My shelter on Viles Branch Trip

There has been some discussion on what shelter I used on the recent trip.
Keep in mind the winds were howling all night and getting away from it wasn't
a option. Here is what I used:

That is Marks (trailrelic) tent in the background.





Under the OES Macat Delux Tarp 130"X120" is a Hennesey Hammock Delux A-Sym I had a 0 degree Campmor bag and my sleeping pad was designed on this ONE although not exactly. I had a pic from the end showing the hammock but some how I missed putting it on webshots. I will do that tonight, is on a different computer at home, and show you all. Looks simular to the one on the OES link above.

I slept with all of my clothes on but my back was cool. I used the sleeping bag as a quilt. I had it ziped up to above the knees and had the rest tucked in around me. I was very comfortable but just a little cool. I had to get up at 12:45 to extenguish the call of nature and I put on my flece vest and that helped up to early in the morning. i was never uncomfortably cold. Keep in mind the winds were howling! I also had on the tarp STLs that did work great! At one time the wind blew the tarp into me and moved the hammock and me in it for a ways! That was a eye opener for sure! But the tarp bounced right back into its original shape.

Total weight of the hammock and the fly with stakes was 2 lbs. 11oz.

I had a homemade undercover that I didn't bring, trying to cut weight down, and I wish that I had had it. It would have cut down on the wind from under the hammock.
Now with the extreamly low temps and the high winds my system didn't really do to badly. As the saying goes live and learn!


Hope this helps some one, I still need to experiment more.

OH

Wow OH,

Sounds like a really good hammock set up. The wings on your pad are called a SPE (Segmented Pad Extender), and they really help on the shoulders. The sunscreen that Sgt Rock has, is the same kind of sunscreen that I use as the frame of my pack. I usually use an underquilt in these temps, but I always have that pad for that little extra warmth. The undercover wold have kept in more heat, but as you said, you were not uncomfortable cold.

Brian at OES makes some wonderful tarps, and he is a college student at the University of Rochester, New York. He knows a lot about tarps and making gear in general. Though your tarp tensioners link back to the pad page, I know what you are talking about, and I make my own from surgical tubing I got from Lowes. People forget that nylon stretches and that a Silnylon tarp will stretch lose over the night. These tensioners make it nice to take up the slack, and provide slack in a windstorm, so that your tarp does not get torn up.

My tarp that Amanda made is really nice, because the ends can be folded in to help stop wind from blowing through the tarp. You can kinda see where Burrito and I closed off one end on our recent hike in Devil's Den.



Great set up, though I am not a fan of Hennesey Hammocks. I have 2 of them, and if anyone wants one cheap ($75) please let me know. Amanda loves her Hennesey Desert Rat, so that one is not for sale. I also have a Claytor Jungle Hammock that is nice, but my favorite hammocks are the ones that I have made myself.

Preacha Man wrote:..... but my favorite hammocks are the ones that I have made myself.

Yeah? hmmm wonder what that one is like???

OH:
That is a great tarp setup. Can't wait to see the other pics of it later today.
UL

I corrected the link above. As I said I have a lot of experimenting yet to do. I will put the other pic on this afternoon when I get home.

Dwight, I didn't have the sun shade part of his pad. I had the walmart blue closed cell foam for the main part of the pad and going across I had some of the egg shell Ozark blue foam from walmart. Just used what I had on hand. I dislike the bulk of the pads although it was comfortable in the hammock.

I think that if I could have broke that wind I would have been fine. That just wasn't going to happen!

OH

Clif wrote:Yeah? hmmm wonder what that one is like???

Cliff, You can look in my gallery and see a lot of pics of my green hammock that I made. I have made A LOT of hammocks and they are very easy to do. My latest hammock creation is going to be a chocolate brown one with a pink bugnet and pink webbing for my daughter/wife, whichever one claims it first. I also am going to make me a green hammock/bugnet for this summer that weighs less than my Claytor Jungle Hammock.

OH, I know what you mean about the bulk of pads, and your pad set up looked really good. I do not like the bulk either, and that is why I use the underquilt. In winds like you described it is impossible to block the wind entirely, but if you set your tarp up low to the ground, you can pile leaves up along the sides to help stop some wind from coming in from the sides. I did this realy well in Ozark campgrounds at the Buffalo in November, and I stayed toasty warm and comfortable.

Dwight,

I am thinking about building one of these, scroll down to the HH Underfly (it is a PDF file) . Since I have one after market tarp I have a spare HH tarp that I could use. It would be much better than the one I have made from a old tent rain fly. I am wondering do you think that I could slip a sleeping bag inbetween the undercover and the hamock? I have a 35 degree Big Agnes bag that doesn't weigh much. Any way I am still thinking about it.


OH

OH,

You could slip a sleeping bag in there easily, just make sure that you make is loose so that you do not compress the bag when you get in the hammock. It is kind of a fine art, too loose and you lose heat to the dead space, and too tight you compress the insulation and lose heat. That would make the bag an uderquilt, only it wouldn't be attached to the hammock lines itself. You would be surprised how warm it is, and how comfortable it is too.

Dwight,

Well that is on the drawing board of things that I want to get done. And I am making a Heinken beer can pot (24 oz) at the moment. And you guys thought I was totaly old school!

Speaking of the beer can pot, have any of you done this before? I want to insulate around the middle of the pot, Tinny of Mini Bull Designs uses fiberglass wicking. Does anyone here have another suggestion of materials that could be used? If need be I will make a seperate post on this topic.

OH

Here is the missing pic from our campsite on the Viles Branch. The velcro isn't fully closed and you can
see some of my Campmore bag.

Mighty fine set up there OH... did not relize you too were a fellow swinger lol. Need a bigger tarp for winter setups though. Thats one reason Preacha is able to close the ends down and drop the edges to the ground. Then you can rake leaves on the sides to help insulate and cut the wind. That flying dim. is good for summer setups. Still good looking though.

TM,

We have had two HH hammocks since 2004. I just haven't quite got down the fine art of staying warm in the winter. I am going to start experimenting more.

OH

Precha or TM,

What size tarp do you use with your hammocks in the winter? I am limited to how far I pull in the tarp due to the side tie outs on the HH.

OH

The big one that PMs wife makes is 10X12... its the best size that I have found. I tried a 8X10 and its just a little to small for me. I am working on one but a square cut not the cat cut, and 4 extra tie outs but in the center of the tarp. Should be interesting. Will allow you to close the ends yet retain head room at each end. Yet can be used with the hammock setup as well.

Yep, Amanda's tarp is 10X12, and sometimes I use an 8X10 in the summer, but it is only a few ounces lighter. Warbonnet Gear makes a big tarp, Speerhammocks makes one, and JacksRBetter make a big tarp that the sides close in. Brian at OES makes a MacCat Deluxe, but I cannot rememberif the sides can close in. It does take a while to get cold weather hammocking, there is a learning curve, but it is sweet when you finally get it figured out.

TM,
That tarp idea has already been done by a lot of people, and Amanda has been asked to make that Mod on her tarps as well. I just have never needed it, because I don't like extra tieouts. If I need more room, I just make a porch using my trekking poles.

Yeah PM.. I know its been done and I know about the porch. I got the idea else where as well. I am thinking of only 2 extra though. Tie it out like a Pulp tent with the trekk poles. Just something I was throwing around. Got a sample of Quest Outfitters grey sill. I am wanting to play with it.

I say go for it, I am toying with the idea of a poncho tarp for this Spring/Summer.

Dewight,

The tarp over my HH is a MacDelux. He does make a larger one now. But now the well has run dry! Making do with what I got so to speak.

thanks,
OH

I know all about an empty well . That is why Amanda makes all my gear. She reminds me to make do everytime I bring up her making me a down quilt set . My Climashield XP quilts work just fine and are light, but oh just to have those down feathers compress a little better in my pack .

OH:
About your heinie pot, when I made mine, I used fiberglass cloth that I got from Wal Mart's auto dept and wrapped that around the middle of the can. I taped it in place with "real" aluminum duct tape. This has worked great for me. You can also use fiberglass sheetrock tape that you can get from Lowe's or Home Depot. I still think you'd have to cover this with some type of tape, like duct tape.
BTW, I really like the pics of your hammock and tarp setup.
UL

UL,

I found on YouTube a video of a Heni pot with the fiberglass sheet rock tape around it and that got me thinking. I had a unopened roll of that stuff stuck back. I went out last night found it and wraped the pot. Looks like it will stay all by itself. I will fire up the stove tonight and see how it does.

OH

OH,
I've been thinking about making a Heine pot too. Post up some pics on another thread. Would love to see them. Also interested in your stove setup...what you're using in conjunction with the Heine pot.

commandokanak,

I have been thinking about doing that anyway. I will work on that after school today.
It has been advancing steadily. Going to get some hardware cloth for a pot stand. I need to get a different cutter to take the top off. But what I have will do for the first time.

OH

Little bit of advice on the cutter/can opener: Don't go cheap. The first one I bought was a cheap side-cut-can opener, and it was bad. Go ahead and spend the ten bucks on one from Wal-Mart. It makes it a lot easier.

Kyle,

The side cutter I have is the one we just so happened to have. It didn't cut to well but this isn't going to be my only one I make! Since I started this I have learned a lot. I learned that the contents shold be very cold and then open it. That is with the right cutter! Just call this a prototype #1. I will put some pics on tonight and I don't mind comments and I would like to see what else has been done by you guys. I even have the ziplock carry container. Pretty neat!

OH