazingly well for me though.

    Give Trail Runner's and wbJohn's excellent suggestions a try, and see if they work for you.
    Perhaps worth mentioning, if you were nice and comfortable in the ENO, maybe going back to that is the way to go. I slept in one (an ENO) for a while and found it more than comfortable enough...

    Of course, your mileage may vary - as they say.

    What section are you doing? And I hope your shin splints heal quickly, and don't come back, compression sleeves/socks can help.

    Happy Trails!

    willin'

  2. #12
    Alright everyone, thanks for all the help. I’m back on the trail with a recovering shin splint. Today is my short day to get back up to pace, so I have a lot of hammock adjustment time. Here is how my hammock is currently set up. Trees are about 14 foot lengths apart. I went higher on the trees to get as close to 30deg as possible, and the head is lower than feet by 6-8”. I have the hammock more slack than I ever have in the past. I havent laid in it long enough to feel any discomfort, but even with this much slack in the suspension, I still can’t get much play in the ridgeline when I try to move it while lying down. Any thoughts here?

    Also, for whoever asked up top, this is the HH explorer that is meant to house a person up to 7’ tall comfortably. I’m 6’3” on a hot day.

    32C058A4-8D26-40F5-B0AC-4C0C2B045196.jpg
    Attached Images Attached Images

  3. #13
    Quote Originally Posted by u.willie View Post
    In my own experience, and other hangers I've spoke with about it over the years - Both Trail Runner and wbJohn are "spot on" with their suggestions.

    Yes, you can pull the (your) structural ridge line - or - hammock, to tight. I prefer my foot end 12-ish to 18-ish inches higher than my head end. Never once thought of it as "extreme" either, LOL. It does work amazingly well for me though.

    Give Trail Runner's and wbJohn's excellent suggestions a try, and see if they work for you.
    Perhaps worth mentioning, if you were nice and comfortable in the ENO, maybe going back to that is the way to go. I slept in one (an ENO) for a while and found it more than comfortable enough...

    Of course, your mileage may vary - as they say.

    What section are you doing? And I hope your shin splints heal quickly, and don't come back, compression sleeves/socks can help.

    Happy Trails!

    willin'
    Thanks. I’m gonna start raising my foot end up a bit more for sure. Also, the ENO has long since been gifted to a friend. Hoping I can get the Hennessy working better for me nightly. It wasn’t problematic on my first few nights out in it. Just the AT. And since ya asked, I’m doing the full state of Virginia. Started at HF a week ago.

  4. #14
    Senior Member BillyBob58's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by cougarmeat View Post
    Never heard that extreme foot end elevation for the Hennessy. For the WB BlackBird - yes. But usually a GE foot end is more like 6 - 8 inches. And the Ultralite is less than 10 ft long - another lean toward less extreme foot end. How tall are you? I’d think 11 ft is the most common camping/sleeping hammock length with some in the 12 ft range and a bit more in the 10 ft range. If you are over 6 ft tall, the less than 10 ft Ultralite might be too small for you.

    It looks like the ENO is even a few inches shorter than your Hennessy. it would be interesting to set the ENO up for your comfort spot, then, leaving the suspension alone, replace it with the Hennessy (or what ever it takes to do that - you might be using the Hennessy line instead of separate suspension). The idea is the get them as close as possible than make a tiny change because the Hennessy is just a tad longer.
    Doesn't Aaronbagby have the UL Explorer? If so, I have had a couple of those, and they are within a couple of inches of 11 ft. believe the RL length, at least on the older models, was 108", and on the regular UL ( not Explorer) was 100".

    Aaronbagby, My first two long trips ( of a week ) years ago were with HH Explorer ULs, and I was always very comfy. Back in the day many of us used to tighten the crap out of this RLs. (we did not know better) even though the HH instructions simply said to pull it moderately snug. One day, using a rope cleat of some sort, I'm pretty sure I actually tightened it enough that when I got in, it stretched the RL. And I could immediately tell that it was most uncomfortable. So I jumped out and loosened it up some. I think I even heard of folks on occasion breaking their RLs. But we don't hear of such foolishness these days. All that RL is meant to do is assure that the hammock is stretched out consistently to give the perfect amount of sag for that hammock and the bug net(so you don't tear the net), so that you don't have way to much or too little sag according to what the manufacturer has determined is correct sag. Very often this is with a RL length approximate .83 of hammock length. But for many, a little looser is OK as well, or some like a tad tighter than the factory allows.

    You might try to figure out if your RL has been stretched, again if it is like my HH UL Explorers, that RL should be about 108". HH doesn't currently list RL length, like they used to. But they do list the fabric dimensions as 132"X 59". 132" ( 11 ft ) X .83 = 109.5". So that RL most likely should be about 108-110" max, with just moderate tension applied. Don't hesitate to try it with the RL showing a hint of sag before you get in, it will tighten up after you are in there.

    Until you get all this figured out, consider 2 things for that back pain, which I have never had with that hammock:
    1: can you sleep on your side?
    2: when in your back, start using a good sized knee pillow. Or take a stuff sack and fill it with a small garbage sack filled with air and sealed off, or use some compression stuff sacks. Whatever, just so you end up with a supportive pillow under your knees. This is mostly used to defeat calf pressure caused by the GE hammocks center ridge. But it can also greatly help lower back pain. Give it a try. Good luck!

  5. #15
    Senior Member BillyBob58's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Aaronbagby View Post
    Alright everyone, thanks for all the help. I’m back on the trail with a recovering shin splint. Today is my short day to get back up to pace, so I have a lot of hammock adjustment time. Here is how my hammock is currently set up. Trees are about 14 foot lengths apart. I went higher on the trees to get as close to 30deg as possible, and the head is lower than feet by 6-8”. I have the hammock more slack than I ever have in the past. I havent laid in it long enough to feel any discomfort, but even with this much slack in the suspension, I still can’t get much play in the ridgeline when I try to move it while lying down. Any thoughts here?

    Also, for whoever asked up top, this is the HH explorer that is meant to house a person up to 7’ tall comfortably. I’m 6’3” on a hot day.

    32C058A4-8D26-40F5-B0AC-4C0C2B045196.jpg
    Aaron, that looks about right to me. It does not look too tight at all. For emergency help, try that knee pillow.

  6. #16
    So last night was a little better, less pain than nights past. Still not a comfortable sleep, feeling some shoulder squeeze as well as back pain. By the time I toss and turn into a bit of relief from the back pain, my UQ will often be off to one side, then I wake up cold. I’m going to experiement with taking a little length off the ridgeline (just putting an alpine butterfly in it to test the waters until I find it works). Will keep updated. Thanks all.

  7. #17
    all secure in sector 7 Shug's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Aaronbagby View Post
    So last night was a little better, less pain than nights past. Still not a comfortable sleep, feeling some shoulder squeeze as well as back pain. By the time I toss and turn into a bit of relief from the back pain, my UQ will often be off to one side, then I wake up cold. I’m going to experiement with taking a little length off the ridgeline (just putting an alpine butterfly in it to test the waters until I find it works). Will keep updated. Thanks all.
    You can use a small biner on the ridgeline and just wrap the line through it as many turns as you want. And let it out easily as well.
    Shug
    Whooooo Buddy)))) All Secure in Sector Seven

  8. #18
    Senior Member BillyBob58's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Aaronbagby View Post
    So last night was a little better, less pain than nights past. Still not a comfortable sleep, feeling some shoulder squeeze as well as back pain. By the time I toss and turn into a bit of relief from the back pain, my UQ will often be off to one side, then I wake up cold. I’m going to experiement with taking a little length off the ridgeline (just putting an alpine butterfly in it to test the waters until I find it works). Will keep updated. Thanks all.
    For me, the times when I have had the worst shoulder squeeze were when I had a hammock- mostly without a RL - too tight. The more sag I have in a GE hammock, the less shoulder squeeze. That might not be the best overall adjustment, but was the least shoulder squeeze.

  9. #19
    Personally I found your hammock (my first hammock) hard to get right every night on the AT, and also had problems with the getting the UQ perfect.

    Try switching to the Ridgerunner. Set up is a breeze, it's faster, it's easier to keep warmer, and it's easier to get the angle right.

    EDIT: Have you tried setting it up like Tom does in his videos? You'll notice he doesn't hang the Hennessy at 30 degrees, he has it lashed up very tight. Every time I did that I felt more comfortable, but I didn't do it much because I had it drummed into my head that 30 degrees is the magical number!
    Last edited by boothbot; 09-26-2020 at 11:45.

  10. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by Aaronbagby View Post
    IÂ’m on a section hike of the AT, and currently losing good sleep to pain in the center of my back every night.
    It seems to me, that the only relevant point of discussion is here.

    No offense intended to yerself or those who have generously chimed in to help- but let's not overlook the obvious.

    "Section hike"- as in you are undertaking a new physical activity that is the more likely cause of your physical issues. As you pointed out- you didn't pick up a hammock and spend your first night in it on the trail.
    "AT"- as in you aren't strolling on the local mulch covered flat land strolling trail. Again... little harder stroll than just a stroll.

    I'm not crapping on you, or implying that I am some manly man backpacker suggesting you need to toughen up. Actually the opposite... I'm a pretty soft basement dweller these days who is appalled at how much a simple walk can beat me up. I occasionally suffer from pretty severe back pain in my hammock... though I am wise enough to realize it was because I spent 16 hours hunched over a computer... not because my trusted hammock has suddenly failed to function.

    We all need a few days to adjust to the trail, even if in perfect condition. If we're in less than perfect condition... well it is a workout and workouts make us sore.
    Backpacking is a physical activity most of us simply don't do often enough to maintain the muscles necessary to glide along.

    I actually find it fairly frustrating to take a short trip... Day one feels great to be out again. You pay for it on day two or three, even if I'm wise enough to take it easy.
    Day's four through seven see some gradual improvement but really you need a good two weeks to really feel like you've arrived.


    Are there some tricks to tune our gear (including your pack itself) to improve things... sure.
    A little RL adjustment to provide more or less back support might alleviate some pain... course so might a handful of Aleve or a good snort of brown liquid.

    Sometimes the best trick is simply the mental one of accepting that jumping onto the trail takes a little sorting out for our bodies.
    Gear is a convenient scapegoat, but tends to only create more frustration as we try hard to solve the wrong problem.

    You're clearly doing a good enough job with your rig that you are 'falling asleep' easily.
    And you're not popping up in under an hour as one might be with a 'napping' hammock with some fatal flaw that prevents sleeping in it.
    So if nothing else that points to the person sleeping being the bigger issue than the thing they are sleeping in.
    The hammock didn't change itself while you were asleep- you changed. Why?

    Point being- time and mental energy fiddling too hard with an otherwise perfectly good hammock would likely be better spent on a little stretching, physical therapy, and self care.
    Stretching a few times during the day will keep the blood flowing and the toxins flushed. That will reduce the likelihood of otherwise healthy (but sore) muscles locking up.
    A hot water bottle on your back would loosen up those locked up muscles before bed, perhaps enough so you will get through the full night again.

    You didn't mention if there are any underlying past injuries or physical limitations you may have aggravated (or aren't aware of). I personally have several... no matter how wonderous the hammock... for the most part I cannot sleep in a single position for more than a few hours. More often than not I also find that when I do... I wake up in pain by simple dint of the fact my poor body cramped up when stuck in a single position for too long.

    Injuries or not; perhaps you may find you need to do the 'two sleeps' method... your muscles may actually be injured by the day's work, or by the back to back nature of backpacking you are performing the weightlifters sin of working the same muscle group too many days in a row. So while we don't often think of workout soreness as an 'injury'... if you workout for multiple days in a row the same sore muscle it can be it's own form of injury.

    Your 4-5 hours of sedentary activity may have caused them to clench up overmuch as they try to rebuild.... a short walk around camp, a hot tea, warm rag or hot water bladder on your back with a little stretching may open things up again and allow a full night's sleep to continue. You're on trail... does it matter much if you're 'in camp' for 9 hours or 10? Many folks find this happens to them on longer hikes in the fresh air even with no pain. But many also find that a 'split sleep' is much more restful than short sleeping then stubbornly 'toughing it out' in bed to officially finish your allotted time for 'sleep'.

    Get up, check out the moon or stars. Listen to the animals. Make a hot cuppa, or 'reduce a bit of navy plug to it's lowest denomination' as Nessmuk used to say.
    Take a piss, touch your toes, pretend you're hula-hooping with a pretty lady. Get the blood flowing and flush out your sore muscles. When kicking your metabolism deep down into the bowels of restful sleep... your muscle repair functions likely shut down, or at least slow down. Waking up your metabolism again can be all you need to get a fresh 'flush' of fluids to wash away those toxins and allow your muscles to relax, loosen, and heal.

    Laying there in pain, no matter how determined you may be, will not get you rest. So get up, try a few things, and head back to bed.
    I've even gone so far as to get up and hike during the 'witching hour', sleeping again after breakfast or having an afternoon siesta. I occasionally find that pattern much more restorative given some of my personal physical issues. Even without them... night hiking is it's own reward... and walking along with the dawning of the day is a very enjoyable experience that tends to make you forget any unpleasantness in your life. The trail can make the lines of 'rest' and 'sleep' pretty blurry... so don't be shy about trying some stuff. Maybe you're not missing sleep so much as missing what your body and trail is telling you. Hard to say- but if you aren't sleeping anyway seems a good time to explore the mysteries of the universe to me

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