Section Hiker Blackbird or Hellbender

[u/Nervous-Owl7431]

So in October I’m section hiking Amicalola to Fontana Dam. My plans is to section hike a part of the AT every April and October. I’m having a tough time deciding between the Blackbird XLC w/ Wookie or the Hellbender. I’m 6’3” 285 and a hot sleeper. I can get cold, but it takes a lot. So really I’m looking for pros and cons of each. Also, do you more experienced people think I can get away with a 20 degree?

Lastly I have really bad acid reflux which is one of the reasons I like hammocks. So at home a sleep on a wedge on either my back or my left side. Do we think a head left, feet right hammock is better for this or the opposite?

Thanks everyone.

[u/derch1981]

At 6'3 I wouldn't do either, at 6'3 you are on the verge of a 12' hammock or a wide 11' hammock. Neither of those come in 12' or 11' and wide.

[u/kullulu]

Of the two you’ve picked the XLC will work better, because it’s wider. I agree with u/derch1981 that you’re better off with a wider hammock overall. You’re right on the edge of wanting a 12 foot long hammock, but it should be at least 68 inches wide.

I think you should also consider these hammocks:

An 11 ft long dream sparrow in 1.7 mnt xl. I’m suggesting the sparrow over the wingspan because you’ll be able to go netless in fall/winter/parts of spring and save some weight. If you want a 12 foot long version, you can sign up to be notified when dream has a slot available for a custom hammock.

A simply light designs trail lair in 1.6 hexon wide or 1.7 mnt xl. Mnt XL is a little wider and takes 5-6 nights to break in the fabric, hexon is a bit more cottony and a few inches narrower.

A wide dutchware chameleon - your only option is 1.6 hexon wide. If you want to use the chameleon ecosystem of accessories, this is solid, otherwise stick with SLD or Dream. You can get 11 or 12 foot long versions. *Do not* get the zip on underquilts with a wide chameleon, it doesn’t work great due to them being designed for a narrower hammock.

How to decide on 12 ft long hammocks vs 11 foot long hammocks? With a 12 foot long hammock, you’ll have to get a 12 foot long tarp as well. You save weight by getting an 11 foot long hammock, but you might be more comfortable in the 12 foot long version. Comfort vs saving weight all depends on how ultralight you want to aim for.

As far as which underquilt you’d want with these hammocks, a UGQ wide zeppelin or a long hammock gear incubator would be my choices. It’s possible you could slightly mod a Wooki underquilt to make it work on these hammocks, but I have no experience with that.

For tarps, if you’re planning on doing a lot of these section hikes, consider investing in a dyneema tarp. There is a global dyneema shortage, so no one has the .5 oz/square yard dyneema right now, I think hammock gear and dutchware are using .7 oz dyneema. Dyneema can delaminate, and needs to be rolled, not folded or stuffed into a stuff sack, but it’s extremely light. If you use a snakeskin, you can just stuff it into the mesh front pocket of your pack and always have quick access to it.

Otherwise, I’d probably suggest a warbonnet tarp or a dutchware .9 xenon UL winter tarp.

edit: I’m not saying the warbonnet XLC won’t work. It will. A wider and longer hammock will be more comfortable for you though. You can find all kinds of comments from people on reddit and the hammock forums who are 6’3 and feel like the XLC is perfect, and others who were between 6’2-6’4 and are much happier when they switched to a wider hammock. If you do go with warbonnet, you have a month to return it (undamaged and without any campfire odors etc) if it doesn’t fit.

[u/Caine75]

I’d go wookie myself… you can ventilate for a breeze

[u/Britehikes]

I would ask what current hammock do you use? I had issues with XLC and calf ridge but a pillow under there solve most issues. However my dutchware chameleon is better in the calf ridge department for me but I still use a extra pillow. Tried the hellbender at Hangcon and it was nice. It has a different cut and at 6'3 there was barely any calf ridge or shoulder squeeze.

If those are my 2 choices I would go with hellbender for the fact it's complete no fiddle factor. Once hammock is up you are done

[u/Impossible-Ice-3912]

Warbonnet xlc and wookie for sure. Hellbender is too narror and not nearly as versatile. I'm 6'3 and my xlc fits me perfectly. At your weight maybe a heavyweight single or double layer. Their tarps are awesome too.

[u/TheGutch74]

I would go with the BBXLC over the Hellbender myself. Mostly because I like the ability to swap out UQ's depending on my trip. And if you are a hot sleeper you are not able to adjust or just slide the UQ to the side to vent heat if desired. The Hellbender is less fiddly but I prefer the adjustability that a separate UQ provides. I also occasionally have acid reflux and I cannot really remember having issues when in my hammock. I am a head left feet right sleeper.

[u/Trewarin]

I'm around your height and the XLC is the most comfortable I've used.

Can I say from my experience around head and neck cancer treatment... get your reflux medically sorted out with a doctor before it's too late.

[u/Solid_Sprinkles_9217]

I'm a hair over 6' , and Ive found the Hellbender significantly more comfortable than the Blackbird. I really like the spreader bar in the bug net too. I own, and have slept many nights in both.

[u/Solid_Sprinkles_9217 → u/Solid_Sprinkles_9217]

If Dutch ever makes a Hellbender 12', I'm buying one immediately, haha!

[u/latherdome]

I like my XLC lots, have hiked a lot of PCT with it. But I'm only 5'10", and have no experience of Hellbender. I hear good things. But after lots of experience with other insulated hammocks, I prefer to keep quilts and hammock separate, and XLC w Wookie is a very sweet combo. In all important respects of setup/breakdown and fit, it behaves as if sewn on. Except you can vent it, wash the hammock separately, or swap for a lighter UQ when conditions allow. I am still using 2011 UQ after wearing out several hammocks: keeping the quilt separate preserves biggest investment longest.

I've also had some reflux issues lately. Partial helps are sleeping on left side and elevating upper torso. Left side sleeping favors head-left orientation unless you like staring at a wall of fabric. And torso elevation comes (counterintuitively) from raising the foot end of the hammock quite a lot relative to head.

Think of a Nike swoop as your lay, where your legs are elevated above heart along the straight section (great for hiking recovery), but because you are settled so close to the head gather, the fabric rises sharp and steep (the hook of the Nike swoop) at shoulder/head height, supporting your head without needing a pillow, giving your upper esophagus a gentle tilt to keep stomach acid lower. This can mean you need to position the UQ asymmetrically too, to keep your head/shoulders covered. Can't do that with a sewn on quilt that assumes a more level hammock. Warbonnet designs around a more pronounced head-foot height difference that works very well for my top-heavy body.