Shroomism said:

What? I don't think you know what you are talking about. Just because that statement is SO FAR from my reality.
I love my fucking hennessy hammock. Best sleep I ever get. I wake up feeling refreshed every time.
I literally sleep better in my hammock then my $1000 bed at home. That is no fucking joke.
I'm the opposite. I sleep in my hammock and then I never want to sleep on the ground again.

Hell on your back???? You must be sleeping in it upside down or some shit.
As for a hennessy hammock, they are designed with a catenary cut and you are supposed to sleep on the diagonal for optimum weight distribution.

I have met hikers who can't sleep on the ground because of fucked up back problems and wake up in terrible excruciating pain.
They sleep in a hammock with no problem whatsoever, and THEY wake up feeling refreshed too with no back pains.
If you sleep in it properly, it relieves all your pressure points and does not put any strain on any particular one area, thus it's GOOD for your back and especially good for people with lower back problems.
I met one guy on the trail like this, who was a diehard backpacker but could no longer sleep in a tent. A hammock was the ONLY way he could get a good nights sleep on the trail.
Hell... this same guy told me the hammock sleeping was so good.. he replaced his bed at home and installed a permanent hennessy and sleeps in one every single night, it's the only way he can sleep good without back pain.

Hammock Sleeping = 10x more comfortable than sleeping on the ground.
Native south americans know this for fact, where sleeping on the ground will usually get you covered in fire ants or deadly spiders or whateverthefuck.
The only "con" is that you have free air moving under you. Thus you need some insulation under you or its probably gonna be colder.

Yeah you can't store your gear in them (who cares, it just goes right under you) and you can't really get changed in them, (well you definitely can but it's annoying).

But as far as comfort? Like sleeping in a goddamn motherfucking cocoon. For sleep in the wilderness... It doesn't get any better as far as I am concerned.
You can take your 20lbs of air mattress and tent. I'll sleep better in my 2lb hammock. 

Also.
- Never have to worry about waking up on cold wet ground. Never sleep on sticks/rocks etc.
- Never wake up in a pool of water because you camped in the wrong spot.
- Never worry about camping on level ground
- Never really worry about creepy crawlies climbing into bed with you

The one and only CON in my mind, is that it generally sleeps colder than a tent, since you have air moving all around you. Which is relatively easily solved. Depending how much you want to spend, you can go the cheap route with some closed cell foam pads, or blow a hundred or two on a fancy "underquilt" (basically a down sleeping bag that attaches to the underside of the hammock) that custom fits your hammock. With something like that you can sleep in a hammock in freezing temps no problem.


Does that answer your questions fbi? Check some of my posts in the Great Outdoors forums..
I've been plugging hennessy hammocks for years. They are the best (IMO), you can't go wrong.
I have an Ultralight Backpacker A-Sym with an extended Silnylon Rainfly. Used to have an Explorer Ultralight but sold it.

The only major consideration for the hammock is the sleeping cold thing. This only applies if temps are dropping below ~40-50F, or there is lots of wind, then you need some kind of insulation IN ADDITION TO your sleeping bag.
In warm weather, this is not even an issue.

Also down sleeping bags are a nono for hammocks since the side your weight is on has no insulation. Learned this the hard way (As is how I learn most things..)


So in conclusion. Hammocks are fucking amazing.
You have to do a little bit more prep / skill to set them up properly (they can be pitched in nine hundred different ways)
You have to think a little bit more about insulation. Can't just plop in it with a sleeping bag like you can with a tent, if it's really cold.
But the payoffs are 10x the quality of sleep then what I get in a tent.

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hawksapprentice said:

Yeah I'll throw these yummy electrolyte tablets in the the camel back that fizz, they rock.  I like to have a little flavor to my water out there.

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If you're using a screen from your bubblebag to filter your water I would imagine your water has some flavor. 

As for the hammocks, they are the shit! I'm no salesman either, but not having to wake up sore and stiff from sleeping on the ground is sooo nice.  I also have a Henessy with the velcro.  It's like crawling back into momma's womb. The only drawback so far that I can see with the hammocks is camp sex is pretty much out of the question.

There are also many choices as far as water filtration goes.  I have a water bottle that filters the water as you drink. And since you will undoubtedly be carrying a water bottle with you it's a pretty nice piece of gear. I will be purchasing a pump style filter so I can have fresh water to cook with on my sweet ass Swedish Army mess kit/stove. I bought a cheap dehydrator and vacuum sealer this winter and now, when I'm on the trail I eat like a friggin king.

Shroomism said:

Agreed. Plain water gets boring really quick. You have to mix it up sometimes with some flavored mixes and electrolyte mixes FTW

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hawksapprentice said:

Since all i saw was people recommending water purifiers I'm gonna put in my 2 cents. 

Don't get a water filter/pump.  Just by the tablets that sterilize the water.  You can't really taste it at all and not nearly as annoying as those damned pumps.

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My experience has always been with filters, they work really well, so well that we drank out of the agricultural cesspool that is the Snake River and the water was fine (though probably had ag chemicals in it).  There's no way I would have drank that stuff with just a tablet.  Too much sediment and fish spunk