Chads.

>>1985

Well played.

If you don't insist on sleeping in the same thing, hammocks make a very light weight alternative to tents; get the right one and they can double as a tiny one-person tent, add a tarp and they get very comfortable indeed. I've personally used a DD Travel Hammock (I'm a cheap skate and they happen to be quite cheap) combined with an insulating mat several times now and it's never let me down so I can recommend them, but there are plenty of other options (some of which are no doubt all around better) out there if you look around a bit.

>>1987

I was thinking more along the lines of something with a porch for storage and somewhere sheltered to sit and at least a 2000 Hydrostatic head as I'm going to be walking in the Scottish mountains, summer or not.

It needs to fit in a rucksack, I doubt 2 hammocks and a tarp would fit in with our sleeping bags and all the rest. Basically, Im stuck for where to find such a tent. Do they exist small enough to fit in a bag? My only experience with tents are from the scouts and the few I've owned which were enormous in both instances.

>>1988
That would have to be a pretty super compact tent if you want a porch and sitting room with it and still take less space than the hammocks and a tarp as those are pretty compact. Keep in mind that those things are in three pieces as well, so you're more flexible in how you stow it.

If you set them up right they're as waterproof as a tent for sleeping, but you may indeed run into trouble with keeping your gear dry if you carry a lot of stuff with you; you can keep the backpack with you in the hammock, but that's not too comfortable. In heavy rain in particular the separation between people also is not the greatest thing in the world (nothing cheers one up more than huddling up in the rain together) so that's another thing to consider. Last, but not least, I have no idea how much opportunity there is in the Scottish mountains to actually hang the hammocks; they're perfectly serviceable without but offer few advantages over a tent when that's all they're getting used for.

>>1987
With this hammock set up, are you suggesting stringing a tarp above the hammock to keep the elements out (refer to pic)? Doesn't the wind get in, i guess you still need pegs to stop it flapping about...and how large a tarp do you need?

>>1990
Pretty much, yes. My hammock (and most other hammocks designed for outdoorsy stuff) itself is waterproof and the sides come up far enough that you lie in a kind of "trench", meaning you're somewhat well protected to begin with. With a tarp on top the entire thing becomes pretty water proof if you keep it close enough to the hammock. This is not entirely wind proof, of course, but that's almost by design since you want decent ventilation in there otherwise you risk it getting a bit muggy. In my case there's also an integrated mozzie net which doubles as a wind breaker so even if it gets quite windy there's no serious draught going on inside the hammock.

The tarp doesn't need to be huge since you don't have to hang the hammock too far up — just high enough to have good ground clearance — though even if you do just remember the tarp doesn't have to reach the ground. The higher you go, of course, the more rope you'll need to tie the tarp down. Some pegs are also needed unless you're mad enough to rely on finding suitable sticks whenever you make camp.

>>1991
Ah, cheers for clearing that up.
Looking about at pictures, it seems ideal. Smaller, lighter, easier to set up, no faffing about with poles etc.
Price is pretty good too. Though I might look elsewhere, probably army surplus for the tarp, £35 for 9 square meters of plastic? hrmmm

>>1992
Poncho to the rescue. Makes a lovely tarp, and you can also wear it when it rains. I'm on a cycle tour at the moment, and my poncho is the only bit of waterproof kit I need. Brilliant invention.

>>1993
They tend to be a bit short for hammock purposes (and very much on the heavy side when they do get big enough). Great bit of kit in every other way.

>>1991

OP here, that actually looks really fun and I'd consider it if I was going camping in the woods alone. Where would one buy tarp? Amazon?

I've taken a punt on this bad boy. It came recommended by my mate, he just did the West Highland Way, he said it was reasonably light and compact, that's an understatement. It weighs less than my boots and it'll fit in my bag with room to spare and it rained quite heavily on their last day and he remained dry so 2000mm should be enough. It has a porch aswell. Fairly chuffed with it. Cost me £65 incl P+P.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Easy-Camp-Tent-Explorer-2persons/dp/B006VQCMSK/ref=pd_ybh_1

What do you think? It's a bit late now to change it, but I'm confident It'll do the job nicely. I added some things for scale.

>>1993
Ponchos are great. Up to a point. I got mine in Bolivia, and it's amazing. It's bigger enough to go completely over me and my rucksack, and keep knees up bone dry even in absolutely torrential rain.
However, as soon as it gets a bit blowy it all starts to go a bit wrong. There is a photo of me somewhere, lying in a heap on a pile of gravel at the bottom of a cliff with the poncho wrapped around my head after the wind had got under it and blown me over. I can't find it at the moment, but this one is taken slightly beforehand. I felt like a sail in a gale.

So, I'm probably being a bit thick here but just to make sure;
With the DD Travel Hammock, you don't need the tarp? along with the mozzie net there's a water proof sheet that goes over the top? 'cos I can't see that much difference between the travel one and the camping one, besides the latter being £20 cheaper and not having a net.

>>1999
Both have a similar base design (two layers with zips on the sides) though there are a few differences. The Travel hammock's material is water proof, the camping one is not and as a result you cannot "cocoon" yourself in the Travel one without things getting very stuffy and muggy but on the flip-side you can use it as a bivi without a ground sheet. Secondly, the Travel has the mozzie net, the Camping doesn't. Finally, the Travel has pockets pockets sewn into the hammock for storing some bits and bobs (glasses, torch, keys etc.) which I think the camping one lacks.

Neither of the two is waterproof from above so both need a tarp for weather protection.

>>2000
There's also a nice guide to hammocks on another manufacturer's site: http://warbonnetoutdoors.com/hammocking101.php . Of particular note are the guides on how to best insulate yourself with top/bottom quilts.

>>1998
You can solve this by wearing a belt. I've got a big fabric belt and it makes me look even more like a Jedi, but fuck it, it works.

I know your problem is solved, but the missus and I use the one man tent I already have no bother at all. It helps that the wife is about five foot nothing, mind.

http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/index.cfm/product/jack-wolfskin-gossamer/fuseaction/products.detail/code/76110007/id_colour/98

This hammock thing sounds nice and that, but what happens when you don't have two trees or whatever to hang it off?

>>2014
Mine is waterproof so it doubles as a ground sheet with a built-in mozzie net. Put the tarp over it and, once again, it makes for good (ant proof!) shelter. The only downside is that this requires a bit of planning since some sticks are required to support the net and tarp. Trees or bushes not big enough to support hanging the hammock can still be used to string up the net/tarp, of course.

A non-waterproof hammock wouldn't fare so well and would require a separate groundsheet (unless your tarp is huge enough to do double duty as roof and sheet). However, if you can foresee not finding any trees or suitable posts anywhere on a trip:
A hammock doesn't care how rough the ground is as long as you can hang it, a tent doesn't care how many trees are around as long as you find a reasonably flat bit.

>>2014
If you're touring with a bike or something, you can stake the line into the ground and have it come up and rest on the bike, like a clothes-line-holder-upper-pole (technical term), so you only need one post/tree.