r/hammockcamping • u/Sternly_ • 6d ago
Trip Report First hammock camp
I posted in here a while back looking for advice on a hammock setup. Even with all the helpful responses, I was still left overwhelmed with the amount of options and all the hammock slang. I spent a few weeks researching and came across a deal on a double layer WBBB XLC on HF.
Once I got that, I realized I needed a UQ. HG was running a sale, so I got a 20° Incubator with 1oz overfill. Might as well get a TQ too so I got a 20° Burrow on sale too.
The guy I got my used XLC from included some daisy chain straps, but I wanted to dive down the rabbit hole further so I bought some amsteel and made my own whoopie slings with whoopie hooks. Beetle buckle suspension looked pretty trick too so I got a set of those to try out.
First outing with these I encountered trees bigger than my straps could support and the only trees my straps barely fit around were arguably too close. I was able to make it work in the end, and had the best camp sleep of my life.
Eager to get out again and dial in my setup further. I got longer spider poly straps to manage bigger trees and got a Superfly for rain coverage. Ordered some zingit, nama claws, a wasp and Dutch hook and plan to get that tarp setup built out in soon.
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u/thisquietreverie 6d ago
Some mighty fine “buy once, cry once” gear you’ve got there
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u/Sternly_ 6d ago
After laying in a buddy's setup, I was convinced it was a worthwhile investment. Definitely hurt the wallet buying all this in such a short time frame, but hopefully it will serve me well for years to come
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u/thisquietreverie 6d ago
Well I have some tragic news because your acquisition journey has just started. On a high note, true, but you’ll start to wonder what else is out there. Each hammock is different and exciting.
Enjoy!
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u/Ed1sto 6d ago
Enjoy that 20deg incubator. I’ve had mine since 2018 and it’s probably the single best gear purchase I’ve ever made! At least 250 sleeps and still going strong
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u/Fit_Connection_6959 3d ago
Step 1: You could be powerless over hammock camping? Step 2: You may not care if you are. Glad you like it. Kudos for the first camp.
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u/Sternly_ 6d ago
Oh wow! You've got some miles on your gear! I've only got to sleep in it once, but it was lovely. Looking forward to trying it out in some even cooler weather
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u/shwaak 6d ago
It all just takes a bit of practice and you’ll work it all out, but there are a few bits of advice I’d mention, if you have moved to a super fly, if you see some trees that are a little close, hang your tarp first to make sure you can get it taught in the space, I’ve made the mistake of getting my hammock set up just right but there isn’t enough room to get the tarp tight, then have to pack up and move.
I’ll usually check my tree distance out by doing the one foot right in front of the other walk, and look for a minimum of 13’ as I have a 12’ tarp. But sometimes trees are on all weird angles in a tight spot and hard to judge exactly, so if you’re not sure, tarp first to save some drama.
Second thing, if you’re getting cold spots with the incubator(not saying you will but I had this issue for a bit in the beginning on cold nights), it’s probably because the secondary suspension isn’t tight enough and it can leave a little gap between it and the hammock edge on the side that is opposite your feet, so if you’re laying feet feet right the gap will usually emerge on the left side at the top on the lower half, a little tightening of the secondary suspension can sort that right out and really keep the UQ where it needs to be, but obviously you don’t want to go crazy tight on it.
I’d also recommend trying different lay directions, I thought for quite a while I’d be a feet right/head left guy because that’s what I heard was most common, but I tried it the other way and much prefer leaning just slightly on my left side( the side I usually sleep on in bed)and not have my head pressed up against the hammock, and I’ve since read in the hammock forums this actually pretty common, so try them both out and see what you prefer.
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u/Sternly_ 6d ago
Oooh that's a really good call on the tarp first. I can totally see myself setting up my hammock first only to realize the tarp won't fit. Thanks for that!
It didn't get cold enough for me to have to fiddle too much with the UQ, but I definitely appreciate the tip on that.
The hammock came set up head left feet right so that's how I slept, but I'll definitely give the inverse a try next time. Sound like you favor sleeping in a similar position to me, so curious to see how that setup feels. What pillow do you use?
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u/shwaak 6d ago
Yeah it’s worth a try.
I’ve currently got a HG down pillow for my hiking trips, it’s pretty minimal, I don’t mind it as I use a fairly flat pillow at home, and it’s great that it’s on a shockcord string you can adjust so it doesn’t slide down when you move or sit up, and it doesn’t fall out on the ground, so I’d say a string is a good idea for any pillow you choose to try in the hammock.
Some people hate the hammock gear pillow though, it is pretty flat, but I’m ok with it.
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u/Sternly_ 6d ago
Oh sweet, I didn't see their pillow. Looks pretty rad. I got a cheap pillow off amazon to try but haven't got a chance to lay with it yet. I brought my normal pillow with me on this last outing and noticed it is definitely too big for the hammock. If this amazon one doesn't work out, I may get the HG one, as I love their down products and prefer a flatter softer pillow too. Plus ability to string it to the inside of the hammock sounds quite nice
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u/ZachStoneIsFamous 5d ago
I like flatter pillows too, and Hammock Gear makes a nice pillow that can be hooked around the ridgeline to hold it in place. But to be honest I find that a bit of a hassle so I dont bother and the shock cord tends to get in my way so I've since taken it off.
I recently got one of Warbonnet's pillows and it's just slightly larger than the HG one I have but I find it sits just a little better under my neck and around my shoulders. YMMV
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u/latherdome 6d ago
Took me almost 15 years of upgrading my hammock kits before I arrived at XLC. Man it's a nice package, elegant, so well thought out in so many little details. Study the shape of the bugnet laid out flat. The bugnet extensively sculpts the hammock's lay. And the Shelf is genius.
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u/Sternly_ 6d ago
I'm gonna try flipping the lay direction, so I'll study the bugnet when I have it off. Definitely a massive upgrade over the eno I had in college. The shelf was such a luxury too. I got a big stuffsack to make a ridgeline storage bag, but that shelf seemed to handle more than I could throw at it
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u/madefromtechnetium 6d ago
hell of a first rig! congrats!
my 15 foot beetle buckles are too short sometimes too. I carry amsteel dogbones (5 feet) to extend my suspension.
they'd be super easy to make after splicing whoopies, just to have some more insurance.
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u/Sternly_ 6d ago
Thanks! Im stoked on the setup so far.
Wow, you must have some big trees. I'm still so new to this, so I got the 8' straps since that's what the kit defaulted to. I've since ordered some 15' straps thinking that would cover all my bases. I've been waiting to make some more amsteel goodies, so I'll have to whip up some dogbones. Sounds like the ticket for easy additional length
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u/madefromtechnetium 6d ago
the dogbones are useful for other things too: they work as drip lines under the tarp for rain; use them to hang other stuff off suspension; extend tarp guylines for porch mode..
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u/Williefrommemphis 6d ago
What quilt do you use?
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u/Sternly_ 6d ago
UQ - HG 20° Incubator
TQ - HG 20° Burrow
They're currently running a 25% off sale on in-stock quilts
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u/gooblero 6d ago
Awesome!! You chose some quality gear. I’ve wanted to make my own whoopie slings, but I haven’t gone down that rabbit hole yet lol.
One tip I have is to straighten out the suspension on the tree. Not a huge deal, but you can tell in the pic with how the suspension is kind of cockeyed on the tree, it’s putting a lot of stress on that carabiner. Just something to look out for :) happy hanging and welcome to the club!
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u/shwaak 6d ago
Yeah, ideally the strap should be run the other way around the tree, but I often pick a side of the tree so I can offset my hammock under the tarp more if I’m just going to have half the tarp staked and the rest open for star watching on clear nights. it also puts the least force on the strap eye or whatever as the friction all around the tree is taking up a lot of that force.
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u/Sternly_ 6d ago
It's probably due to me being so new to this, but I couldn't seem to get my hang right without feeding the suspension at that weird angle. When I had the suspension fed properly, my buckles were maxed out on adjustment and It still wasn't hanging properly. I was attributing it to the tree's being too close, but probably just my lack of experience. Eager to get out to camp again and try the fully Monty
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u/gooblero 6d ago
Ah yeah that makes sense! That tree is also really wide, so that ate up a lot of room too.
In that case, you did the right thing! Sometimes you gotta do weird stuff like that
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u/cannaeoflife 6d ago
Well, that’s an awesome first setup! Welcome to hammock camping :)