Hi from New London, CT

[jjdubs]

Hello all, my name is Jeff and I've just gotten back into the outdoors life after about a decade in NYC. My entire youth and college days were spent in the woods or on the trail, so I'm really looking forward to getting back into the life. I just discovered the hammock as a camping item and man, am I looking forward to getting my first one.

I've got it narrowed to the Hennessy deluxe explorer or the Clark North American--It's really only a difference of $100 between the two, but the HH comes with a bigger hex fly and free snakeskins despite being the cheaper of the two. I figure for a newbie hanger, I might as well get the most bang for my buck with the HH, but for some reason the Clark is calling my name. I'd be interested to hear what people think of the difference--I've checked all the forums and read as many comparisons as I can. Shoot me a PM if you've got something to say. Looking forward to hangin' around here!

Jeff

[mbiraman]

Can't offer you any advice about the HH/clark comparison BUT welcome to the forum.

[BLUEFIN 774]

Welcome to the forum.
I have the HH Ultralight Backpacker A-Sym. I find it is an excellent hammock. I'm trhinking about getting the zipper mod that 2Q & ZQ do. Basically it allows you to use the hammock like the WBBB. I have never used a WB but they seem to be excellent from what I hear. Check out the video section on this site . "Shug" has some excellent videos here and he uses the WBBB.

[Boris Losdindawoods]

First, I love New London! I spent 3 days there several years ago and had a blast. Welcome to the addiction.

The Clark will be better in cold weather due to the weather shield and the insulation/storage pockets. If you're buying this for use in your area, you're going to need warmth at night and the Hennessy as shipped doesn't provide it.

The Clark will also be cooler in hot weather because you can remove the bug net and open the whole thing up.

I have a Hennessy Safari which I picked based on price and max weight. With hindsight 20/20 I would absolutely go with the North American. Wow... I think I just depressed myself. Is it too early for a drink?

Don't worry about the tarp size too much. They're both big enough to keep the hammock dry and too small for much of anything else. The Clark will do better in really nasty weather because you can just zip up the weather shield and read a book. With the Hennessy, you'd better be good at pitching your tarp correctly and pray that the wind doesn't change directions. When it's raining, it's very difficult to do anything under the Hennessy tarp because you only have access to the end (not the side) unless you unhook your side pull-outs and collapse the hammock so you can sit in it from the outside. If you decide later that you really want to have a monster tarp, go get one of the Chinook Tarps for $30 (or a Guide Gear if they ever come back in stock) and have a circus.

Boris

[Triptease]

Welcome aboard! I'm originally from Montville. My family still lives up that way so I get up there every so often, usually making the pilgrimage to Hotrods for wings. I certainly miss it up there.