Date: 2006-10-13
To: Prep #52--Hammocking 101 Quiz Answers
Miles today: 0.0

1. M or T? Sleeping in a hammock hurts your back.--Myth. The reason some of us (including me) experience pain on the ground is because of pressure points, or the places where your body touches the ground. In a hammock, your full body is supported because the hammock hugs your whole body. 2. M or T? It is impossible to sleep flat in a hammock.--Myth. You can easily achieve a comfortable and natural flat sleeping position by laying slightly off-center, or slightly diagonally in the hammock. My hammock is specifically made to make this even easier, because it its built assymetrically.3. M or T? Hammocking is more environmentally friendly than tenting.--Truth. The "tree huggers" are wide straps that go around the tree and prevent damage to the bark. There's no need to "clear the ground" like with a tent, and no evidence that the hammock was ever there after taking it down. 4. M or T? You must have your knot-tying patch from the boyscouts to hang a hammock--Myth. All I use is a simple figure 8 and a half-hitch, which are very fancy names for the way most people tie off boats to a dock.5. M or T? A hammock system weighs much more than a tent system--Myth. I know this was a grey area question, but MUCH more wouldn't be true. My whole tent system which includes: Hubba, Tyvek ground cloth, Thermarest Sleepmat, Sleeping bag weighed only 8 oz LESS than my hammock system which includes: Hammock, tarp, sleeping bag, sleeping mat. A good night's sleep is worth even 16 more ounces in my opinion.6. M or T? It is more difficult to stay warm in a hammock than in a tent.--Truth. This is the only challenge w/a hammock that ground-dwellers don't have to contend with. It's due to convection, air goes both under and over you, much like how a bridge will ice over in the winter. There are remedies, however, such as an underquilt (a down quilt that hangs against the underside of the hammock), using a closed cell sleeping pad inside of the hammock, and hanging the hammock close to the ground and build duff up under it (leaves, etc.) If all else fails, I can drop my hammock completely to the ground, holding the ends up w/my hiking poles or tying them low on trees, and sleep like any tenter. Let's see someone hang a tent like a hammock! 7. M or T? Once you hang in a hammock, you'll never go back to being a ground-dweller--Truth for the majority of people who are open-minded enough to try and learn about hammocking. I know I will NEVER go back to sleeping on the ground.8. M or T? It takes longer to hang a hammock than it does to pitch a tent--Myth. After some practice (about 10 times) you can hang a hammock in 2 minutes. 9. M or T? One wrong move, and you'll fall out of a hammock--Myth. Hammocks are amazingly stable. The first weekend I slept in mine, I purposively moved all over the place to see if I felt the center of gravity shifted enough to flip me over. It was stable and very comfy. 10. M or T? You can only consider a hammock if you weigh less than 200 lbs and are shorter than 6 ft tall--Myth. Hammocks are manufactured for specific weight/height requirements. Some hammocks can hold up to 300 lbs and people over 6 ft tall. Yes, they are bigger and will weigh a bit more, but the comfort factor will outweigh a few ounces....trust me.The two other VERY cool things about hammocking I wanted to bring up was the protected outside area and the lounger.Protected outside area: With the tarp (like the one I have) I can pull my hammock out of the way (or pack it up in the morning) and have a huge protected area outside of my hammock to cook, pack, stand up, change clothes, etc. under the protection of my tarp. I can put my tarp up first and set up camp protected from wind/rain and vice versa.Lounger: You can also have a camp chair. All you do is flip the bottom of the hammock up a bit, and just sit down in the hammock like a swing in between two trees. Instant campchair to sit in while cooking or reading or just enjoying the outside.So how'd you do? Is my classroom full of straight A students or do you need more convincing? Tell you what, it's 32 degrees and snowing/raining in Michigan this weekend. I'm spending my first cold night in my hammock, so I'll tell you how it goes.