Choosing The Right Camping Hammock
06 Feb 2020
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In this blog post, Drew Wylie, Owner of Wylies Outdoor World helps you to find what's right for you and helps you see through the fog of contradicting advice from Facebook Groups.
This morning I was asked about my opinion on a couple of different hammocks in another group, essentially what one to choose...
I thought this answer may benefit anyone considering trying a hammock out or purchasing a hammock for the first time its a question I answer multiple times a day
Asking for camping gear advice on Facebook Groups
One thing almost everyone that is new to hammock camping do is look for recommendations... "what's the best hammock?" type of question and the answer is it simply doesn't exist. However, the best hammock to suit your needs and budget is something quite different and exactly why I do test everything I can get my hands on and test things in a variety of circumstances to see where the strengths and weaknesses (or as I call them characteristics because a weakness to one is a strength to another)
Biased Advice that may not suit you
Very few people in Facebook groups that give recommendations in my experience consider that no two people carry exactly the same gear, for the same distance, over the same terrain, in the same conditions, have the same knowledge base or skillset, will use the gear the same way and finally have the same physical abilities or "build"
I will give you a very basic but common example...big fat bloke tells you not to buy a DD superlight hammock because it's too constricting, can't get a good lay, it's very uncomfortable and finally, he fell on his arse through it so its bad quality! when in fact he simply purchased the worst product possible for his own needs. But for someone like me that carries their pack over 10 miles to 25/30 miles a time that is physically fit and in shape weighing 13 to 14 stone and 6ft its almost the perfect hammock, its comfy, sets up in seconds, I know it intimately and I know how to get the best out of it, It's super small and light but plenty strong enough for me, its almost perfect and I will use it all year round for my own adventures when I am not testing other gear. But, I am very aware of these particular hammocks "weaknesses" or more accurately what it is not best suited for.
If I want to do things that this particular hammock is not best suited for I will change it for another hammock that is better suited for the needs of that trip or what I am doing more frequently. So with all of this in mind, it's near impossible to give you the info you really need, without more info about you and what you are doing. Of course, I can tell you how it does me, but because it does me It may very well not do you.
How we can help you get it right!
What I normally do with customers is just having a quick chat on the phone, get a brew, ask a few questions, find out what you really need and what characteristics of hammock or sleeping set up will best suit you and then make my recommendations, that are covered by our price match promise, so you don't have the temptation to take all the info I have spent years learning and paying for to buy from someone that undercuts me by pennies.
You can view all our hammocks here
