quick question on hammocks

[Ex Member lyndon]

why is it whenever i see a hammock in a pic that it is tied so loose to the the trees etc.? they allways seem to have such a bow in them the occupant must sleep in a sitting position?
i usually tie the hammock at just below chest height and pull it very tight so it never bows much even after 17 stone gets out of it in the morning (i have sometimes acomplished this with a car, just make sure you have the keys on you )
i just read the how to erect a tarp post any chance i can get a few tips to help with my own erection problem maybe .....o w8 that sound bad :yikes:

anyhow i need a british army gortex basha and a full bergen setup (with side pockets and daysack yoke) if anyone has them for sale cheers guys

 

[innocent bystander]

Using a decent hammock enables you sleep diagonally. You cant help but sleep with a straight back. Absolutely no need to tie the thing taught....

 

[Eric_Methven]

Sleeping diagonally allows you to roll over on your side without waking up - well, you wake up for the first couple of nights because you think you might fall out, but once you realise you won't, you just sleep on through the night.

I like my hammock fairly slack. Considering my basha is taught, and the hammock lines are tied above the basha lines, my hammock rests two feet or so below the basha. When I'm in it, it sinks to three feet or so, just so my outstreched arm can touch the ridge line below the basha when I'm lying down.

I have a bag suspended from the ridge line in which I place my flask of hot tea for the morning, my dentures so I can find them easily (and so they don't bite me in the ar$e during the night) and a nalgene bottle so I can have a pee in the night without getting out of my sleeping bag.

The distance from the lying position to the ridgeline was decided as a compromise between having to sit up to get at the bag and bashing my head on the flask if I did sit up in the dark. It also supports my back very comfortably and I get a great night's sleep since I started using a decent hammock. I got mine from Paradise Hammocks and it is the double size. Three metres long and two and a half metres wide. It's made from parachute silk and weighs next to nothing. It scrunches up into it's own bag and takes up no more room than a bag of sugar, and that includes the tapes that tie it to the trees.

Eric

 

[Graham_S]

another point is you can adjust the tension of your hammock easily enough. i tend to loosen mine off during the day so it makes a good seat but tighten it up a little at night so it's more comfortable to sleep in.

 

[Ex Member lyndon]

thanks for the replies guys especially eric very informative description ther m8 cheers

 

[wanderinstar]

I found that if I tied mine[ group buy] to tight it enveloped me like a cocoon, very claustrophobic. I now tie it slacker and can see out and see whos coming.
Ian.

 

[Topcat02]

I have a bag suspended from the ridge line in which I place my flask of hot tea for the morning, my dentures so I can find them easily (and so they don't bite me in the ar$e during the night) and a nalgene bottle so I can have a pee in the night without getting out of my sleeping bag.Eric

Eric, you had me a fit of giggles. I just so hope you dont give one warm bottle mixed up with another when you reach for your flask of tea in the morning.

 

[Eric_Methven]

That's why I use a nalgene bottle for widdling in and a stainless steel flask for the tea. When you get to be around the fifty mark (I'm fifty five now), you'll find that you have to spend a penny at least once during the night - more if you've been at the amber nectar. I tried rolling on my side once to see if I could pee over the side of the hammock but unfortunately I rolled back onto my back again. Trouble was, I was in mid flow and couldn't stop. I had a damp and smelly night and vowed never to try peeing over the side of a hammock again. Now I take the bottle into the sleeping bag, unscrew the top, do the business, screw the top back on again and if it's a really cold night, cuddle the bottle (it's like a hot water bottle). Otherwise I just reach out and pop it back in the bag. It works for me anyway.

Anybody else use this method? Is it just me? Am I disgusting or what? How do you ladies manage during the night?

Eric

 

[Goose]

I know a few that use the nalgene bottle in a tent, everyone needs that four o'clock wander when sleeping out!
You can get bottles especially for it with female fittings, a sort of odd shaped funnel.
If I used a nalgene in a bag above me I would probably crossthread it! :umbrella:

 

[falcon]

How do you ladies manage during the night?

Eric

They probably don't drink as much as the rest of us, Eric .....and no you're not disgusting...after all it's nature's call

 

[xairbourne]

Well from now on I will take a bottle in with me. I got up one night after getting out of my hammock bivi and sleeping bag stood on my foam mat and tinkled, I lost my balance and put my foot right in it (lovely damp sock) never again learn from your mistakes.