Ultimate Camping Thread

lucky lol i have a AT hike coming in october.....need 2 big pieces of gear befor i go lol

 

I have a hard decision to make.....Im selling my hammock and tarp set up and also my eureka solitare tent. But i can only replace them with either a tent or a new hammock. im torn between a new henessy hammock or a north face tadpole 23...opinions?

 

I just came back from a 3 day camping trip at Yosemite National park. I took my girlfriend with me and we had a great time. We did the 14 hour hike to the top of half dome and back. we took the usual things for camping but we did buy camel backs, hiking boots, hiking poles, etc. that we didn't have before. Looking forward to more great hikes = ]

-Andres

 

good to hear it went well! i hate hearing when people go out and have a bad time...usually turns them off of it for there whole life.....when i take first timers i try to make shur the weather will be good and they have as much fun as possible

 

I had reservation to climb half dome for a few months now so I didn't have a choice of day and was at the mercy of mother nature. Luckily the weather couldn't have been better. I'm glad I spent good money on my hiking gear. Great thread btw, lots of good info.

-Andres

 

You get what you pay for IMHO....you cheap out and get crap gear, your gonna find out later when mother nature gets pissed lol....i learned this the hard way. Now I always try to purchase lighter higher quality gear to replace my old thing....its a terrible expensive hobbie but god i love it so much

 

Just bought a new headlamp after my old one (Princeton tec corona) ended up on the boat. Chatted with Backcountry.com got them to pricematch the headlamp for sale for $70 on campmor Guess they didnt notice campmor was selling last years model with 130 lumens instead of this years 200 lumensPlus free shipping. I also have a camping gear problem...

 

I just bought a black diamond Storm headlamp from REI:

http://www.rei.com/product/814301/black-diamond-storm-headlamp

Normal price is $49.95, but being in special at $32.99 I could not resist.

 

^that looks like a good deal, i looked at that one didnt know it was on sale for $32

 

It was the labor day sale, just in time for my hike.

 

Get the Hen hammock. You wont regret it. It is worth the $ although the tadpole (been eyeballing that one for a while now) would be better for cold weather camping. It is a tough choice but I'd get the tadpole.

 

The Garmin 60csx is the GPS I have been eyeballing for months now. Once I have the funds I think I'm going with this one. The reviews on it are great!

I have this headlamp and I love it. Great all around light, powerful, lightweight, comfortable and does great on batts.

I'm more of a tent guy, I feel like tents can be used more places than a hammock which limits you to certain camping areas. I also, wake up with a sore back after sleeping in a hammock. Thats just my .02

But you can always get the tad pole and then get the cheap ($20) but awesome Grand Trunk hammock.

Grand Trunk Ultralight Hammock: Portable Camping, Hiking, Backpacking, and Travel Hammock: Perfect Starter Hammock, Royal Blue

http://www.amazon.com/Grand-Trunk-U...BJNS/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1315582201&sr=8-3

I bought all my cousins one and they love it! I need one for myself now haha


EDIT: Just came across a different version of the Grand Trunk hammock, can be used as a rain fly, foot print, A frame, and lean to as well. I might have to get this!

Grand Trunk All-Terrain Hybrid Shelter and Hammock

http://www.amazon.com/Grand-Trunk-T...sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1315582585&sr=1-10

 

its a hrad choice isnt it lol......there both great pieces of gear and they cost about the same....the hammock is about half the weight

i accually have a grand trunk already.....lookin to upgrade but im either going all tree dweller or all ground and pound lol

 

I would say the tent after thinking about it for a bit. You are definitely limited to the trips you like to take with a hammock. Plus, if someone wants to come with you that has never backpacked before having a 2 man tent would be better.

 

i see what you mean.....its usually harder for me to find a place for a tent than for a hammock but thats just my area. But i know for a fact that tent wont leak...idk about the hammocks foul weather abilitys

 

i was in a crazy ass storm in vt this past weekend.....and when i say rained holy crap.........not a drop in my 5 year old hooligan 4 tent.......even with a few see through burn holes from nights with too big n too close of a fire...........
i use this tent about 30 nights a year if not more ...not bad for the $$$$


just my .02 cents and it held up real well in the crazy ass wind as well......and i did not even use all the tie downs it has
granted this is not a packbacking tent......but.......
i have a eureka apex 2 for that.....

 

I know man the east coast has been gettin it lately.....

 

the last time I had my Hen. hammock out, it rained pretty good... and leaked.... my whole face and tops of my shoulders were soaking wet. the tarp they give you with the set up is a little too small.

 

i would upgrade to something like a cuben fiber tarp from hammockgear.com if i did go the hammock route

 

If its a single person tent why not just go with a bivy and a backpack cover? As much help as the most weather proof tent you can get, My goretex sleeping bag cover has earned its keep 20 times over. Its even great for winter camping.