Also.. Just a suggestion.. Try finding a happy medium between side sleep and back..
The beauty of the hammock for me is that there are so many different way's- angles
that you can lay as opposed to a bed.. The full back sleeping used to bug me at first,
being primarily a side sleeper, but found I could split the difference and now enjoy all of it..
I too would never be able to sleep if'n I were trying to sleep in my front yard. Unless of course if my front yard was the backyard to the woods. All of the suggestions from the usual suspects are spot on but personnally I believe that you simply need to load up the gear and backpack into some woods and set-up camp.
Big thumbs up to what Sherpa said. You need to find different trees at variable distances and experiment with height but I'll tell you this, you're straps are way too high and the best sleep I've had is with the ridgeline on the taunt side of tension. And a WBBB is extremely comfortable, I sleep on my side easily as well as at a diagonal on my back, no need for a knee support.
Looking at your first pic again the suspension does seem a bit steep. It looks closer to 45* to me rather the recommended 30*. Lower your straps somewhat and adjust for your longer ridgeline. The ridgeline should be taut but not twanging tight. You are looking for a suspension angle in the vicinity of 30* below horizontal. Some folks make a template of sorts to guide them. I just eyeball it.
Another trick I have used successfully to determine how high to attach to the supports is by following the curve of the gathered end out past the end. Where that imaginary line intersects the support is where I try to position my straps at least as a starting point.
I may be slow... But I sure am gimpy.
"Bless you child, when you set out to thread a needle don't hold the thread still and fetch the needle up to it; hold the needle still and poke the thread at it; that's the way a woman most always does, but a man always does t'other way."
Mrs. Loftus to Huck Finn
We Don't Sew... We Make Gear! video series
Important thread injector guidelines especially for Newbies
Bobbin Tension - A Personal Viewpoint
I figured this was the best place to put this report.
Last night I had a miserable nights sleep in my hammock. Sure, it was better than being in a bed, but not by much. I woke this morning with the similar stuff as Raven: At least the stiff neck, & my back hurts, (like I slept in a bed) for the first time in years.
I'll shorten the long story: Needed the ear plugs (for yard work) stored in Hammock, set up in a hurry just to get them out. About 3 hrs later* headed to bed, "That's close enough" so went to bed. Usually I set up withing a few feet of being centered, well this time I was WAY OFF CENTER, as in my head was at about the center spot between the trees. All night I never really got comfortable, The straps were at the correct height, the ridgeline was at it's usual angle, I was just off center. The trees are about 25' apart, & the foot of my hammock was about 3' from that tree, but my head was about 8' from it's tree.
Finally got up (about 1.5 hrs ago) & put it more centered, all better.
SO, that is something to consider. I have never been that far off center, was just being lazy last night. I'll never do that again. Like I say above, I never really worry about being centered, just close, now I'll worry about it!
*Hammock never left my sight for more than 5 minutes at a time.
When you have a backpack on, no matter where you are, you’re home.
PAIN is INEVITABLE. MISERY is OPTIONAL.
That's a really good point Doc. I know on my initial setup of the hammock (it was dark) I was off center, and I hated it. The second time I set it up I tried for a more even hang. I'll double check my setup when I get home and see how close I am.
I dont know if this will help or not (hope it does) but I hung from the same two trees the first 3-4 trys with my WBBB and was a bit saddened about not finding my sweet spot. It wasent untill I found that I like my trees (with my new suspension woopie slings) I like my trees to be apx. 20 steps apart from each other and the suspension hung as far up as I can reach. With the stock suspension I liked my trees 15 steps apart and placed at more of a forehead level. So point being if you have a chance to get to a place with lots of trees id try different distances. Once you find that sweet spot and notice how much tension you like in your ridgeline it makes it much easier to find it again. Another suggestion would be attaching an adjustable hammock ridgeline. Good luck on your quest to find your sweet spot.
Sometimes I like to hike and think, And sometimes I just like to hike.
Hiking is'ent about waiting for the storm to pass its about learning to hike in the rain.
took me a long time to sleep a full night in a hammock
i'm a side sleeper at home....but now i can sleep great on my back in a hammock..
try sleeping in your hammock for a week..play around with how you lay in your hammock..
from looking at it i don't think it's how your set up...
i think it's how your laying in it...try getting your head over by the netting as far as you can...get off center a bit..and slide yourself into the footbox more.
see if that helps at all...sometimes it takes a few nights of sleeping in a hammock till your body takes to the hammck
It puts the Underquilt on it's hammock ... It does this whenever it gets cold
Lonely—Just a brief note to commiserate with you, my northern Illinois friend. We entered this hammocking craze about the same time, three or four months ago. When I fall sleep in my ENO on my indoor hammock stand, my back hurts. This past weekend, I mounted my Hennessy Backpacker Ultralight Asym and slept in my backyard—my back is still killing me. I dismounted the hammock at 520AM, with condensation all over me and my Big Agnes bag, and then suffered low and middle back pain all day, and still have it now. My wife, bless her soul, walks on my back nightly.
My WBBB 1.0 dual is coming this week, so I’ll string that baby up and see how she flies. Someone suggested your try an ENo or gathered end—well, if you’re like me, it won’t even help. Frankly, I think I do better in the Hennessey than the ENo for short times. I have an ENo DN and SN, so even that seems to make little difference. I’m going to try and suffer through another overnight hang this upcoming weekend if I can, and I’ll post my results. I am trying all the things, I think that people mention here (foot end higher than head, ultra sling with 50 degree angle, no sling with 10 degree angle, the works).
Maybe our backs just won’t allow a hammock hang—if so, you only have to sell one ‘mock. I have to sell 6. Plus tarp,s etc. LOL
I find to lay flatter in my WBBB I need to be further down the hammock, ie; if my head is about 2' from the gathered end on the hammock my feet are only about 1' but in the foot box. Always looks funny when laying there and it's looks sooo sooo far to the gathered end above my head but i'm closer to the bottom with my feet.
Wierd ay... But each time I climb in that's where I find the flattest lay and most comfort.
Might be worth a try
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