Reducing bergan bulk and weight - hammocking=bulk

[roman-soldier]

After several trips out with my old army 20yr old Berghaus Roc I am disappointed with the amount of kit I seem to need when hammocking. My bergan wasn't this big when I had ammo and a radio in it.
The diy UQ takes a lot of space then add the tarp, hammock and sleeping bag and theres just enough space for the food and woodgas stove.
Last weekend I looked like some creature from the film labyrinth with a mountain on my back and extra kit tied to the outside.
I am now determined to take only what will fit inside, I can't go back to ground dwelling as it's too uncomfortable thesedays.
I have got down to it after some careful thinking.
Side pouch - DD 3x3 tarp, bungees, groundsheet, pegs
Side pouch - DD Frontline hammock & Whoopies
Top pouch - Wildstoves woodgas mk2 including backup trangia. Food for 24hrs
On top - Response pack
Inside - Diy UQ, Army sleeping bag in compression sack, clothing, water
It now looks like a manageable bergan to walk with.

Comments welcome

 

[Shewie]

If the underquilt and sleeping bag are synthetic you're always going to struggle with bulk, there's no way round it unless you switch to down. Is the army bag a beast too?

Maybe ditch the spare clothing, if it's just a couple of nights then you don't need them. Have something separate to sleep in like base layers but that's all you really need.

Bungees are fairly bulky, try switching them to something like 2mm accessory cord instead.

Why a groundsheet if you're in a hammock?

It's all the little things which make a difference when you put them all together.

 

[Greek1983]

If by "Army sleeping bag" you're referring to the PU-coated monster bag, then you'll have to ditch it and by a new one.

 

[roman-soldier]

The clothing is only a buffalo top and microfleece pants to sleep in.
The army bag is not the pvc hooded type its the later one with net pockets inside but yes its bulky. The UQ is huge, I want to switch to a Snugpak when I can.
The groundsheet I only 3 x 4 ft and just something to stand on when getting changed.
Are the "down" a lot smaller? I am thinking down UQ and TQuilt any suggestions?

 

[MikeLA]

After several trips out with my old army 20yr old Berghaus Roc I am disappointed with the amount of kit I seem to need when hammocking. My bergan wasn't this big when I had ammo and a radio in it.
The diy UQ takes a lot of space then add the tarp, hammock and sleeping bag and theres just enough space for the food and woodgas stove.
Last weekend I looked like some creature from the film labyrinth with a mountain on my back and extra kit tied to the outside.
I am now determined to take only what will fit inside, I can't go back to ground dwelling as it's too uncomfortable thesedays.
I have got down to it after some careful thinking.
Side pouch - DD 3x3 tarp, bungees, groundsheet, pegs
Side pouch - DD Frontline hammock & Whoopies
Top pouch - Wildstoves woodgas mk2 including backup trangia. Food for 24hrs
On top - Response pack
Inside - Diy UQ, Army sleeping bag in compression sack, clothing, water
It now looks like a manageable bergan to walk with.

Comments welcome

Do you really need the whoopie,, try one small stove only, whats in the response pack etc one set of clothes on one sleeping, re think do I need this etc

 

[Big Stu 12]

Do you really need the whoopie, whats in the response pack etc

I know Paul and camp with him on many occasions, He like me, likes the way that the amsteel in the Slings do not stretch over night, I know I have had success in this matter, being a guy that is of the larger type....

As far as the Response Pack goes, his is just like most of other people's Response packs that It carrys small items that are hand and kept close to hand and may need quickly so you dont have to dig in the Main Sack, all sorted in a Sugpak Response Pack that is no bigger then a Handbag - well some handbags

 

[Nomad]

The army bag is not the pvc hooded type its the later one with net pockets inside but yes its bulky.

That's the one I've got, and it's a monster for packing. Hard to get it much smaller than about 16" long by 12" diameter with a compression sack. I've got an old Other Arms bergen, and it take a fair bit of squeezing to to get the bag down into the bottom half of it. When I saw this thread this morning...

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=101508

...I gave up and ordered the Eurohike Down 500 bag. It's about 1.3kg compared to about 3kg for the army one, and looks to pack down to about 13" by 7.5" diameter. Hard to argue at 40 quid. Even if the temperature ratings are optimistic, I reckon it will be fine for 3-season use in the UK, which is what I want it for.

 

[Squidders]

The main issue you are going to have is that you have great dependable gear that will be expensive to replace with stuff that will perform as well but with less bulk. I have some thoughts and questions below though.

Side pouch - DD 3x3 tarp, bungees, groundsheet, pegs

That seems like a lot of room for a tarp, ground sheet and a few accessories. During the winter, I get this: http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/vaude-terraquattro-3p-tent-73110130 in the side pouch of my Sabre 45. Are you compressing the stuff in there? Is the ground sheet bulky?

Side pouch - DD Frontline hammock & Whoopies

Again, i'm not very familiar with DD hammocks but would imagine that if you really stuff it in hard, this could go in the first pouch before the tarp?

Top pouch - Wildstoves woodgas mk2 including backup trangia. Food for 24hrs

Food is food and your stoves don't take up much room so probably little you could do about the size and bulk of them.

On top - Response pack

While I don't have the response pack, I have a similar sized bag for storing small personal items in that I like to have by the fire. Nothing to change there in my experience so far.

Inside - Diy UQ, Army sleeping bag in compression sack, clothing, water

Here are the biggest problems and biggest costs. The brit army bag served me well down to -32C and replacing it with something small and light is expensive and while down is definitely the way to go, you will have to be much more careful with it than with the army bag. That aside, if you leave the rest alone, changing the bag and underquilt will give you the biggest benefits. Alpkit do decent down bags for the money or January sales or even second hand kit from ebay that has been looked after.

Another option if you have the Buffalo pile clothing is to buy a superbag and sleep in it with the clothing on - It is more bulky than down but less so than the army bag and just as bomb proof - there is a price to pay for that though and that's the issue. Any good solution is expensive.

As an aside, I would strap the water to the outside, It's the first thing I go for when I reach camp and the last thing I would want to leak inside my pack where my sleeping kit was.

 

[Squidders]

Cotswold Outdoor have a good deal on at the moment for a nice down sleeping bag: http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/marm...3?utm_source=catalogue_site&utm_medium=google
That will be as warm as your bag but take up far less room and be lighter.

 

[Big Stu 12]

Paul I get a lot more in my side pouches then yours, did you work out how small yours are, they might only be 5 Ltr at the most, mine are least twice the size of yours, I can get the Hammock, my Cooking utensil roll,, fire blow tube, folding saw and first aid kit in one side, in the other i get the XL Tarp, peg/line bag, my enamle cup and a couple of other things in the other of mine, i'd look at some new side pouches mate

 

[Johnnyboy1971]

The clothing is only a buffalo top and microfleece pants to sleep in.
The army bag is not the pvc hooded type its the later one with net pockets inside but yes its bulky. The UQ is huge, I want to switch to a Snugpak when I can.
The groundsheet I only 3 x 4 ft and just something to stand on when getting changed.
Are the "down" a lot smaller? I am thinking down UQ and TQuilt any suggestions?

Sounds like you have the army arctic bag. Bulky as hell but warm, but still not the best for a hammock.
You would be as well dropping to a smaller bag alongside the underquilt.

 

[Shewie]

The clothing is only a buffalo top and microfleece pants to sleep in.
The army bag is not the pvc hooded type its the later one with net pockets inside but yes its bulky. The UQ is huge, I want to switch to a Snugpak when I can.
The groundsheet I only 3 x 4 ft and just something to stand on when getting changed.
Are the "down" a lot smaller? I am thinking down UQ and TQuilt any suggestions?

There's no getting round it, hammock camping is bulky compared to sleeping on the deck. You can reduce the bulk by using a separate TQ and UQ, down compresses more than most synthetics, I'd say somewhere around half the bulk for equal temp ratings. When I first started hanging I used a Snugpak Elite 4 bag and a Snugpak underblanket, I remember the bag being around the 2kg mark I think the underblanket was around 1.5kg. Stuffed into my Sabre 75 they took up half the main compartment between them. I eventually replaced the Elite with a down bag from Alpkit, that packed to half the size and weighed less than half as much. Next I got rid of the underblanket and got a 3/4 length down version, again this packed away really small too.
So now I could put both the down underquilt and the down bag side by side in the bottom of the Sabre, everything else went on top. But I had too much pack then, so I got rid of the 75 and switched to the 45 instead. I find 35-50L is about right for 3 season multi-day hammock camping for me now, in winter I'll up it to a 64L pack.
I now have two top quilts, one for 2-3 season and a chunky winter one, I still use the 3/4 UQ for 3 season but also have full length down one for the colder months. It's taken a few years to save up and get the quilts but I now have good options for all year round camping.

The bottom line is if you can stretch the wallet go for down, if not get the Snugpak UB, while it's bulky it's a great bit of kit.

 

[Chiseller]

If using the Brit Arctic bag, just use a mat or foil blanket .pull your tarp lower to the ground and closer in to your hammock. and you shouldn't need an uq?

Swmbo uses the Brit bag but her tarp is larger so the ends can be closed like doors. Makes alot of difference. She just uses a foil blanket or a mat.

 

[Chiseller]

PS. With any bulky synthetic bag.....I've had success packing it flat using a large vacuum bag. The trek mates type. Then it fitted down the back of my bergan and took up far less space.

 

[roman-soldier]

Great advice thanks everyone.
Down is the way for me then, I will look at the alpkit and eurohike offers

 

[roman-soldier]

That link to UKHammocks was interesting, the kit looks awesome, I need to start saving. You've definitely convinced me of the benefits of down over synthetic. I'd be chuffed if I can get my kit into a 65 ltr bergan

 

[Greek1983]

You'll be surprised of the how compressible down bags are. See this video from ca. 4:50 how it's stuffed into a waterproof stuff sack.

[video=youtube;qmZDjvwv_Lg]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmZDjvwv_Lg[/video]

 

[jacko1066]

PS. With any bulky synthetic bag.....I've had success packing it flat using a large vacuum bag. The trek mates type. Then it fitted down the back of my bergan and took up far less space.

That vacuum bag is a great idea!!
Any idea on the dimensions of the vacuum bag you used?

 

[copper_head]

This sort of thing I think Jacko, although I've found you can do pretty much the same thing with decent dry bags.

 

[Chiseller]

This sort of thing I think Jacko, although I've found you can do pretty much the same thing with decent dry bags.

There the ones, I grabbed mine from tkmax (non affiliated) cheaply.

Jack, mine are large size or bigger. I coated them in gaffa tape to give them protection for use in the woods