Camping, Tent or Hammock ?
 

Long distance touring.
Tent or Hammock ?
I've read a bit on the Hennessy Hammock.
Great reviews. Lots of advantages.
Any one of our tour riders use one ?
Your thoughts.

Thanks.

This topic often resurfaces. It has been discussed ad-nausium and there are both "sides" to consider. I suggest that you do a search in this forum on the 3 operative words you used in the title and go from there. The discussion won't change IMHO. Furthermore, YOU alone will have to make the ultimate decision as to what to do ... :p

In a nut shell: if one is primarily stealth camping in wooded areas, fine, Otherwise, one is better off with a tent. Personal preference.

Both? I have carried both and gladly took the weight penalty. I primarily tour on the heavily wooded east coast where hanging a hammock is not a problem. Took a short tour in Nebraska on the Great Plains, finding a place to hang a hammock became more of challenge. I can spend a day in a tent in bad weather if I have too, not so easy in the hammock.

Aaron :)

Aaron.........
Good input. Thanks

I can spend more time in the rain in comfort with my hammock setup than I could in a tent. My tent is a small cramped one person tent. There isn't much room to move around. I can only really lay in one position. Sitting up is not good for me without a backrest. With my hammock setup, I could lay in the hammock comfortably, I could easily sit up to read or eat. My tarp is much bigger than my tent, so I can even get out and walk around, cook, etc. Of course that all depends on how the tarp is set up.

I have never used a Hennessy, so I am not sure, but I think the sitting up would be difficult. Also, the Hennessy has a much smaller tarp, so the advantage of getting out of the hammock to cook, eat and read under the tarp wouldn't be there.

I would recommend making a test hammock to see if you like hammocking. If you go to Just Jeff's site, you can get some good info. On his tarp page you can see some different ways to hang a tarp to get the covered front porch for lazy rainy days.

It is much easier to find a spot with a hammock than it is a tent. You must find a flat clear spot to put up your tent. With a hammock you can hang on top of many different terrains. A side of a hill is not a problem, and could be a blessing. Hanging over rocks is fine. If there isn't a place to hang, like stated above in Nebraska, you could easily go to ground. My tarp becomes a tarp tent with my bike holding up one side.

I've never used the hammock, so my thoughts may be way off, but we've toured many places where there is no way we would be able to find a place to hang one. If it could be a hammock when you can hang it but double as a tent on the ground when you can't, that could be good. Otherwise, I think I would stick to the tent as there will always be a piece of dirt somewhere.

As Tmac already pointed out, the arguments have never changed, but it's a matter of personal choice. Can I end the thread by including all known arguments?

Pro tent: Pitch anywhere, more spacious, more comfortable, better in inclement weather, warmer,
Pro hammock: Pitch anywhere, more spacious, more comfortable, better in inclement weather, warmer,

See the problem?

Perfect!

I forgot to add the one real problem with a hammock, the one thing that really isn't practically solvable, and the one thing that keeps me from doing most of my camping in one; it's next to impossible to cuddle in a hammock.

I own a Hennessy hammock (A-sym expedition) and I out of the times I've used it I've rarely been able to get comfortable, (I've been cold, had my feet slip out of the bottom, etc.) and the elastic lines from the ground to the tarp are torn from tying around rocks instead of stakes. Maybe I don't know the best way to set it up, I'll have to try setting it up again this summer and see what I need to do differently.

But anyway, I really bought it for backpacking and don't mind the little extra weight my tent and pad add when loaded on the bike because I am more comfortable sleeping. I also bring a small tarp for more coverage or to wrap around the bike when I sleep.