[pct-l] Fwd: re : Hammocks on the P.C.T

[roni_h3000 at yahoo.com (roni h)]

Regarding the issue of hammocking along the p.c.t - In
October I posted the next reply to a similar question
about thru-hiking the p.c.t.   I don't think the
resent fires changed anything as most of the critical
trees in section A that were hammockable in dry desert
sections were Isolated trees, in creekbeds, and
therefore less prone to forest fire. Some burnt trees
are still hammockable, even though using them might be
a bit dangerous, and they defiently make your hands
dirty.

Her's the October post:

> 
> As a hiker who just completed thruhiking the p.c.t.
> (except for the last 66 miles to the Canadian border
> which I'll have to do some other time) and who has
> hammocked all the way from Mexico I would definetly
> say that it is possible to hike the whole p.c.t.
> with a hammock without ever having to pitch it on
> the ground once (I never did so as I felt it would
> eventualy tear the bottom of the hammock when I put
> it on the ground). One can hammock even in the
> southermost 700 miles of trail. The problem is that
> I quicly realized after I started hiking from Mexico
> that my hike is determined by my hammock - I planned
> my day in such a way that I would end it near trees
> (the superb guidebook of southern California usualy
> mentions if there are trees near a campsite).  Being
> a hammock fanatic ment that I had to do some longer
> days than I would have wanted - like a 23 mile
> treeless strech from scissors crossing that I had to
> do in one night. It also meant that I had to
> improvise  - like tieing my
>  hammock from a burnt car when I was under
> cottonwood bridge in the Mujabe dessert. I discoverd
> it is also possible to hammock in chaparel, if your
> lucky enough to find a dry ravin between two big
> bushes. If you tie your hammock close enough to the
> ground  the bushes (with their spread out root
> system) will easly cary your weight, and if the
> ravine is deep enough, you might avoid hitting the
> ground when you enter the hammock. Or not...
>  
> The most important thing to you have to do if your
> determined to hammock through the dessert is ask
> people who have already hiked that section before
> where you could find trees. 
> In retrospect I would actualy advice you not to go
> with this strategy. Insted of being a slave to my
> hammock, I decided after a couple of weeks that I
> should be willing to sleep on the ground whenever I
> felt like. Luckily, the rule is that wherever there
> are no trees, there is no rain, so pitching my
> hammock on the ground was unecesery.
> All and all I would estimate that I hadn't hammocked
> on the trail only about 10 nights on the whole
> p.c.t. and at least half of these nights could have
> become hammock nights by hiking only a few miles
> further.
> I am still as big a hammock fanatic as I've been,
> especialy after seeing all the other poor hikers
> sleeping on the wet ground in rain in Washington...
>  
> Roni  (now in Tel-Aviv, Israel)
> www.trailjournals.com/roni
>  

Her's in addition a reply I sent, also in October
about hammocking questions. You can probebly guess the
questions from the answeres:

"Keeping your butt warm at night while sleeping in a
hammock is indeed a chalenge.
When I hiked the p.c.t. this summer I used an 8
section z-rest (which weights about 8 ounces and which
I also used for my g4 pack). The trick I discoverd
last winter on the a.t. is to use the fact that the
sections of this mattress fold, and so I doubled the
thickness of the highest and lowest sections by
folding them. This way the 8 sections were as long as
a 6 section z-rest but had twice the insulation for
the the parts of my back I put the most pressure on
and therefore the ones that are usualy the coldest -
my shoulders and my butt. I put all my extra gear and
food beneath my legs thus avoiding the need to carry a
longer mattress for my legs, and leaving nothing
outside my hammock so I had no fear of creaters
nibbling through my stuff  (which was a great relief
when I hammocked in a.t. shelters this winter and had
the "plesure" of hearing the endless taping of small
feet on the shelters floor below me, almost evry
night). I also generously used  garbage bags,  which I
used during day to keep my stuff dry in the pack, to
prevent heat "leakage" from any cold spots , by
compresing the bag to a ball like size and placing it
around the cold place. This plastic insulation system
worked especialy well with my butt.  This method of
using evrything I carry during the day, to insulate me
at night worked even during my cold winter hike on the
a.t., and I kept myself worm even while hammocking in
below 0 degree (farenheit) nights using a sleeping bag
rated to about 15 degrees. The only difference in
winter  was that I used two z-rests - an 8 section one
and a 6 section one , and put them one on top of the
other in my hammock. In this case the fact that one of
these mattressess wasnt new when I added the other
one, was on advatage, as, being slightly flattend due
to use, It didnt interlock with the other mattress,
and kept an extra layer of air between them for
insulation. (If you never used a z-rest the last few
sentences might sound to you gibrish...).
 
All and all I would highly recomend the hammock as a
ultralight 4-seoson shelter (assuming there are trees
or shelters where you camp) .
 
Roni
www.trailjournals.com/roni"


P.S.
I'm hoping to hammock along the C.D.T. this year...


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