Kammock Kuhli Pro Experiences

[Forest_gnome]

Hey all,

I'm looking for a tarp to pair with an 11' hammock (currently a HH but looking to change) and use during stormy/rainy/chilly weather, as well as just a multi-purpose tarp on its own. The Kammock Kuhli caught my eye on sale at REI, looks like a nice tarp with good reviews. However, when comparing to a superfly from Warbonnet, it looks like the Kammock is smaller in width, weights more, and is a lighter weight fabric and just aobut the same price as the superfly.

Am I looking at something wrong? Any experience with the Kuhli? I have searched around here enough to know the superfly is well loved.

Thanks for the input

[TominMN]

I know nothing about the Kuhli.

If you're looking for a fly (tarp) with doors, three very popular here seem to be WB's Superfly, UGQ's Winter Dream, and SLD's Winter Haven. Superior Gear also offers one that hasn't been on the market quite as long but looks to be a fine product.

I don't mean to slight any vendor, but those are the first ones that come to mind.

Silpoly seems to be the most popular choice these days. Nylon does stretch more but still makes for a pretty nice fly. I have some of each.

That's my $.02 worth!

[cmoulder]

Good start there from TominMN. There's also Dutchware's winter tarp. And HammockGear Journey.

A wider tarp with doors is always going to provide more protection from the weather, but it's also nice to have smaller, lighter options when the weather isn't quite so bad. Most of us who've been on the hammock journey for a while end up with multiple tarps. Although I have a wide tarp with doors, for the vast majority of my trips I use a smaller HG hex 11' x 86" and it suffices for me. I even have a tiny asym for quick trips when there's no rain, or only a tiny chance of it, in the forecast.

[TominMN]

Good start there from TominMN. There's also Dutchware's winter tarp. And HammockGear Journey.
...

Oops! That was certainly a senior moment on my part.

[cmoulder]

[QUOTE=TominMN;2089978]Oops! That was certainly a senior moment on my part.[/Q]

lol I'm sure there's a few more that others will add!

As with any outdoor gear, there's a whole bunch of options when you explore beyond REI.

[tangara]

I was on a trip where someone brought along a Kuhli, and it performed well. It was a canoe trip, so weight didn't really matter much, packing size was more of a concern. We had several days of rainy and windy weather and it kept us plenty dry, with no signs of failure. I do know that it was on the pricey side, even compared to some of the cottage vendors tarps, so if you get a good sale on it, that would be a bonus.

[Derch]

The issue with the kammock tarps are the width, lacks a lot of wind protection. 9' wide, where the Superfly is 10' and the dutchware wide tarps are 11.5' wide.

The difference in width per side with the kuill and a dutchware wide is 15" and it's lighter.

Weather protection is more than length of your tarp.

[Schlafen]

Thanks for everyone's chiming in on the Kuhli. I had the same question, and for the same reason. I'm camping in New Hampshire in about a week with my newly acquired Warbonnet Blackbird XLC (11' per WB specs). The tarp I already have is an ENO Pro Fly, which I got a few years ago with the "ENO OneLink Hammock Shelter System". One lives, and one learns, I hope. Well, the issue is that the Pro Fly is only 10'6" long and 6'4" wide. We've been getting a lot of rainy days in New England of late, and rain is likely on this trip. I'll likely hang on a Tensa 4 stand, as we are camping along a river, where trees can't be counted on. I can set up the Pro Fly on the Tensa, but a tarp longer and wider would give me more assurance. With the REI sale, and some dividend to spend, I was looking at the Kuhli, but it is a fair amount of money for something that I haven't actually seen in use.

[sloanie]

Disclaimer— I’m far from prolific in my hammock camping. But I own a Superfly (11’) and a 12’ SLD Winter tarp and 9 times out of 10 I just use the Kuhli. If you really want winter / wind coverage then Kuhli isn’t going to provide as much protection as these others can, as has been mentioned. Although probably a drawback for the ultralight / long distance backpacking group, I like that it comes with everything you need to deploy it— that’s when the value comes into play with these sales. If I buy any of those other brands of tarps, outfitting with guy lines and ridge lines and any associated hardware is usually a separate additional cost, and linelocs are just simpler to use. (As such, I like this as a beginner tarp for someone who likes sleeping in a hammock but isn’t quite as into the gear / technical / geek factor that so often comes with hammock camping as a hobby).

I do wish it was a bit wider but it’s worked fine for me for many years.

I haven’t used the “Pro”— just the standard Kuhli. But if you can get it for $120 or less, it’s good bang for the buck.

[Schlafen]

Thanks for your comment, sloanie. As expected, it rained, and rained, and rained on the trip I took earlier this month to northern New Hampshire, so much so that none of the eight of us put our kayak or canoe in the river (water was just too high and fast!), along which we were camping. Yet, as luck would have it, I stayed completely dry, but not because my tarp did its job so well, but because I had the use of a lean-to. With a couple of well-placed eyebolts, I was able to rig up the hammock to hang in the lean-to. My tarp issue is still unresolved, but my sleep arrangement those nights was superior to anyone else's!
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