Hanging at 115° in the desert

**Hiker_Section** · 06-21-2021, 21:38

Great, those fans should help. One more thing popped into my mind regarding the tarping and double-tarping you mentioned to create an effective sun shade. I came across a few threads where the idea came up of draping a grommeted emergency rescue blanket or space blanket over a tarp or tent with the reflective side up. Some claim space blankets make a great barrier to direct sunlight and there are folks that drape a space blanket over tarps and tents. In my research I couldn't verify how widespread this practice is or whether there's any validity to it. Have you tried this? I'll stop pestering you about this but I figure it's time well spent. In a few days I'll be departing for my own hammock adventure in the Southwest Ozarks (Arkansas) but it looks like the temperatures won't be so bad other than some expected rain. All the best.

**OneClick** · 06-24-2021, 08:20

How about 1000 miles north in Washington this week, near Spokane. Whooooo she's gonna be toasty!!!

Saturday
Sunny and hot, with a high near 102.

Sunday
Sunny and hot, with a high near 105.

Monday
Sunny and hot, with a high near 110.

Tuesday
Sunny and hot, with a high near 110.

Wednesday
Sunny and hot, with a high near 106.

**Crazytown3** · 06-24-2021, 08:52

Originally Posted by LowTech

We do have fans in the rigs, and a doz 8000mAh battery packs. Some of which we will take depending on the trip and what we may need to charge. It's easy enough to charge them off the rig's solar system.

I did order some of these, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07W11P31V...ing=UTF8&psc=1

I figure that w/one plugged into the end of one of the battery packs, and the battery in the ridgeline organizer, it will point straight down at us in the hammock. That way I can avoid the issue of the wires braking in a flexible neck variety.
Should have them today, so we'll see how they work.

Someday, if you roll through the Salt Lake City area, I would love to buy you a beer or two, and check out your whole setup. This is fascinating to me.

**OneClick** · 06-24-2021, 09:25

My repost from an old thread:

I bought one of these fans for $1.75. Breaks down small and I wrap it with a velcro strap that also holds it to the ridgeline. The Xtar battery pack is for my phone, but I will sacrifice some power for this when I need it. The battery percentage is key; I hate guessing what's left. If I get in a pinch, I can always use the battery from my headlamp for another 3500mAh, depending on how much more use I'll need with the headlamp on the remainder of the trip.

**LowTech** · 06-24-2021, 12:37

Originally Posted by Crazytown3

Someday, if you roll through the Salt Lake City area, I would love to buy you a beer or two, and check out your whole setup. This is fascinating to me.

You're on! But I'm a beer snob, so some kind of microbrew too dark to see through.

We have been talking about spending some of Oct just south of you, but not sure if we'd have the whole caravan or just the 4Runner and hammocks.

**LowTech** · 06-24-2021, 12:43

Originally Posted by OneClick

My repost from an old thread:

I bought one of these fans for $1.75. Breaks down small and I wrap it with a velcro strap that also holds it to the ridgeline. The Xtar battery pack is for my phone, but I will sacrifice some power for this when I need it. The battery percentage is key; I hate guessing what's left. If I get in a pinch, I can always use the battery from my headlamp for another 3500mAh, depending on how much more use I'll need with the headlamp on the remainder of the trip.

Thanks! I did get those little 90° fans that I linked, and the batt packs I have lay nice in the bottom of the ridgeline organizer, but . . . I found that the micro-usb port on the packs inputs only. So I found some USB2 - micro-usb adapters and have them on order. Should have them by the weekend.

**LowTech** · 08-22-2021, 10:58

Originally Posted by Hiker_Section

Great, those fans should help. One more thing popped into my mind regarding the tarping and double-tarping you mentioned to create an effective sun shade. I came across a few threads where the idea came up of draping a grommeted emergency rescue blanket or space blanket over a tarp or tent with the reflective side up. Some claim space blankets make a great barrier to direct sunlight and there are folks that drape a space blanket over tarps and tents. In my research I couldn't verify how widespread this practice is or whether there's any validity to it. Have you tried this? I'll stop pestering you about this but I figure it's time well spent. In a few days I'll be departing for my own hammock adventure in the Southwest Ozarks (Arkansas) but it looks like the temperatures won't be so bad other than some expected rain. All the best.

So what ever came from your experimenting?
I'm hanging under a bit of a material storage roof and our temps are down in the respectable range of 80's & 90's during the day so I haven't had to use them for the hammock, but I do have the shade cloth on both the east & west sides of my live-in rig and they help loads there.

**Hiker_Section** · 08-23-2021, 10:57

Originally Posted by LowTech

So what ever came from your experimenting?
I'm hanging under a bit of a material storage roof and our temps are down in the respectable range of 80's & 90's during the day so I haven't had to use them for the hammock, but I do have the shade cloth on both the east & west sides of my live-in rig and they help loads there.

Thanks for checking in LowTech! I'm glad to hear about your progress.

The following were stand-out/takeaway items from my hangs this summer. Of course summer doesn't officially end until September 22nd so I should be able to get in a few more hangs.

Double-tarping to create effective shade cover during the hottest time of day definitely works! A few weeks ago I hammock camped by the side of a lake with no tree cover. The extra tarp got me through the most brutal heat of the day. I still intend to experiment with the reflective sheeting (space blankets).
I've acquired several USB-C fast charging fans purchased on Amazon and have had good results.
I acquired a Lasko Super Fan Max for when I have electrical hookup and had excellent results.
Sometimes it's best to just get into the car and turn on the A/C or head into town if possible. On a recent trip to Devil's Den State Park I was a short drive to Fayetteville, AR and each of the 3 days I drove into town so I'd escape the most brutal heat of the day (between 12PM-5PM).

Tell me more about this shade cloth you're using. The first thing that came to mind is cutting a shade cloth the size of my tarp and attaching grommets on the corners and sides. What do you think?

**LowTech** · 08-23-2021, 12:05

I just got one of these, they have them in different sizes/colors and already have grommets installed.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0831...b_b_asin_title

I'm not a fan of grommets and prefer having some webbing sewn on into loops but, having had these up full time on the Shelter (my live-in) and some winds of over 30mph every so often has not yet pulled the grommets out, close but not yet. I am going to have an upholstery shop stitch some corner and mid point webbing on soon though.

**Hiker_Section** · 08-23-2021, 16:55

Originally Posted by LowTech

I just got one of these, they have them in different sizes/colors and already have grommets installed.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0831...b_b_asin_title

Thanks for sharing! I just purchased the 8x10 size at the site you provided. Besides using it as an additional hammock shade to survive the hot summer days I will be able to find other uses for it in our backyard.