Hammocks, tarps and tents

[andrewallan]

What are the thoughts from the crowd about hammocks, vs sleeping on upturned raft under tarp, vs tents.

I've previously been a tenter, but had a fantastically comfortable night on an upturned raft under a tarp last year, leading to think more about it. Would need to design some serious bug protection for NZ if sleeping on raft over there, which lead me to think about hammocks, which are reputed to be comfortable, with bug protection built in (at the least the Hennessy ones).

Andrew A

[Richard295]

Andrew,

Although hammocks are quite comfortable they necessitate more weight than you first proposal. Invert you raft and sleep on it with you PFD and a small piece of foam for insulation. Protect yourself against wind and rain by rigging a tarp between you 4-piece paddle segments. Clip a mosquito net under the tarp for the bugs. You can use DIY components or purchase suitable elements to create a packraft centric shelter system as I have done.

[andrewallan]

Richard, this concept of rigging a tarp between the "4 piece paddle segments...............packraft centric system" - do you mean that are you using the paddle in 2 sections as a ridgeline for a tarp, or are you using a central guy rope on the tarp pulled vertically, and the 4 separate sections of paddle on the corners to hold the tarp corners higher off the ground, centred on the packraft. With any of the setups, we normally carry a 9' x 11' tarp anyway, as it often enough pisses with rain for 24hrs in NZ, and having some cover to stand under/store stuff under is pure luxury, and I wouldn't be without it.

How much does a mozzie net weigh - I thought that they were about 500g, and my rationalisation for thinking about hammocks was that sleeping on a packraft required a normal sleeping bag (mine is 950g), and a mozzie net (500g), and then fitting 2 of us under the tarp, whereas a Hennessy ultralight hammock was 850g, with own tarp, and, as the hammock tends to hug you, I reckon I'd get away with a 300-400g home made quilt, rather than a sleeping bag, plus you wouldn't then need to be under the main tarp when sleeping, so would have plenty of covered area when it rained.

We're summer camping, so the underground insulation is not so important, and we do use the wine bladder from my home made PFD (300g) for pillows. Maybe the hammock/smaller quilt vs raft/mozzie net/sleeping bag setup turns out a similar weight............in which case I suppose it comes down to the terrain you're sleeping in. It would seem that both are lighter than a tent.

At my age (48), I'm not into having a miserable uncomfortable time, but also wish to limit what I carry, so I'm after the best compromise.

Andrew A

[Fishdejour]

Andrew,

I mucked about with tarps and mozzie domes for ages but was never too happy with the results, I now have a Tarptent Moment (790g) and it is one of the best pieces of gear I have ever owned, intergrated floor, fully insect proof, goes up in under 2 minutes AND..... apparently you can get a raft into one (depending on which Alpacka you have... my Explorer is a tad large). It was discussed a while back here;

http://tasmania.bushwalk.com/forum/view ... 5&start=90

A few of my rafting mates have the Hennesy Hammocks and there seems to be a few issues with them, they seem to take a bloody long time to put up, they are cold without a mat (which is a little self defeating) and they are not so rain proof. I have just got an Exped hammock to try, will report back when I have tried it.

Steve

[andrewallan]

Wow, never heard of the Moment - cute little tent.

Im going to try a Hennesy Ultralight - the rivers I fish in NZ have very few suitable areas for pitching a tent, but lots of trees, and lots of rocky ground, and having the facility to sleep above ground, irrespective of what the ground is like (plus not having to worry about water pooling where you've set things up), would open up lots of other possibilities. The Moment looks perfect for other situations.

I note that there is a whole band of brave people who rig their hammocks with underquilts etc for sleeping out in winter !!

Andrew A

[ammo farmer]

I've been using a hammock exclusively for camping during the past 2 years and have been out from 15 deg. F to 85. There have been a few chilly nights as I was dialing in my system but all in all the comfort cannot be compared to sleeping on the ground.

After just ordering my first packraft, (should arrive next week!) I'm excited to combine hammocking with rafting. I typically don't carry a pad so it will be nice to have the raft as a emergency groundcover/pad option if there are no suitable sites for a hammock.

[andrewallan]

Ammo farmer. I hope your raft gives you as much joy as I've had with mine, and I hope my hammock works as well for me as yours has!
Andrew A

[johnopower]

I have a Terra nova competition tent and multimat that together weigh around 1050g or so and pack up small. There are some really light tents around that mean they can still be an option for all but the most pared down trips. Let us know how the hammock goes!

[Fishdejour]

As an update, I tried my Exped hammock and it is good for hanging aroung camp but not the best for sleeping in at night on the south coast in Autumn, too cold on the underside (even in my Western Mountaining Summer light bag) . Would be good for hot summer nights though.

Steve

[Sparticus]

Andrew,
Although hammocks are quite comfortable they necessitate more weight than you first proposal.

While I would agree that Andrew is correct, there is not a significant enough difference to offset the increase comfort that can be achieved in a Hammock.
Under quilts, while the preferred option, are not the only option. I started off using my thermal rest inside my hammock. That got me down to 0 deg C with little problems.

There is a wealth of information at http://www.hammockforums.net.