Hennessy mini review

[arctic hobo]

As I mentioned in the "Miss me?" thread, I tested my Hennessy Expedition Asym in Norway on a backpacking trip. Since it's a bit of kit we all are fairly familiar with, and there are doubtless people who are wondering whether to buy it, I'll share my own opinion on it. I know someone recently posted a review from another site, but since mine is less in favour of the product maybe you'll find it interesting reading as well
First impression of the hammock in the bag are fairly good: it's not too big, although it is by no means a superlight backpacker's device, but then it isn't intended to be. At about a kilo it weighs the same as a large tarp, or a medium tarp and hammock.
I must say at this point that I have not bought any extras for it - no hex fly, no snakeskins, etc. You empty out the bag (preferably checking the ground isn't crawling with ants that you will later find exploring your face in the middle of the night - yes I do speak from experience ), and there are four things in it - the hammock, the tarp, and two lengths of wide webbing.
First we must get up the hammock. You are supposed to wrap the webbing around the tree to protect the bark. There are two problems with this - one, that the webbing means the distance between the trees, already long, needs to be even longer; two, that it is not tremendously easy to pass the rope through the flat loops of the webbing. It's hard to explain in text, but the way they crush together does not make things easy. In addition to this, the smooth fabric of the webbing does not provide much friction - bad news for knots. Add to this the rope not being very flexible and you have a bit of a knot problem. You see, there being little friction in the webbing means knots that you pull tight and then tie off will be difficult to tie off as you still have to tension it a lot while tying, if that makes any sense.
For example, the round turn and two half hitches - it is necessary to keep your weight on the bitter end or else the hammock will fall while you tie the two half hitches - but it's impossible to do this. Try tying one round a greasy pole if you're still not with me. I wondered if you could do more turns and thus increase the friction - but no, because you just can't fit the rope through thanks to the shape of the loops in the webbing. You could tie a bowline, but only at one end, because the hammock needs to be pitched taut as a bowstring, (more on that later), and it is impossible to tension a bowline while tying it. And as I said, the rope is not at all flexible. Fine for knots like the bowline, where tension on the standing end pulls the knot together. But for a round turn and two half hitches, the inflexibility of the rope actually works against you and pulls the knot open. I would say three, four or even five half hitches would be a much better idea, or a fisherman's bend if you know the knot.
So, anyway, pitching. It is absolutely imperative that the hammock is pitched flat. I mean imperative. And I mean spirit level flat. This, for me, is the big bad point of the hammock. The reason it must be so flat is because if you have it head down, you end up in a ball at the bottom by morning, with the most terrific back cramps. And if you pitch it slightly head up (as I am used to doing with hammocks), you will spend an even more miserable night, falling out of the hammock. This is because of the way you get in and out of it - there is a slit up the belly of the hammock at one end, that when you lie in it is pulled relatively tightly closed - it only really needs to be closed enough to stop the wind coming through. Normally, it's a good design - apart from snagging expensive wool socks and jumpers on the velcro, it does enable you to hop in and out easily, and does not need zipping up. However! If you pitch head up, your body gently pushes the hole open. You then promptly fall on your bum onto the earth/rocks/tree roots/friends. There is no way to avoid this but to pitch flat. I tried turning round in the hammock, and after the usual very tippy contortion sequence, I found that sleeping the other way just meant that you fell on your head, which was much more painful (just my luck to place the pick of my ice axe right where my head fell! ). You must must must pitch flat. To me, that's pretty rubbish. I never pitched above flat ground in Norway - ever. Where I was, the bottoms of valleys were marsh, river or lake - no trees. And what's more the forests were young silver birch for the most part, and on the south facing slopes were very thick. This meant it was very difficult to get two trees to pitch between, let alone two trees each for my friends, and a convenient area to cook. And the Hennessy needs a very large tree spacing to set up ideally. The reasons for this are the webbing straps, and the tarp arrangement.
The tarp arrangement can be summed up in my opinion in two words: ****ing awful. Insert the rudest word you know in the starred space, and you'll be roughly saying what I mean. It is just rubbish. The way the tarp attaches is by a plastic clip onto another plastic clip, on the end of a piece of string that slides it up and down the main support ropes using a prusik knot. There is another clip that I though at first was a waste of space, but reading the instructions I found it attaches the tarp to the support rope. Given that it's already attached via another clip and a very short piece of string, I found that I had been quite right - it is a waste of space. What's more, it is exceptionally difficult to get the clip over the rope, as it is clearly designed for something much thinner. In the morning, unclipping it, it is worse, as the plastic is harder thanks to the cold. I broke fingernails (I thought that only happened to girls? ) trying to get it open far enough, used swiss army knives, credit cards, everything. Eventually I cut the damn thing off. The tarp is asym shaped - that is, it is an asymmetrical diamond, which is designed to cover your shape as you lie in the asym hammock. It's a nice idea, and weight saving too, but falls down because a) the angle different people lie in it due to their height affects how well it covers them; b) it is tricky to see which way on it goes before you've actually put it on; and c) it is utterly useless at keeping your kit dry, unless you have another hammock to hold it close below the bottom of the Hennessy. Admittedly if it rained, the ground would probably get wet and your bag would not be saved by the tarp, but it would certainly help on flat ground at least. Plus it is miserable to plop besocked feet out of the hammock into soaking wet mud, having missed your boots thanks to the ungodly hour. A decent tarp would mostly keep the ground dry under you, and on a hillside rudimentary drainage channels can be very easily and quickly dug.
But the real god-awful jump-up-and-down-and-swear bit is how the tarp functions. The ridgeline is a very thin cord that runs through the hammock, supporting the permanently attached mosquito net. I personally have grave concerns about its durability, as the sheer tension it is under when you get in is enormous. Anyway. The theory is that when the tarp is attached to the support ropes by clips and prusiks, you also peg down or tie down the other two corners of the diamond. It's very nice to only have two peg points - it also speeds up setup a lot. You can also tie out the sides of the hammock with elastic cords. Apparently this is to stabilise it, although I've noticed no difference when I have not used them. You can peg the tarp of course at a shallow or steep angle. Bearing in mind its size, I would not ever pitch it shallow except on guaranteed fair nights. You of course pitch it nice and tight, naively thinking it will stay like that. That done, you grin and look at your peapod shaped tent contraption, and go and have a brew.
Later, you come back, pop in the sleeping mat (oh boy, do you need that - unless you've a great need of a numb back - beats morphine any day) and sleeping bag (as always for a hammock, unzip it first - or else you'll need to be a reverse Houdini to get into it). You sit in the opening to the hammock (again, I am concerned about the long term durability of this opening - it is not as reinforced as I would like, and all the force is concentrated on a tiny point), and slip off your boots. You then need to cover them in something waterproof as the tiny tarp will not keep them dry. You lie back and then after utilising every yoga position yet invented, manage to get in sleeping bag on sleeping mat in asym position. (I say that you do - in truth, I don't believe that anyone apart from possibly a very short Thai contortionist could physically manage that ). You notice that the velcro opening has quite neatly flapped shut.

 

[arctic hobo]

Less good, you notice that you are not very flat. Being, as I am, six foot tall, I could not lie flat. I had my back and body bent the whole night. This also meant that I could only sleep on my back, as I just don't bend far enough sideways to manage that - and if I may be pardoned the inference, lying face down on the hammock presents its own manhood-related problems. It did me anyway . You look around the hammock, and you can see the points where you tied the elastic to keep the hammock stable. The cut of the material clearly indicates that these are the asym points - that is where your head and feet should be. Aha, you think, and by doing your electric eel impersonation again you wriggle into position - only to find that you would only fit if you were less that five foot one. Literally. I am not kidding - even with my legs completely bent I could barely fit. This seems utterly ridiculous - there are many people my height and more that weigh much less than the maximum supported by this hammock (assuming that heavier people would go for the larger Explorer). So back to the bent spine position then. The one fortunate part of this is that as the mosquito net is continuous from the hammock sides, you cannot fall out of except through the aforementioned entrance. This does simplify your yoga, but means it is much harder to use as a chair.
By now, wriggling as you may have been you will undoubtedly have heard a fearful noise occuring outside the hammock. Something akin to a thousand Turks whipping each other with towels, played through concert speakers at volume 11. (No offence to any Turks here! ). Good God, you think, and sit bolt upright, hitting your head on the mosquito net and falling over, thus expelling the sleeping mat from under you at great speed. All a-quiver, you suddenly realise that you are in fact safe from Turks - but not from the rain. That noise was your tarp. It is surprising, the first time you hear it, just how loud it can be. Why on earth? you are thinking - you pitched the damn' thing tauter than a bridge cable.
This is the I-want-to-kill-Tom-Hennessy-and-his-rabbit part - the tarp design is fundamentally flawed. When you get in the hammock, of course it sags. To prevent it sagging, maths says that an infinite amount of force would have to be put on the ropes. Something tells me that the rope that can take that has not been invented - and the Chris that could tauten that has not yet been to the gym enough to manage it. So, it sags. And as it does so, the ropes supporting it become angled. Because the tarp is longer than the hammock, the prusik loops are about halfway along the support ropes (this is another thing that makes it need a very long pitch). So as the ropes sag, the ridgeline is lowered down - out of the tarp. And as the ropes sag, the prusik knots are a bit closer together. And closer to the ground. The end result is that the tarp becomes a bloody mess, to be honest. It is not taut in any direction. Not only that but it is also higher above the hammock than it was, so it covers even less of you. And oh boy, is it loud. The only way you can get around this is to have someone reset the tarp completely after you have got in, which of course is ridiculous. Plus this only gets around tension - the tarp still has no ridgeline, and is too high for its size.
Basically, it is a total failure. I have thought of complicated arrangements of string and bungees, and of specially placed rocks, but there seems to be no getting around it. It is just a rubbish tarp.
Inside, there are pockets and two hooks, which are nice, but again, poorly designed. The hooks are the same as the ones on the tarp, and so can not hook anything larger than a bit smaller than a matchstick in diameter. The pockets are useful, but spill their contents easily and are a silly shape. In addition, putting more weight on the ridgeline only pulls it lower, away from the tarp.
To sum up, I would only put up with this hammock if I extensively modify it. I would certainly not, having tested it, spend anything like 85 green men on it. Given the work I will have to put in, I would in fact spend no more than 30.
Pros: Fairly light weight, only two pegs needed, quick setup, inside pockets are useful, entrance is quick and easy.
Cons: MUST be pitched absolutely flat, must be pitched incredibly taut, cannot keep your kit dry, webbing and ropes very poorly designed (did they even test this? ), far too easy to fall through velcro entrance, very large space needed to pitch between, EXTREMELY poor tarp design (useless clips, not taut, no ridgeline, very loud etc), very poor asym shape, and often cannot keep even the user dry.
I would give this product four out of ten.

Chris

 

[arctic hobo]

Sorry about the length folks - seems I got a bit carried away! Not really a mini review any more eh

 

[bambodoggy]

Hi Chris,

Good review buddy I'm suprised to hear you didn't get on with the hennessy, I love mine to bits and would definately give it a strong 9/10. Conceeding that they do need a bit of room between trees to pitch and that having the mesh down is a pain (but can be done to let you use it as a chair).

I've had mine a little while now and have used many other types of hammock, here's some of the ways you can improve the hennessy you have or at least what I've done with mine.

1) Roll the tarp up and pop it in a dusty draw somewhere, you won't be wanting that again
2) Buy yourself a hex-fly and two sets of snake skins.

The hex fly will solve all your fly related problems in a stroke and I advise to peg one side of the hex down and the other prop up with a coulpe of 3 feet poles or saplings/branches. This gives you enough area under it to have a couple of bergans and a brew area. I used this set up for a week in Sweden earlier this year and it rained fairly hard the first coulpe of nights and all my kit stayed dry. Here's a piccy of what I mean with mine of the left and Bill's original on the right:

Also knock a couple of sticks just over a foot long into the ground just to the side of your hammock but under the tarp, as you take your boots off just pop them on the stakes sole up, they will stay dry all night that way even if the ground floods.
It's a lot easier to pitch than the standard tarp and you won't have any tention issues with the ridge of it.

You drop both sets of snake skins on the ground, clip up the two ends of the hammock in it's skin to the tree, then attach the hex-fly in it's skin, peg out the trap first and then sit under it with the hammock tucked up out of your way while you have your brew (there's enough room to cook under the hex and for several people to sit and chat while the hammock is up out of the way in it's snake skin) then you slid back the hammock snake skins and it's ready for bed.

I usually use a 3/4 thermorest in mine (but have also used my reindeer skin and it's wicked) and put it in before I get in. I get changed for bed or rather just strip off my outer layers under the tarp and end up squatting next to the entrance. I have my dossbag on the floor (it's nice and dry under my tarp - really...it's massive!) feet at the bottom and opening up, I then step into it so that my feet are already at the bottom, then I do one of those funny movements like a stage magic act going into a sack that's about to be tied up by a member of the audience. When I have the top of the bag up round my neck I put my head on one side to grip it there. I then reach up on the other side and open the hammock. I stand up into it, making sure to keep my chin grip on the collar of the dossbag, then I just sit back, layback and lift my legs....Bingo! I'm in! It's a heck of a lot quicker and easier to do than it is to type but try it. It also means I dont' catch anything on the velcro as I'm already inside my dossbag as I pass though the slit entrance.

I haven't yet found a use for the two internal clips but I like the pocket, it can hold my mobile, my fags and lighter and a small 9LED torch ok. The elastic on the outside of the hammock isn't really to keep it in shape in terms of comfort but more so that it opens the living space out inside and makes it more like a little tent. I don't peg the elastic out as such and as the book says too, I just clove hitch it loosely to the corresponding little clip at that part of the hex fly. I've sat reading in mine many times with the torch perfectly held in place above my head by the pocket. I'm 5'10" and don't have a problem laying flat so not sure what's going on there until I saw how you were kipping mate (I don't have my head or feet anywhere near where the outside elastic is ).

I have found that the straps work well, they don't damage the trees but if you use a lark's foot then as Chris says they are long, I just wrap them twice round if a small tree or once round if a bigger one and tie through both loops.
I agree totally about the naff tie off on the strapping. This is easily sorted by the use of a standard snap link karabiner through the webbing at each end of the hammock (which if you use a dry bag in your bergan can be another place to store your kit off the ground or a place to hang food). Now that you have a nice bit of metal to tie into I use the "Italian Hitch", it allows me to pull it tight by litterally hanging off it with all my weight (should I want to ) and then as the hitch rolls to lock back the other way it just takes that tiny bit off that you need. I then lock this off with a half hitch and a nice neat daisy chain, which in turn gives me the nice one handed quick release I like in the morning when striking camp lol

I haven't found it that desperate to have to hammock totally flat but then with the krabs on the webbing it's not that hard to do anymore anyway.

If you need to pee in the night you can sit up, drop your legs through the under slit entrance, let yourself fall (gently) through it and then wriggle forward (stay on your knees to do this, no need to stand up lol) to the end of your tarp cover and dropping your sleeping bag for the least possible time in the cold....relieve yourself, then reverse the process to get back to bed, no need to leave your dossbag at all, best way to pee at night I've found so far and a big plus point for me much better than other hammocks or bashas, although you could do the same from the opening flap of your tent I guess

For "carefull" smokers (if there is such a thing with a habit like that ), you can smoke sitting in the hammock with your feet hanging out through the bottom opening so long as you are extra careful where you flick your ash (not normally in a review this bit, but heck seeing as this isn't my review it's Chris's hopefully he'll get the blame but it is a question that bushcrafting smokers may want answered lol ).


Anyway, hope that's a bit of use to you. If I make it to the next dartmoor meet then I'll show you how I pitch my set up and maybe it'll help, I showed a coule of my mates who have them how I do it and they haven't had any problems since as far as I know (they also got hex flies ).

Cheers,

Bam.

 

[Stew]

Also knock a couple of sticks just over a foot log into the ground just to the side of your hammock but under the tarp, as you take your boots off just pop them on the stakes sole up, they will stay dry all night that way even if the ground floods.
It's a lot easier to pitch than the standard tarp and you won't have any tention issues with the ridge of it.

Damn good tip!!

Nice one!

 

[bambodoggy]

Damn good tip!!

Nice one!

No worries mate, it's an old jungle trick to keep your boots dry and to help towards stopping things getting in them (although not 100% so always check your boots in the jungle before you put them on ).

If you expect the ground to flood overnight or if you're hammocked up in a swamp then just make the sticks a bit longer so the tops of your boots which are now at the bottom are higher off the floor (and no reason why you can't do this when you're under a basha too...makes a bit more space ).

Bam.

 

[mark a.]

Great reviews, guys. Sounds like somewhat polar experiences, although I get the impression (not sure where from ) that Chris' opinions are somewhat more heartfelt!

 

[bambodoggy]

I get the impression (not sure where from ) that Chris' opinions are somewhat more heartfelt!

How so Mark? I'm very heartfelt about all the very good nights sleep I've had in my hennessy and am very impressed with it, I sleep as well in it as I do in my bed at home....maybe even better

Bam.

 

[VIRULENT SALAMANDER]

.... .. Mine hang well.

1. The zip tag has got me wondering what its holding together?(where the rope pops out of sack).
2. The ridgeline does seem a little delicate to me to!.*****

With the snake skins on I found it much easyer to put up, I just drapped the hammock over my shoulder as its now like a fatish rope!.Rap the webbings using karbina's around trees/hitch hammock surport ropes, one end then other. I found this easyer to level off with karbina's, then daisy chain your surport ropes working ends to make safe & ease of braking camp... I must say that the ridgeline if of a stronger rope would have made a good hand hold to pull myself upright. The little clips i've used to hang my boots from but would be more at rest if the line was stronger.......Over all I still think this hammock is great fun, but this is the first hammock I have ever been in, so I'm still learning from you guys and girls..... well somewhat .... .. I slept well in mine and I'm looking forward to the next encounter group meet....people.

***** I'm not saying take the ridge line is no good though..

 

[Millbilly]

where can you pick up the hex flys in the uk, and would any large tarp do?

 

[lardbloke]

All of that information is great. My Hennessy arrived yesterday from the states (after a five mile hike to the collection office to retreive it), but I have not been able to get outdoors to test it as yet due to the bad weather we are having at the moment. We have gusting winds and has not stopped raining heavily for the past two days. My initial problem is that the tree huggers are too short (I have a mature tree in the garden that is over 3 metres wide) but have got 5 metres of tubular webbing that was made up for the basha/DD hammock setup that should work nicely. I like Salamanders idea of using the karabiners to attach to the huggers to the main rope. Would a fixed tarp knot at one end and a evenk knot at the other for adjusting purposes work, as I know the rope is a little stiff (I need to work on my knot work)???

 

[Ahjno]

Great MINI review *thumbs up*

Just to share:
My HH on the Woodlore Fundamental Bushcraft course

Edit: not the best spot to choose ... I actually spotted the 2 trees where that blue tarp is ... But that guy beat me to it ...
As you can see, the hammock isn't perfectly tout, the fly sheet needs a wider positioning, and the trees should be a bit further apart. But, hey - it was my first time in a hammock (first night was horrible 'cause I kept slipping towards the entrance - although it was perfectly level ... ). Now I'm getting the hang of it

 

[mark a.]

How so Mark? I'm very heartfelt about all the very good nights sleep I've had in my hennessy and am very impressed with it, I sleep as well in it as I do in my bed at home....maybe even better

Bam.

Ah, but Bam, your review didn't include as many expletives, or threats to kill Mr Hennessey and his rabbit!

 

[Stew]

Arctic Hobo - out of interest, did you try the knots that hennessy suggests?

 

[arctic hobo]

Thanks for the feedback folks. Stew I didn't use the knot on the bag - for the very good reason that I could not make head nor tail of it! Perhaps that would improve the knot situation a little
Two points I forgot - my feet were pressed hard against the edges of the hammock, which meant that they got very cold, and as lardbloke mentioned, the webbing straps only fit young trees.
The main issue with the tarp is wind. With gravity, any tarp will keep you dry. But in the Norwegian mountains, the wind is pretty much ever present, and often very strong. So the tarp needs to be half decent to cope. At 85 notes I would have hoped it would be
I will certainly look at the hex fly thanks Phil. Is it as quick to set up? Good tips you mention. I'll almost certainly be at the next dartmoor meet, be good to see you there

 

[wentworth]

I really like my hennessy, but I no longer use the standard tarp rigging. I tie the tarp to the same trees as the hammock, but BELOW the tree huggers. This way, when you hop in the hammock, thus lowering it, you are as covered by the tarp as possible.
I also would have given up hammocking if I had had to keep using a pad. My thermarest slid around on the slick nylon of the hammock, my back got sweaty on the non breathable foam mat, and my arms got cold where they were uninsulated by pad.
as mentioned in previous posts, I now use an underquilt, which makes it as comfortable as using no pad at all.
It would be very simple to make one up out of synthetic insulation.

I actually set my hammocks up with the feet end a little bit higher. Since my upper body is heavier than my legs, It sort of evens out. And I am actually more comfortable with my feet elevated.

 

[Stuart]

hennessy hammocks really do seem to be a marmite thing, you either love them or you hate them.

having used my hennesy for 6 years (got mine from america before they were available here) and in 7 countries on 3 continants, I can only say that I am delighted with my ultralight Asym model hennesy.

many peope have remarked at there construction not being rugged enough to be hard wearing, but mine is still going even after all these years, it even suffered a direct hit by a drunk suger cane worker on a motorbike and came out unscathed except for a snapped guy line that had wrapped around his wheel

I have had trouble with a freinds expedition model, though I think this was due to a manufacturing flaw which should be fixed now

I like your tip with the italian hitch and crab Bam I'll be trying that on my next trip out.

 

[bambodoggy]

Hope I can make the next meet Mate

The hex is pretty much as quick as the normal to pitch bt you do have 4 pegs instead of just 2...they're next to each other though so it's no biggy. The beauty of the hex fly is it's size, any large tarp would be good but the hex is massive. you can pitch it windward side down and leyward side proped up with poles or sticks as I suggested or in high winds both sides down almost to the floor to give you all round protection....or on very warm still days prop up both sides to give you a massive sun sheaded area to live and work under.

I believe Hennessy are (or were) doing a deal whereby you can opt to upgrade to the hex instead of the standard at no extra cost.

The snake skins are well worth while purchases and make the set up so much more fluid.

Mark....fair enough bud lol.... guess it did sound like the hammock was on Chris's mind a lot more than it should have been during his trip....and I guess mines just a nice warm dry comfy bed! lol

Cheers,

Bam.

 

[lardbloke]

I managed to get out today to try out the Hennessy. I watched the setup videos on the Hennessy website in order to get some idea of how the proper set up is carried out and combined with the advice on the forum, it should be a piece of cake.

After trudging about the woodland I managed to find a some stable trees that were well spaced apart. I wrapped the seat belts huggers around the trees and threaded the long ridge rope through and tied off using the figure of eight and two half hitch method. After pulling tight I realised getting the ridge line taught is not as easy as first thought. It takes some degree of pulling to try and get it upright and over distance with weight is pretty difficult. After tying both sides I realised that it was far too low. I tested this by climbing in the hammock and my bum bounced off the floor. So I had to re-tie the ridge above head height and all seemed ok. I tried the Karrabiner method, but found them too slippy when trying to tie off the ridge rope with tension. I also tried various knots that I found too difficult to tie at head height due to the rope itself and reverted back to the figure of eight/hitches methodology.

I find the fly sheet a little too loose in the middle, which is difficult to correct. It leaves a good gap of flapping material that wafts around a bit under a good gust of wind. Saying that the fly protects you from the various debris dropping from the trees.

I found climbing into the hammock extremely easy (depending on height) and overall for my size (5ft 11 and weight 12 stone) was very comfortable.

Finally when clearing away, I attached the snakeskins and found the routine of putting it away extremely easy and will be much easier to gain the ridge line tension next time due to the containment.

I cannot really provide an overall comment on the product as yet as I have yet to spend a night out in the hammock and in variable conditions. But first impressions are very favourable.

There are a few attached piccz of my first Hennessy adventure...

 

[bambodoggy]

I tried the Karrabiner method, but found them too slippy when trying to tie off the ridge rope with tension. I also tried various knots that I found too difficult to tie at head height due to the rope itself and reverted back to the figure of eight/hitches methodology.

They are more "slippy", which is why the best knot to tie them off with imo is the Italian hitch, it's a climbing knot used to belay and rappel with so you can litterally twist your hand round the rope, put your feet up on the tree and hang off it to get the maximun tension, then as you ease off the tention the whole knot rolls once over the bar to invert itself ready to be used the other way. By keeping hold of the lose end you contol the knot (and therefore the tention), then just tie it of with a half hitch that isn't pulled right through and daisy chain the rest (which gives you a control about and easily adjusted one handed quick release for the morning). The Italian hitch is one of the easiest knots to tie, you make two loops in a bite of rope the same as you would to make a clove hitch but instead of slipping one behind the other like you do for a clove hitch, you simpley fold the two loops together like you're closing a book.

Try it that way and using your snake skins and I'm sure you'll find it easier

Cheers,

Bam.