Night Fears: Worse with Hammocks than Tents?

Blukanu said:

Storms are another thing to feel vulnerable about.

Hammocks being off the ground is nice knowing I won’t end up in a pool of water. Should be high n’ dry. The tarps don’t offer as much protection as a tent’s rainfly. Already had to get up in the pouring rain at night to readjust the tarp. Was getting misted by rain blowing underneath.

Then feeling the trees you’re tied to swaying. Wonder how that would shake out if one of your trees uprooted.

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When you say "The tarps don't offer as much protection", it is likely you mean "the tarp I use. doesn't offer as much protection".

The tarp you use with a hammock is just another gear decision that gets made, you can get larger ones that tie out at ground level and you can get ones that are smaller/lighter that are more for wind blown rain. The one I posted above, has 2 poles, ties out at ground level and is pretty good protection. It's larger and more suited to the canoe/portage style of camping, the poles offer a built in porch mode which is how it is normally rigged.

IMO though a decent tent will handle wind better than a hammock setup, simply because the hammock is higher up off the ground, This can easily be dealt with by moving a little further into the woods.

Falling trees is a good thing to have a healthy fear of though, what about widow makers, how many folks actually check before they setup?

Brian

I check religiously for widowmakers, they're far more likely than bear encounter or any kind of animal encounter, in my book. But, at the end of they day, there's just some level of acceptance of potential freak accidents that has to happen before you can sleep. A lot of it, for me, was quashing a sense of 'terminal uniqueness' - thinking that, because it's you and not anyone else, bad things are more likely to happen, because you're somehow special.

The worst hammock issue I've personally encountered is hyperextended legs - painful enough that you're not only not going to get to sleep but not walk very effectively the next day. They're absolutely wonderful to throw in a canoe for a noon nap, and if you're still flexible enough to spend a whole night in them, they offer amazing sleep. Once you get the hang of it, you can sleep basically anywhere on the east coast. I'll second what others have said - you are way more enclosed and restricted in a hammock than you are on the ground, but I don't know if that's mostly psychological - you're pretty restricted zipped up in a sleeping bag in a tent, too. I've heard of people getting bumped into (presumably by bears, but who knows) but most hammockers I know hang rainflies waaay down under the height of their hammock, so I guess the bear would bump into the fly?

One serious issue with hammocks is convection - you can get COLD fast, especially with moving air.

As far as noises in the night, my take is - if you can hear it, it's not after you. If you can't hear it, it's probably not there. Don't set up on a game trail, hang your food and disperse-camp if you're in brown bear country and you'll be fine, but I have peed in a half-circle around my gear or hung a sweaty shirt before, as animal deterrent. I've kept myself awake many a night wondering if it's solipsism, atavistic survival genetics, plain old fear, or something else that makes people think something is after them. In the east coast woods there's really nothing that's going to bother me outside of a freak event (rabies, food-habituated bear, etc).

I feel a bit hyprocritical as I did not use this set up once in 2024, but I much prefer a good 8x10 or 10x10 tarp over a ground-sleeping setup than either a tent or hammock. I started doing that in my early twenties some time, and it almost totally dispelled the 'wonder what that noise was??' that I had when I was a kid. You can see, you're rain-protected, you get the breeze and the feeling of being in the woods rather than encapsulated in anything. I cowboy camp once in a blue moon, I just don't like the dew and condensation I get on all my gear.

Cruiser said:

When you say "The tarps don't offer as much protection", it is likely you mean "the tarp I use. doesn't offer as much protection".

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No, I mean with a hammock your protection is literally just a flat tarp you set up. This is opposed to a rainfly which is made to and form fitted to a tent.

Because of that the tent with rainfly has better odds of keeping you dry in a driving rainstorm.

The integral rainfly/tarp that came with my first generation Hennesssy has been adequate for most non-stormy conditions, even when it rains without much if any wind. Sometimes if I experience wind and some rain, I will tie it down lower than normal, which of course restricts the external visibility of my surrondings, but it is adwquate for that. I find that alone will hold in noticeablly extra heat near me inside the hammock. If I expect a chance of worse weather I have the optional much heavier Hennessey tarp cover, that has eight tie down tabs, and of course is even more restrictive. I also have a separate very lightweight but waterproof silnylon tarp that works well for intermediate conditions, or when the original tarp is just not quite enough coverage. Either of the two larger tarps is large enough to protect my pack and other belongings under the hammock and give me a place to sit in the rain.

Blukanu said:

No, I mean with a hammock your protection is literally just a flat tarp you set up. This is opposed to a rainfly which is made to and form fitted to a tent.

Because of that the tent with rainfly has better odds of keeping you dry in a driving rainstorm.

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I have tarps with doors and I have a multifunction tarp that I can form doors if I want. The multi is what comes out the most as I have so many options on how to pitch, it's by Jacks R Better

Cruiser said:

Process is almost the same, have done both, hammock far easier.

Open fly in a hammock and simply put your feet out, stand up and pee .... cap and sit back down and resume sleeping. In a tent, you get up on your knees (version dependent), pee, cap and lay back down and go sleep.

In practice, for the hammock, I usually leave my crocs on the mat and find the nearest tree, for rain or winter camping I carry a pee bottle that sits beside the crocs ... and before anyone says anything, the water bottle is in the hammock saddlebags


Brian

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Problem with the above: you are still exposing yourself to mosquitoes/black flies when you open the hammock fly and "stand up". I assume that you are using a pee bottle when you say "cap", and not just peeing on the ground under the hammock. In a tent you don't really have to stand or kneel. I use a wide mouth Nalgene bottle and can pee lying down on my side very easily. Just place the bottle at a lower elevation than the sleeping pad. Never have to open the tent or netting. The Nalgene is very secure and so far no spills.

I love hammocks but I got really sick on a trip once and kept waking up with this fever dream imagining that my tarp had fallen down over my face and was suffocating me. Each time it happened I genuinely believed that I could not breathe and was going to die, and this happened several times through the night. I would wake up in a panic, flail my arms around, jump out of the hammock, catch my breath, realize none of it was real, and go back to sleep. Rinse and repeat all night.

I know this isn't the usual kind of fear you get sleeping in the woods but it was the most scared I've ever been in a hammock.

I was also FREEZING all night, even while fully dressed in a 20 degree bag. I checked the weather when we got back and the low for that night was only 50f . It had been raining the first day and they were doing controlled burns in the area so I think the cold, wet, and breathing smoke the whole hike did me in. We packed out early the next morning and I had to stop every ~10 minutes coughing and wheezing to catch my breath.

I agree that its very easy to get very cold in a hammock and that falls within the topic of hammock "fear," or perhaps better said "concern." I consider my hammock a 2-season option: it works all summer (when it really shines) and only about half the spring and half the fall. For me, it just gets too uncomfortable beyond those limits. My Hennesey hammock even has a two layer bottom that holds a Reflectix insulation pad underneath (without it pressing it too closely against your body) and that does make a big difference. It's certainly doable beyond the seasons I use it, but it's just so much less comfortable than a ground tent, because the ground tent can prevent energy loss to the wind. I also find that the amount of insulation necessary to keep warm in a hammock in cold weather obviates any packed-volume savings relative to the tent option.

To not help the feeling of being vulnerable and open to critters, I've had TWO critters walk under my tarp when in my hammock. Not mice or little things, but something bigger. PROBABLY a raccoon, I don't know, but around that size. I hollered at each, and they ran off.

Pseudonym said:

I also find that the amount of insulation necessary to keep warm in a hammock in cold weather obviates any packed-volume savings relative to the tent option.

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I agree. I love using my hammock in average relatively warm spring and fall nights, as well as all summer conditions. Since most of my campsites are quite primitive bushwhack sites rather than designated sites, I am not restricted to flat ground as I would be with a tent. Open designated sites tend to have a poor selection of trees for a hammock. Hanging in site edge perimeter trees is frowmed upon by LNT and some regulations. I have primitive hammocked over wet swampy ground, rocky ground, steep slopes, heavy brush growth, or any number of other locations not conducive to laying out a tent. Although I know people carry and use hammock under quilts and such in cold weather conditions, but I feel that the extra weight and volume required do negate any advantage over simply carrying an adequate solo size tent for the weather with an insulating ground pad (at least a thin pad is necessarry anyway in almost all hammock use weather). With that I will either reluctantly defer to use of an overused designated tent site, or search a little further for a suitable primitive site flat ground spot.

TXRiverRunner said:

Thats just nasty right there. Where was this?

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Walmart parking lot under a lamp post?

I use an Amok hammock and absolutely love it.

I think it's like everything else, the more you do something, the more you feel comfortable. I remember my first night out in the backcountry on a solo trip, I twitched at every little noise -- the pfft of a chipmunk fart would have made me sit up, eyes agape, and imagine a rabid bear was coming at me. Now...I think a bear could wander past my hammock and I'd wave to him as he passes by. Now, if he were sniffing my dangling buttocks that would be a different story and I'd be reaching for the bear spray...the point is, whether it's tent or hammock, increased exposure to wildlife and animal behaviour allows one to feel more at ease in the backcountry. WE are the odd element out in the bush and animals, for the most part, feel more threatened and afraid of us rather than the reverse. We all have seen far too many horror movies and heard too many urban (backwoods?) legends and we can let our imaginations run wild.

The only thing I'm concerned about in the backcountry generally is a widowmaker falling on me and other people. Tent nor hammock has any advantage with these dangers.

I prefer a hammock because in addition to allowing me to look around under my fly, which you can't do in a tent without leaving it, is that it solves more practical and common issues -- no need for flat ground, keeps me raised above puddling water in strong rain, and raised above the wildlife that does try to come at you -- field mice and habituated squirrels/chipmunks that people have fed and they now associate people as a food source.

And besides, folks, my AMOK hammock ( https://amok-equipment.com/) is FANTASTIC to sleep in. I often sleep better out there than I would at home. As far as cowboy camping goes, sure it's a romantic notion to sleep under the stars, but in my experience the conditions have to be almost perfect for it. Stuff can fall on you and where I camp up here in Canada heavy dew is common. I like my fly over me for peace of mind so I know I will be going to bed without worrying if I'm going to wake up wet.

CanoeDaddy said:

I use an Amok hammock and absolutely love it.

I think it's like everything else, the more you do something, the more you feel comfortable. I remember my first night out in the backcountry on a solo trip, I twitched at every little noise -- the pfft of a chipmunk fart would have made me sit up, eyes agape, and imagine a rabid bear was coming at me. Now...I think a bear could wander past my hammock and I'd wave to him as he passes by. Now, if he were sniffing my dangling buttocks that would be a different story and I'd be reaching for the bear spray...the point is, whether it's tent or hammock, increased exposure to wildlife and animal behaviour allows one to feel more at ease in the backcountry. WE are the odd element out in the bush and animals, for the most part, feel more threatened and afraid of us rather than the reverse. We all have seen far too many horror movies and heard too many urban (backwoods?) legends and we can let our imaginations run wild.

The only thing I'm concerned about in the backcountry generally is a widowmaker falling on me and other people. Tent nor hammock has any advantage with these dangers.

I prefer a hammock because in addition to allowing me to look around under my fly, which you can't do in a tent without leaving it, is that it solves more practical and common issues -- no need for flat ground, keeps me raised above puddling water in strong rain, and raised above the wildlife that does try to come at you -- field mice and habituated squirrels/chipmunks that people have fed and they now associate people as a food source.

And besides, folks, my AMOK hammock ( https://amok-equipment.com/) is FANTASTIC to sleep in. I often sleep better out there than I would at home. As far as cowboy camping goes, sure it's a romantic notion to sleep under the stars, but in my experience the conditions have to be almost perfect for it. Stuff can fall on you and where I camp up here in Canada heavy dew is common. I like my fly over me for peace of mind so I know I will be going to bed without worrying if I'm going to wake up wet.

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I have always wondered about those sideways hammocks. I too prefer being up off the ground, not just for the flat ground part but because the ground isn't comfortable! The added visibility and protection from puddles sure is nice too.

The older and more experienced I get, the less I get spooked in the night thinking that every little rustle is a bear coming to eat me. These days I'm much more concerned with falling down and hurting myself than anything hurting me.

Where I do most of my canoeing, creepy crawlies are a lot more common that bears.
I have hammocks but, so far, have never used one. To get up off the ground a little, I've been using a cot.
On a Colorado River, Meander Canyon trip, we slept on sandbars and I just laid out my sleeping bag on a groundsheet but found out there were a lot of some kind of bug in the sand. Looked like some kind of larvae. They didn't bite, but having things crawl all over you all night long wasn't pleasant.

I converted to hammocks about 15 or so years ago. Whenever weather and bugs allow, I sleep without bug net and/or fly. Over those 15 years, I have had 4 "experiences" that kept me up a little longer......All of these "events" occurred on trips to the BWCA. On one trip, I was camping with a buddy and shortly after going to bed (hammock), some smaller critter jumped on my head and danced around for a moment before jumping off! My buddy claims I screamed like a little girl, LOL. whatever it was, it was small, think mouse, chipmunk, squirrel. Later that same night, I was awakened by the sound of something big moving through our camp. As I lay there trying to triangulate the sound, I detected a very strong, musky, wet fur odor. My immediate thought was bear! I grabbed my headlamp, hollered at my buddy and started hollering and shining my light around. We never saw anything, but did hear the sound of something moving away from camp. The next morning, we found where some pine needles had been disturbed, but no clear tracks or sign......who knows, Bear, Sasquatch, Moose.... On a more recent trip, there were 4 of us camped on a small island. We were all in hammocks. We were awakened at about 1:00 am by a very loud wolf howl, so loud, it sounded like he was in our camp! We have heard wolf howls before, but never that loud or that close sounding. a few minutes later, that original wolf was joined by two or three others, all sounding like they were right on the edge of our camp! We felt like we were completely surrounded. This went on for about 20 minutes. It took all of us awhile to fall back asleep. This last "incident", I think I mentioned in a thread several years ago. It occurred quite awhile ago. When my daughter was 14, I took her and a group of her friends North for a week. I would set my hammock up away from their camp to afford them some privacy. I found a beautiful hang just a couple feet away from the water's edge. About 10' below my feet along the shore was a granite slab extending into the lake at a nice slant for about 10'. Again at about 1:00am, I was awakened by what sounded like a gunshot. A couple of moments later, I heard a second "gunshot". About that time, I realized the "gunshots" were actually tail slaps of a beaver. After a couple more slaps, everything quieted down for a few minutes. Just as I was getting ready to fall back asleep, I heard the sound of dripping water below me.....a couple of moments later I heard the sound of a beaver gnawing on a tree very close to me....I'm a little slow, but a couple of moments later I realized that I was hanging between two trees! I turned on my headlamp and started hollering, shortly heard a splash followed by more tail slaps......this encounter repeated itself for about an hour, with him coming back ashore to chew on a tree and me running him off. I don't know what time I fell asleep, but I did wake up still hanging suspended in my hammock. I climbed out and checked my hanging trees and saw no evidence of the beaver chewing on them so walked up shore to the girls camp to make sure they were getting up. After checking on them, i walked back to my hammock to get my coffee kit and that is when i saw the tree the beaver had been chewing on! It was about 10' behind the center of my hammock and had the beaver successfully dropped it, it would have hit my hammock dead center! That would have hurt!

Mike

Unless it’s actually raining, I have at least one vestibule of my tent open to keep down condensation. I enjoy looking out at the stars, when I wake at night. When I sleep in my hammock, I always have the tarp up, and miss being able to look up at the stars. I don’t wake up as much when I’m in my hammock, which I assume is because I’m very comfortable there. I have a 20* top quilt and a 20* bottom quilt, and have been out to 28* with them, comfortably. I camp in grizzly country, and try to always know where my bear spray is. A big issue for me, is finding appropriately spaced trees. I now carry a little wad of cord that marks the appropriate distance for hanging a hammock, and take measurements and remember for next time if a hammock will fit at that particular (park service) site. It isn’t optimal, but I don’t want to have to find away to make due.

Pringles said:

A big issue for me, is finding appropriately spaced trees. I now carry a little wad of cord that marks the appropriate distance for hanging a hammock, and take measurements

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I just pace it off. I haven't hammock camped in quite a while but, as I remember, something like seven paces is ideal for me. When it gets to five or nine I should be looking for a different pair of trees.

It helps keep me honest when it gets late and I'm tired and my brain wants to believe that those two trees aren't really too close together only to setup the hammock and then realize they are and have to do it all over again with another pair of trees.

Alan

Jatfomike said:

After checking on them, i walked back to my hammock to get my coffee kit and that is when i saw the tree the beaver had been chewing on! It was about 10' behind the center of my hammock and had the beaver successfully dropped it, it would have hit my hammock dead center! That would have hurt!

Mike

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Started reading "Beaver Land: How One Weird Rodent Made America". First fact that caught my eye was that a beaver can take down a 5" tree in about 3 minutes. I would never have guessed.

Alan Gage said:

I just pace it off. I haven't hammock camped in quite a while but, as I remember, something like seven paces is ideal for me. When it gets to five or nine I should be looking for a different pair of trees.

It helps keep me honest when it gets late and I'm tired and my brain wants to believe that those two trees aren't really too close together only to setup the hammock and then realize they are and have to do it all over again with another pair of trees.

Alan

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I’m afraid I’m not too consistent in my step size, and were I usually camp, trees are mostly too far away from each other. Going to ground seems quite fiddl-y, so I am measuring. There’s one site that I absolutely adore, because there are two trees that are the perfect distance. I’m hoping to find more.

I got over any fear of the dark in the Army... leading patrols or movements during overcast/moonless nights, night vision goggles, starlight scopes, red-lens flashlights, thermal imaging systems, glow-in-the-dark lensatic compasses, and blackout-markers for driving; it all "normalized" operating at night, and you learn that things make the same sounds during the day as at night... and that nothing exists at night that doesn't also exist during the day.

I started using a hammock for camping around 2004-ish, when I hit 40 and the ground got harder... it's basically a hanging cot with a tarp over it... just way more comfortable than a cot. I eventually solved the "ground is too hard" problem later, around 2015, with technology; the NEOAir... they're all light and thick enough. Anyway, that in turn led me to sleeping under a tarp, as I was now used to the openness of a tarp.

So, why do I like it (the hammock)?

• For one, it's a lot easier to get up out of at age 60 then getting up off the ground/air mattress... I do both these days, tarp/mattress in early Spring/Fall, hammock/tarp in Summer when there are bugs.
• I also like being able to look out over the edge and see things... like visiting critters, or the tree branch that just crashed down 50 yards away. or upon hearing the wind pick up, I can look over and make sure my canoe is still secured, and my food bag is still in place, or that the raccoon I hear rumpling around is not after my food bag.
• I like not having to blow it up, like the air mattress.
• I can set it up anywhere; over a stream if I really want to. I once hung one in a swamp between two trees from my canoe and sat in it to eat lunch away from the bugs. You can hang it parallel to the side of a hill of any steepness. You can camp in PA with it and get off the ever-present rocks. You can hang it inside a lean-to.

There isn't any down side aside from the slightly extra weight... my ground setup uses a larger tarp, an air mattress, a ground cloth, and a mosquito net in season. The hammock setup involves a smaller tarp, but you do need an underquilt, so it's only about a pound different.

I had a fox run under my hammock one night, and hit me in the butt... pretty cool encounter. Can't get that in a tent.