Thread: Hennessy Hammock

Since my last post Ive een using JacksRBetter under and over quilts and highly recommend them. Winter expeditions now sorted.

I also got them to send me the hennessey large hex fly which makes for much better cover and negates the need for a second tarp to cook under and sit to read.

I actually lived in a hammock there for awhile when I was homeless and it was great was a cotton mexican one so still kinda bulky but the best thing I found for the issue of rising cold from underneath was something called a blizzard bag which is effectivally a survival blanket wrapped into a tube just slide this over the hammack and your super warm that and a -5 rated sleeping bag and I managed many a night warm and comfortable in sub 0 conditions

After a 6 months of holding off/out after the Tenth Wonder experience and feeling that it was a sign that i should stick with traditional tents and swags I took the plunge and ordered the Warbonnet Ridgerunner with the Lynx full length (3 season) under quilt. Literally just ordered it. Was told to expect a 2 week lead time and then postage. Expecting it will take 4 weeks to arrive.

I read everything i could on the various hammocks and the RR was well spoken about and it accommodates my side sleeping behaviour.

The tarp is a little harder to swallow. I've landed on the Zpacks rectangular cuban fiber (fibre) tarp with extra tie out loops so it resembles the Cloud burst from Warbonnet. I settled on a rectangular tarp because it is more versatile than a cat cut tarp for other general uses and camping with the swag and if I succumb, a bivy.

I've tight arsed it on the top quilt until i'm definite that hammock camping is for me. Until then a partially unzipped sleeping bag will have to do.

I'll take some photos when it arrives.

MLD

I'll be interested to hear about it MLD and see the pics. the Warbonnet vids are quite good.

It must be a good fabric with good stitching !



In the places I've chosen to travel through I think the main difficulty would be finding two trees the right size and the right distance apart.

The versatility of a hammock is an attraction. I plan for it to be my emergency shelter when 4wding and my solo shelter when hiking. I bought the 2 layer version that I can put my inflatable thermarest all season pad between the layers for mild temp and summer camping and going to ground. I'd need a groundsheet to protect the hammock material on the ground should I need to use it as a bivvy. A painter's clear ground sheet cut to size is cheap and disposable. I learned that tip from a hiker who said it was his solution when hiking OS and not having to worry about customs querying dirt and stuff on re-entry into Oz. It also serves as a ground sheet to sit on if the ground is wet.

As for the barren locations. If in the defender I can hang from the headboard off the tray and if no trees are around use another vehicle or at a pinch the shovel properly tensioned. Solutions to your problem are limited only by your imagination.

I'm excited to try the hammock after pondering the idea of converting from a tent for a good 18 months.

As for stitching, there is a good review of the RR by an Australian on YouTube called Denmonkey. He was complementary of the quality of the stitching compared to the DD. He wasn't the only review that spoke highly of the quality of workmanship. If I break the hammock it's a sign to lose weight.

MLD

Ive spent the last few years with my hennessey hammock being my main sleeping tent for solo expeditions. Ive made a project of sorting it out because I spend lots of nights in them.

Ive got both the bottom entry and the side entry. I make the following observations.

The bottom entry one is awkward, and if you are in your 40s like I am and get up at least once in the night for a wizz, then get the side entry one.

If you sleep on your back, they are great.

Im a side sleeper though, and whilst its good for a night or two, after a week in it I get a pulled muscle under my right shoulder blade from not having anywhere to put my right arm. It ends up going distinctly uphill and results in all the blood draining from it and waking you up with pins and needles in the hand. Im considering trying a warbonnet ridgerunner to see if its better for my sleeping position.

Trying to put a thermorest in one is a nightmare. Unless you are the kind of person who stays in the same position all night the pad will end up sleeping on you.

Tarps. Ive got 4 different ones depending on the trip. The standard tarp is totally minimalist. Its ok for an overnighter, but if you want to sit out the rain and read, paint or draw you will need a bigger one. Get a DD tarp or the hennessey hex tarp. They are both excellent. I also have an australian army hutchee, which I used to put up as a kitchen tent, but the DD is better.

If you are going to use it in winter, or you feel the cold, get an underquilt. No screwing around, its the only answer to staying warm in a hammock.

You can swing it off the car to a tree. I often do this from the defenders roof rack. I wouldnt like to try it with a shovel. It would want to be a very strong shovel indeed and you would want to lay really still...

Ive used it as a bivvy. It sucks at that. If you want to sleep on the ground take your thermorest and a mosquito net.

Get 4 rappell rings (two for each end) and use an alpine clutch to string it. Knots are a pain to get undone, particularly when wet.

Mark your head end with a different coloured carabina or always have the head end snake skin over the top where they overlap so you dont have to rehang it when you work out the head end is at the wrong end.

Overall, the less you have in there the better. Anything you have in there should be strung from the string above. Anything in the hammock with you will gravitate to the lowest point, generally under your arse or the small of your back.

If you use a pillow it will probably have to be a really flat one due to the rise that the hammock has. i have numerous camping pillows, but the best sleep comes from nesting my head in my down jacket on cold nights.

Happy to answer any questions.

Thanks James, wise words. No doubt learned from poor experiences. The ridge runner is a different type of hang than a gathered end hammock. Many of your complaints about comfort were concerns of mine which lead to the decision to buy the RR not the blackbird. Only time and nights in the hammock will tell if the RR is a solution to those concerns.

The double layer hammock doesn't suffer (as bad) your complaint about the pad shifting. It's trapped between 2 layers under the hammock. I read somewhere that a person used that material you get in kitchen places to line your draws with and its slip resistant. I use it in our pots and pans draw and have some excess somewhere, couple of strips at the ends and middle of the pad should work. The common complaint about the pad is the exposure of the shoulders. Again this is more common with a gathered end hammock where you sleep on the diagonal. Notwithstanding that I heeded your and nearly every other hammocker's advice and ordered the under quilt at the same time. It's cut for the RR and saves me postage from the US. I would have eventually succumb to an under quilt so why ignore so many peoples advice to get an under quilt.

As for tarps, i'm having a cuban tarp made. Half the weight of a silnylon. I currently use 2 army hootchies clipped together over the swag. At 450g each (total area is 2.8m x 3.5m when combined) they are heavy for hiking when compared to a 205g cuban tarp of 3.4m x 2.6m (rectangle). Lighter again if you go the hex tarps in cuban. The hootchies are fine for car camping and have served me well. They have permanent residence in the truck.

No doubt i'll have many trials and tribulations working out a system that works for me. All part of the fun.

MLD

Hey MLD

I see the hammocks as a project and have really enjoyed working out my "system" so that it suits me. Most of my trips are either canoeing or car camping so the weight is not always the absolute major factor.

When I hike with it, which a do a few times a year, I take the hennessey and the original tarp for the most minimal weight.

You can string the tarp off the hammock line, but I am pretty heavy (about 105kgs) and find that when I get it it its hard to keep everything tight all night when I do that. Ive given up on that and string the tarp a foot or so up on another light line that I string for that purpose and to hang gear off. The hammock hangs better without stuff hung off its lines.

I look forward to hearing how your system evolves. :-)