Get Away, Damnit. (The Camping Thread)

[Oedipus Wreckx-n-Effect]

Has anybody here slept in a hammock while camping? And if so, how do you do it and not freeze? 

 

I tried it once here in Colorado, but up in the mountains where there's a constant 4 mph wind, even with a blanket I couldn't keep warm.

[Meplat]

Has anybody here slept in a hammock while camping? And if so, how do you do it and not freeze? 

 

I tried it once here in Colorado, but up in the mountains where there's a constant 4 mph wind, even with a blanket I couldn't keep warm.

Put a mylar "survival blanket" or "casualty blanket" on the hammock, then a wool blanket or pad.

The "casualty blanket"(Basically a heavier version of the mylar survival blanket, with eyelets like a tarp) is the best to use, as you can tie it off to keep it centered on the hammock.  Otherwise if you turn a lot in your sleep, the base layers may migrate .

 

NOW make your normal bed.

[Collimatrix]

IIRC, the word "hammock" is one of the only loanwords into European languages from the Arawak peoples of the Caribbean.

 

That, I think, is a clue as to the sort of climate where the things work well.

[Oedipus Wreckx-n-Effect]

Put a mylar "survival blanket" or "casualty blanket" on the hammock, then a wool blanket or pad.

The "casualty blanket"(Basically a heavier version of the mylar survival blanket, with eyelets like a tarp) is the best to use, as you can tie it off to keep it centered on the hammock.  Otherwise if you turn a lot in your sleep, the base layers may migrate .

 

NOW make your normal bed.

 

I used a sleeping bag when I had mine. It was summer here in Colorado and I still got cold. And I don't get cold.

 

I love my little hammock for what it is, but it would have to be 70+ degrees F before I thought about sleeping in it by itself.

 

 

IIRC, the word "hammock" is one of the only loanwords into European languages from the Arawak peoples of the Caribbean.

 

That, I think, is a clue as to the sort of climate where the things work well.

 

But, but, Hammock tents! Didn't you see the Pintrest/Buzzfeed/Huffpo article? They're so cool. And hip. And stuff.

 

 

They even come with a busty female companion!

[Meplat]

I used a sleeping bag when I had mine. It was summer here in Colorado and I still got cold. And I don't get cold.

 

I love my little hammock for what it is, but it would have to be 70+ degrees F before I thought about sleeping in it by itself.

 

 

 

 

 I had one of the old M1944 "Jungle Hammocks" (not one of the shit reproductions), that I later made into a sort of bivvy, and then a 60's era GI hammock of some kind (made of nylon and without the rainfly and netting), and was quite comfortable.

 

Even did some winter camping north of Flagstaff near Humphrey's peak (off fire road 151), and found the mylar blanket base and top worked just fine.  My biggest issue was occasionally having to piss in the middle of the night. 

 

I was not using a bag, rather a bag liner, and then wool blankets base and top, with a poncho over the very top in case of sleet. Kept my head warm with a surplus tankers balaclava and a wool scarf.

[Toxn]

I used a sleeping bag when I had mine. It was summer here in Colorado and I still got cold. And I don't get cold.

I love my little hammock for what it is, but it would have to be 70+ degrees F before I thought about sleeping in it by itself.

But, but, Hammock tents! Didn't you see the Pintrest/Buzzfeed/Huffpo article? They're so cool. And hip. And stuff.

They even come with a busty female companion!

My first thought when I see these things is 'cool, but where the fuck do you find trees the right size and distance apart to sling these things?'

My second thought is 'well, assuming you only want to hike in Knysna, how do you find a spot with so little undergrowth? Are we camping in pine plantations now?'

Hammocks and hammock tents seem predicted on walking through a landscape that is very convenient and forgiving.

[Belesarius]

Has anybody here slept in a hammock while camping? And if so, how do you do it and not freeze? 

 

I tried it once here in Colorado, but up in the mountains where there's a constant 4 mph wind, even with a blanket I couldn't keep warm.

Yep. Hammock/tarp/lightweight sleeping bag was my solo setup into mid fall for a few years while scouting.

[Oedipus Wreckx-n-Effect]

Yep. Hammock/tarp/lightweight sleeping bag was my solo setup into mid fall for a few years while scouting.

I think I'll try giving it another shot this weekend. I didn't bother setting it up last weekend. Though the GF just bought a two-person sleeping bag to get extra cuddly on. But my only thought with those are, if I have to leave the tent in a hurry, it's more cumbersome. 

[Belesarius]

For a brief explanation of the setup, it was a regular old rope net type hammock with wooden risers. Usually slung at about 2-3 feet above the ground, with a tarp above, extended about 2 feet either end of the hammock, and depending on expected weather and prevailing winds, either spread out on an angle, or 1 side grounded.

[Donward]

I think I'll try giving it another shot this weekend. I didn't bother setting it up last weekend. Though the GF just bought a two-person sleeping bag to get extra cuddly on. But my only thought with those are, if I have to leave the tent in a hurry, it's more cumbersome.

Use the Gravity Assist to leave the hammock in a hurry...

[Oedipus Wreckx-n-Effect]

Use the Gravity Assist to leave the hammock in a hurry...

If I had a hammock-tent I would. 

 

We're camping tomorrow night somewhere. Not sure where. I'm leaving it up to the girl to decide this time. In the meanwhile, I think I need to find some BLM maps so I can figure out where the hell these little no-name roads through the mountains go. 

[Oedipus Wreckx-n-Effect]

Colli-man and I went camping last night. Not sure if he made it home yet. No word. 

 

We may have lost him.

[Donward]

Colli-man and I went camping last night. Not sure if he made it home yet. No word.

We may have lost him.

That's why you pack enough food. Cannibalism is so embarrassing.

Particularly since there's only enough meat on Colli to make a thin broth.

[Collimatrix]

I took the scenic route back.

[Oedipus Wreckx-n-Effect]

I took the scenic route back.

Did you see anymore turkeys?

[Toxn]

My brother surprised me with a gift over the weekend:

It's an old scout knife that he found and restored. He re-attached the blade to the handle assembly, put in brass shims, added an aluminium piece to replace the front spacer/guard thingy, and made new grips out of ironwood.

I had a go at sharpening the blade - it's usable now, but not particularly amazing.

Edit: this is pretty much what the knife originally looked like

[Oedipus Wreckx-n-Effect]

Wow, that's beautiful man. That's a good brother.

[Toxn]

Wow, that's beautiful man. That's a good brother.

He's awesome.

[Meplat]

My brother surprised me with a gift over the weekend:

 

 

It's an old scout knife that he found and restored. He re-attached the blade to the handle assemble, put in brass shims, added an aluminium piece to replace the front spacer/guard thingy, and made new grips out of ironwood.

 

I had a go at sharpening the blade - it's usable now, but not particularly amazing.

 

Edit: this is pretty much what the knife originally looked like

 

 

The original looks way too much like a HJ knife, Your brother's take on it is far classier.

[Toxn]

My wife just came back from an attempt on Ifidi pass. We've had unusually heavy snowfall this season, and the last stretch of the pass was a waist-deep slushpile on top of boulders. No dice, in other words.

To add injury to insult; on the way back she stepped from one rolling boulder to another and ended up with a dislocated shoulder. Plus there were a bunch of wildfires on the way back, so the group had to fire jump a few times on the way home.

So, not a successful outing.

 

Edit: Here is the video

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbhRLh843nQ

[Toxn]

The original looks way too much like a HJ knife, Your brother's take on it is far classier.

HJ knife?

Thanks - my brother has a way with making things that often leaves me a bit jealous. What he builds tends to last.

[Meplat]

HJ knife?

 

One of these-

[Toxn]

One of these-

According to my dad that's exactly where they came from. Apparently the same factories reopened postwar and filed off the swastikas. It was very common for kids in the 60s and 70s to have one as a scout knife (my dad pulled out one he bought at 14), and probably the origin point for a number of 'authentic' nazis knives that still float around antiques stores.

[Meplat]

Ran into my first "REIfag" here.

 

Basically this is someone who thinks that in order to camp, "properly" you need the most uber NASA tech super lightweight shit money can buy..

 

Was talking about my camping experience in the UP recently, and this guy chimes in about how he did some trail here in Kentucky. I basically said "That's nice honey" and kept on with a co-worker.. This guy was insulted I guess, and asked about where I camped..

 

"Other than two and some years at the base of Mt Humphries north of Flagstaff, around 17 years around Arizona, near 20 years in Michigan and two years in Northern Japan, not many places, actually.. Do you have some suggestions, because my old Trangia stove is looking a bit peaked"..

 

Really, I have an old Swedish Trangia that I've had for around 40 years.

 

This guy lays out a list of high buck shit I needed to buy to be really " up" when camping... I ignored most of it. I use a French bedroll that is older than I am, because it works..  He did mention shitting in bags, etc, I mentioned I just used an E-tool to dig the hole and hold the shitter paper, and he was horrified. 

 

At this point I knew I was dealing with a transplanted REI fag, and cut things short by mentioning I had shit to fix and things to do..

[LostCosmonaut]

Those little small stoves are pretty cool though (I have a backup propane burner);