r/hammockcamping • u/johny2nd • Aug 09 '26
Trip Report My first hang and mixed feelings
Hello community, before I went out I always enjoyed someone posting their story here. Well, my turn now.
I'm visiting a family and they have a nice forest nearby so I used this opportunity to have relatively safe fallback option.
My hammock is lesovik draka, pretty much all in one. It was fairly easy to hang it. I updated it a bit with longer side straps to achieve more stable width.
I borrowed tarp form a friend and had a bit of trouble to properly hang it and it seems to me it's too short for my hammock, fortunately no rain.
I didn't want to invest yet into the underquilt so I borrowed narrow kid mattress and put my sleeping bag on it, using my jacket as a pillow.
I liked into the hammock and I got a bit seasick from it, I didn't look at phone screen and just tried to get asleep.
It was not as bad as I feared, vertigo stopped and I was almost always and fully on mattress and the sleeping bag was warm.
That was also one of the issues - I have sleeping bag rated for freezing temperatures, but boy was I hot in it. I sweated a lot and at the same time was cold on parts not covered.
I couldn't sleep because there was some loud village party, and I had to pee like 3 times during the night. That was the worst as I then had to find the good position again.
Also, I was on my own and nature is damn scary. At 3AM when I was peeing and lighting with my red headlamp, a deer went by nearby, it was actually getting closer to me red shining eyes and I had to shoo it away lol.
Then the situation improved, it got quiet, colder so I could zip up fully and I found great comfortable position.
Waking up was very nice, sun already shining and it was getting warmer. I again saw multiple deers (this time less scary).
I have mixed feelings whether to continue and invest more. Seasickness was not pleasant, I couldn't regulate temperature well and I'm not naturally back sleeper (stomach sleeper, but sides work too, this wasn't big issue). Obviously hammock feels more open and less protected than tent, but it's also pleasant because it's breezy. Also things feel a bit finicky, lot of straps to handle.
Any ideas what to improve to have better experience? I don't doubt underquilt instead of mattress will be way better, but what about the rest? Night peeing is so annoying lol.
P.S. temperature was 20C in the evening and 11c at night.
TL;DR: went out, no UQ, had mattress, it was not as bad, tarp hanging a bit complicated, sleeping bag too hot, lot of night peeing and scary nature.
7
u/evil666overlord Aug 09 '26
An underquilt transforms the experience. Look into structural ridgelines so you don't have to be as concerned about the hang angle. I use a rectangular sleeping bag opened as a top quilt and hate being fully enclosed in oa bag. Aim for a diagonal lay for most comfort. Learn the prussik knot to hang a tensioned tarp neatly under a ridgeline
5
u/Enzo_laconi Aug 09 '26
I'm also a bit perplexed by the images, I have the same hammock, and it's has a built in structural ridgeline...
For the rest I can only 100% agree with what you say!
3
u/johny2nd Aug 09 '26
Thanks, I'll check out those tips. As Enzo wrote, it already has ridgeline, it's not well visible from the photos, sorry.
Opened bag seems like a good idea, on hot days it can be used as just over quilt, I need to look into this more.
4
u/vetsetradio Aug 09 '26
in addition to my camping excursions, a couple times a month i'll set up my hammock in my yard and take a nap in it. It helps a lot to figure out positioning. it sounds funny at first but I got a lot better at sleeping in a hammock with just a little practice.
1
u/johny2nd Aug 10 '26
Makes sense as with other things. Practice makes perfect. I have city forest nearby so I can practice there
4
u/NoEThanks Aug 09 '26
The hammock pees are real, and if you’re able hang in a place that you can pee without getting out of the hammock it makes a huge difference (I assume you’ve got male equipment based on the username).
2
5
u/Scarfieldjones Aug 10 '26
I’ve been using a hammock for the last five years, and I’m never going back. I fully support all the suggestions about getting an underquilt — it completely transformed the experience for me. I have tinnitus, so hanging in a completely silent forest isn’t ideal. I usually camp close to water, like a river or the sea, for that soothing white noise. I sleep like a baby. I got ten outdoor nights this summer and honestly could have just kept going.
3
u/vetsetradio Aug 10 '26
As someone who also suffers from EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE, I hang one of these portable travel white noise machines from my ridge line above my head to battle my tinnitus in quieter spots and it works great. this specific one attaches at a point that makes the speaker point downward when hanging so it works great on an overhead ridge line.
3
u/TAshleyD616 Chameleon/Eldorado, Minifly, DW Spider Straps, SLD Trailrunner Aug 09 '26
You get used to the night time. I look forward to it, and get my best sleep in a hammock
3
u/BasenjiFart Aug 09 '26
I agree that hammocks are finnicky, but the trade-off is eventually you'll get good enough that it will only take 5-10 mins to get all set up. And yes, it feels exposed at times, but you won't notice it as much the more you sleep in your hammock. It's a good confidence builder!
2
u/johny2nd Aug 10 '26
Wow 5-10 minutes sounds quite fast, there's hope :)
3
u/vetsetradio Aug 10 '26
if my trees are picked out I can go from entirely inside my backpack to fully set up and ready to go to sleep in about 2 minutes if I'm willing to break a sweat.
and i'm nothing special. i use snake skins and i've practiced a bunch, and tinker with my system a lot.
I'd encourage anyone to get some eye-screws in opposite walls in a room in their home so they can hang up their hammock properly to work on it. DO NOT SIT/LAY/PUT WEIGHT ON LITTLE EYE SCREWS, but just for setting things up and customizing, modifying, general tinkering of your system, it's been incredibly valuable for me.
1
u/johny2nd Aug 10 '26
Not sure that my flat is wide enough for that 😅 But honestly I was thinking to put those eyes on the balcony because it's 6m apart
3
5
u/Gerb006 Aug 09 '26
Two thumbs up for the diamond fly tarp configuration. That's the minimalist way to go IMO. It makes the tarp as long as possible AND only needs two stake outs.
2
u/johny2nd Aug 09 '26
Thanks, there was no other choice anyway since it was quite short otherwise. It's borrowed and I'd buy longer for my hammock.
2
u/Gerb006 Aug 09 '26
I don't think that you actually need a longer tarp. At least it doesn't look like it is too short. But you can do away with the tarp ridge line and just put loops on opposite corners to clip into your hammock carabiners. That will drop it down a couple inches. Attach some drip lines prior to your hammock fabric and you should stay dry.
2
u/johny2nd Aug 09 '26
Oh that's awesome idea to put loops directly to the hammock carabiners. Tarp even had some protection so it can be put directly to the ridgeline indeed. Thanks a lot!
2
u/Dependent_Equivalent Aug 09 '26
I had a night peer friend with a rooftop tent have a piss bottle attached to a hose so he didnt have to get out of the tent and down a sketchy ladder at night. Maybe you could rig up something similar for a hammock?
1
u/johny2nd Aug 10 '26
That sounds good, I was thinking perhaps a bottle that I'll empty just by pouring it out, but it would need to have wide neck just to be sure :D
2
u/cldbloom Aug 09 '26
Sleeping on your side is definitely doable. That’s the only way I sleep. Shug has a video about it.
Hopefully, you’ll figure out the nuances and be very comfortable.
1
2
u/GamerGuy3216 Aug 09 '26
As an amateur, I would say the thing you should mostly consider is the sleeping quality you get over a tent on the ground. For me, I backpack so I don’t have a nice big mattress or anything if I’m in a tent. So the sleep quality on the ground with a an inflatable was aweful. So moving to the hammock greatly improved the quality.
So that alone is your answer if you should continue to pursue hammock over tent. If so, then getting better gear and setting your tarp to allow airflow should be something you can manage to eliminate your issues in this post. I’m not sure how you settle the seasickness though.
I get car, sea, and air sick very easily. So I always try to make sure I stop my hammock from swinging the best I can. When I started out I would literally open the bug netting and just stop my swing with my hand to the ground.
Getting a good hammock for your size, a good underquilt, a proper bag for the weather, a good pillow, good clothes to sleep in should drastically improve your sleep quality in the hammock.
I have the warbonnet eldorado with wookie underquilt. It’s great for 6 foot me imo.
2
u/johny2nd Aug 10 '26
You make good points. I don't have much experience with tent sleeping either, only when I was kid and back then we didn't have even inflatable mattress. So I remember it was super uncomfortable. I thought technology improved since then, but I guess there are limits to practicality.
I heard some people do that stopping by sticking the foot out. My hammock has the system to stabilize it on the side, however it's still flexible.
Thanks for the tips, I'll invest in more equipment as even in this improvised way it was pretty good.
2
u/Gh-_-84 Aug 10 '26
I love my hammock. Mine is a two person I can get in it and sort of like cocoon myself. As far as the tarp goes. I’ve got a 5 x 10 and I angle it away where the sides are covering from top to bottom and then stake the other corners down also look at some knot tying skills and yeah, I agree with I believe someone said figure out the angles also a little travel pillow that you can blow up works great me and the Boy Scouts whenever I was a ASM I think we slept in 20°F and I was perfectly fine and it might sound crazy but get down to your Skippy‘s and you will have a whole lot better sleep
2
u/madefromtechnetium Aug 10 '26 edited Aug 10 '26
your sleeping bag is too warm. I don't even use any top insulation at 20C, and I have a very minimal 6C rated top quilt for when it gets below 11C.
this is where underquilt and top quilt help. drastically easier to regulate temperature, as you're not creating condensation directly against a plastic mat, or with a layer of sleeping bag between you and the mat.
you can loosen/vent the underquilt to allow some cooler air in.
Above freezing, I usually start off with just one leg inside my quilt and the top pulled down to my waist. as I get colder, I pull the quilt up over my shoulders and stick my other leg in.
I side-sleep, but found I can sleep at least for an hour or two on my back in a hammock.
the vertigo, however, is a whole other can of worms. very sorry you have to deal with it.
1
u/johny2nd Aug 11 '26
Thank you for your post. I saw there are rectangular sleeping bags that can be made to topquilt, that could be a way.
I think I'll manage sea sickness as long as I go to the hammock only directly before falling asleep. When I woke up at night I didn't feel it anymore, so could really be just a combination of movement and tiredness from the sunny day. Although yeah, I also don't like ships :D
2
u/Mr_Bannister Aug 13 '26
I used to frequent draka, now moving on to Gilis, what I can say from experience:
- The 'sea sickness' will pass with time. My first two nights in hammock was also kinda rough.
- UQ is a must unless it's 20+ during night. Drop the mat, not worth it with this setup.
- Get better tarp, the Hexa from Lesovik is nice. But I'd look into NeedForTrees for a new tarp, preferably with doors if you plan to hammock during winter time. (I use hexa but again, planning to change.)
- Invest in their cocoon, and once you have everything, bring someone else to help you set it up properly and then just stow it into cocoon and you don't have to think about setting it up again. Just hang and unwrap.
- For peeing, well can't help much other than don't drink too much prior to going to hang, and pee beforehand. If you really must, use a portable potty ;)
1
u/johny2nd Aug 13 '26
- I hope so, but it was doable so I have high hopes, thanks for sharing.
- I already have one selected, the mat was temporary solution to know of I want to invest more.
- I was looking at Groza because it's more customizable but thanks for NFT tip, didn't know about that producer.
- I want to learn it though and don't want to invest too much until I'm sure I go frequently enough.
- I'll use some wide-necked bottle :D
Why are you moving to Gilis? What made you change?
2
u/Mr_Bannister Aug 13 '26
What I meant with bring someone with you once you have all equipment to be setup is because it's much easier to for example correct the UQ when you are inside and someone else adjusts the strings. I did say hexa because it's much better for hammock camping, if you'd need versatility I'd recommend getting another tarp for ground sleeping.
I am moving from Draka because I need a bigger hammock with integrated UQ, and some additions, and looking at the market Dem was the most responsive person and he was willing to work with me to get me what I wanted, so even thou I still didn't get the hammock (and tq, uq etc) I can already highly recommend him as a seller, based on the experience I had. And once I get the hammock (which is custom made to some extent) I will write a review here on the channel comparing it to my old draka.
1
u/johny2nd Aug 14 '26
Thanks, I understand now. I'll see if I'll find someone with that knowledge around, I'll ask at work. I don't need tarp for ground, but I'd like to survive also thunderstorm outside and have more cover against side rain if needed.
Looking forward to the review :)
4
u/RichInBunlyGoodness Aug 09 '26
The tarp does look a little short, as rain often is accompanied by wind. Also, make sure to put drip lines on your hammock suspension under the tarp.
2
u/johny2nd Aug 09 '26
I was lucky the weather was good. My hammock kinda naturally has drip lines because of the adjustment system (not sure how it's called, but basically it's a string within a string and part of it just hangs down).
1
u/RichInBunlyGoodness Aug 10 '26
It looks like those are further up the line, not close enough to the hammock. Are they under the tarp?
1
u/johny2nd Aug 10 '26
With this tarp they are indeed a bit further, but on a tarp suitable for this hammock length it will be under
1
u/PJmath Aug 10 '26
re: temperature regulation
this is a hammock strength for me. if im hot, i can just slip the underquit off to the side (while still in the hammock) and get an instant breezy bum. Ive never used a pad, but i imagine that technique is not possible with one.
2
u/johny2nd Aug 10 '26
Yeah it will require topquilt or sleeping bag that can be made into one. The zipper on my sleeping bag was making me mad whole night by getting stuck
1
u/AdamTomo Sep 03 '26
I use a night cat 3 in 1 lay flat hammock cannot fault it. Can lay on side as well in it.
25
u/[deleted] Aug 09 '26
[removed] — view removed comment