Hello fellow hangers,
My wife got a hammock from TTTM as a gift from her company, which led me to the idea to camp in a hammock.
I like the up and down in a boat on the water, sleeping outdoors in a tent, especially when it is raining, and I enjoyed laying in a hammock casually in the past. So it sounded like a good idea to me.
That is how my journey into hammocking began...
"The Ultimate Hang" was quickly found, so it got ordered and read. Thank you Derek Hansen for writing that book. It got me even more interested in the topic.
YouTube and the german hammock forum ("haengemattenforum.de") were my next sources of information. Some posts on that forum suggested a longer hammock for a more comfortable lay. Further research led to the common recommendations...
Luckily for me an opportunity arose and I got hold of a like-new, lightweight, double-layered "Warbonnet Blackbird XLC". Thank you Sven for selling it to me.
After checking hammock and mosquito net with the WBBB, the protection from the elements was the next point to address.
Since I do have an old tarp, which is 3x3m, as well as some paracord, I quickly switched to the next bullet on the list, the insulation.
Eventually I found leiavoia's instructions and so I modded a spare, very cheap sleeping bag with a clew suspension. Thank you leiavoia for the instructions.
When ordering the materials for the clews, I also got myself some webbing made of polyester, which transformed into tree straps with the help of the tailor around the corner. Thanks to Baumfrau and D.I.Y. Gear Supply for providing information on this topic.
Together with the buckles on the WBBB and a pair of climbing carabiners, the suspension is complete as well.
Finally the time came and we went on a vacation with some friends.
Apart from me, one of my friends got himself a hammock as well in preparation for his future journeys, which he brang along. He already slept some nights in it and liked it.
It is a complete set, consisting of a tied out hammock with a sewn on mosquito net, as well as a daisy chain webbing with carabiners and a "tarp" with two poles. It is looking like a hovering tent once set up. A pretty cool set in my opinion, especially considering the relatively cheap price he paid for it.
There are two big trees and a swing frame for the kids on the property of the holiday home so we got ourselves some sturdy anchor points.
Unfortunately these anchor points are a little bit too far away from each other.
That is when I learned that I should have parted the 10m webbing into two 5m straps instead of two 4m straps plus 2m leftover material... Well, try and error is an approved way to learn. XD
We managed to hang our hammocks anyway.
Sadly I was only able to shortly test-lay the WBBB because it quickly got disassembled again since my tarp occupied way too much space and my whole setup was too close to the fixed barbecue grill we liked to use but my friends' setup didn't disturb anyone, so he was able to let it in place and spend several nights in it.
We also installed the clewed sleeping bag on his hammock, which provided him with some insulation from underneath. He hasn't used an underquilt before, so naturally he liked it a lot.
Luckily I was able to have an unintended afternoon nap in his setup, as well as a whole night of intended sleep in it. So I was at least able to try out hammock camping, if not in my own setup but that time will come.
Both times I fell asleep very easily due to the swing and the sounds of nature, like the wind in the trees and the tweeting of the birds and such, while reading a book.
I only woke up once in the middle of the night since it became colder than I had expected. That is when I learned that the modded sleeping bag is not insulating enough for my taste. It is only a very thin synthetic summer sleeping bag, mind you. The need for a warmer underquilt definitely arose.
The next morning I felt well rested although it was a little bit too cold for my taste but unfortunately my feet did hurt. Probably because of the unfamiliar pressure on them since I slept diagonally in the hammock and they were pressed against the fabric all night long. Luckily my WBBB does have a foot box, which should elimate that issue in the future, I guess.
Notably, I slept the whole night on my back, even without turning and twisting, which is unusual for me since I am used to sleeping on my stomach or on the side most of the time and unfortunately turning a lot in bed. So that's a huge plus for a better sleep in my book.
I am looking forward to optimize my gear, looking at you "Wooki" and "Super-, Mountain-, Thunder- or Mini-fly", and spending more restful nights hanging outdoors.
Cheers mates!
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Originally Posted by eamonnconnor
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