cougarmeat
Paddler
The era of needing trees to use a hammock is over. There are three state-o-art solutions. I'll skip the $800 carbon fiber solution because with a kayak you don't need (or want) the very lightest stand on the market.
1. Turtle Dog stand. There are many DIY variations of this on HammockForums.net (HF). The stand consists of two three-legged supports (for example three 2x2's lashed together) with a horizontal "pole" suspended between them. The hammock hangs off the horizontal pole - putting a compression force on the pole. The legs of the two supports can be made of two sections, 3.5 ft or less each, and the 12 ft pole can be made with two or three sections. Granted, that's a lot of material and though skinny driftwood pieces (I've seen bamboo solutions - youtube) might work, it could be difficult to find the required pieces on the beach.
2. Solo TensaOutdoor poles. These are sturdy telescoping poles that are relatively light and compact. One pole takes the place of one tree. That's pretty neat because you don't need two trees of the proper desired distance apart (and no intermediate tree that would interfere with the tarp). Essentially, you just extend the pole and anchor it at about a 60-degree angle. The Gotcha is it has to be a sturdy anchor. There are numerous screws, stakes, and "deadman" buries you can use. The extended pole is held by two lines that anchor about six feet apart, making a triangle with the pole. If needed, you could use a pole at each end of the hammock instead of 1 pole and 1 tree or post. These cost about $100 and the downside is those two anchors need to be really secure. Maybe that's not so hard to achieve on island sand or soil. Where I live, we have lava rock about 6 inches under landscaper sod. But anchoring in parks and forests might work.
You could easily make a "natural" variation of this with a long piece of driftwood and some lines to an anchor point. Note - do NOT use paracord for those lines. Paracord streeeeches like crazy. Nylon webbing also stretches. You could use polyester webbing or Amsteel. Amsteel is small cord that is strong as steel; the 7/64 inch diameter size is rated at 1600 lbs. It is braided so eye loops and such are woven in rather than using knots. But that's another topic.
3. The current darling is the Tensa4 stand. Googling and visits to HF will show plenty of examples. Just imagine two inverted V's with the wide ends facing each other and the legs crossing a few inches from their ends. The hammock hangs from the apex of the two V's. The weight distribution, when you are in the hammock, is such that the foot end needs to be anchored but not as secure as the two anchors for the Solo. It only needs a single line and around 50 - 70 lbs holding force. Though this design commercially sells for about $300, there are many, many examples of DIY projects costing about $100 and using collapsable components that would easily fit in your kayak. Unfortunately, this is not 100% free standing because you do need that foot end anchor. But that anchor point doesn't have to be a tree. It could be the base of a sturdy bush, a pile of rocks, or a bag buried in the sand.
In full disclosure - I have a commercial turtle dog stand and used it at SunSet Bay State Park last week. The commercial version collapses to a bundle near 5 ft long. It is not meant for portable work. But it will work great when car camping the night before a launch. No more hunting for trees or flat ground. And yes, a folding cot would work but you'll still want a bug net and tarp and the hammock setup has that already.
I have the solo stand but haven't tried it yet. it would easily fit in the kayak but would be a Plan-B, the second choice over finding two trees. I'm sure, with more experience, I'll come to trust that I can find sufficient anchoring solutions. It takes the pressure off finding those Two Great Trees and perhaps allows me to nest closer to camp with the tent-dwelling adventure partners. Whether that's an advantage (for me or for them) is yet to be seen.
Later this summer I may get a Tensa4 stand. That's trading the independence of a fully self-supporting tent with the need of a minimum anchor and no concern about tree roots and level ground.
Here's a photo of my "site" in the Broughtons. Worry about tree roots? We don't need no stinking worry about tree roots:
BroughtonHammock:
Turtle Dog stand on someone's deck:
Solo pole collapsed:
Pole Extended:
1. Turtle Dog stand. There are many DIY variations of this on HammockForums.net (HF). The stand consists of two three-legged supports (for example three 2x2's lashed together) with a horizontal "pole" suspended between them. The hammock hangs off the horizontal pole - putting a compression force on the pole. The legs of the two supports can be made of two sections, 3.5 ft or less each, and the 12 ft pole can be made with two or three sections. Granted, that's a lot of material and though skinny driftwood pieces (I've seen bamboo solutions - youtube) might work, it could be difficult to find the required pieces on the beach.
2. Solo TensaOutdoor poles. These are sturdy telescoping poles that are relatively light and compact. One pole takes the place of one tree. That's pretty neat because you don't need two trees of the proper desired distance apart (and no intermediate tree that would interfere with the tarp). Essentially, you just extend the pole and anchor it at about a 60-degree angle. The Gotcha is it has to be a sturdy anchor. There are numerous screws, stakes, and "deadman" buries you can use. The extended pole is held by two lines that anchor about six feet apart, making a triangle with the pole. If needed, you could use a pole at each end of the hammock instead of 1 pole and 1 tree or post. These cost about $100 and the downside is those two anchors need to be really secure. Maybe that's not so hard to achieve on island sand or soil. Where I live, we have lava rock about 6 inches under landscaper sod. But anchoring in parks and forests might work.
You could easily make a "natural" variation of this with a long piece of driftwood and some lines to an anchor point. Note - do NOT use paracord for those lines. Paracord streeeeches like crazy. Nylon webbing also stretches. You could use polyester webbing or Amsteel. Amsteel is small cord that is strong as steel; the 7/64 inch diameter size is rated at 1600 lbs. It is braided so eye loops and such are woven in rather than using knots. But that's another topic.
3. The current darling is the Tensa4 stand. Googling and visits to HF will show plenty of examples. Just imagine two inverted V's with the wide ends facing each other and the legs crossing a few inches from their ends. The hammock hangs from the apex of the two V's. The weight distribution, when you are in the hammock, is such that the foot end needs to be anchored but not as secure as the two anchors for the Solo. It only needs a single line and around 50 - 70 lbs holding force. Though this design commercially sells for about $300, there are many, many examples of DIY projects costing about $100 and using collapsable components that would easily fit in your kayak. Unfortunately, this is not 100% free standing because you do need that foot end anchor. But that anchor point doesn't have to be a tree. It could be the base of a sturdy bush, a pile of rocks, or a bag buried in the sand.
In full disclosure - I have a commercial turtle dog stand and used it at SunSet Bay State Park last week. The commercial version collapses to a bundle near 5 ft long. It is not meant for portable work. But it will work great when car camping the night before a launch. No more hunting for trees or flat ground. And yes, a folding cot would work but you'll still want a bug net and tarp and the hammock setup has that already.
I have the solo stand but haven't tried it yet. it would easily fit in the kayak but would be a Plan-B, the second choice over finding two trees. I'm sure, with more experience, I'll come to trust that I can find sufficient anchoring solutions. It takes the pressure off finding those Two Great Trees and perhaps allows me to nest closer to camp with the tent-dwelling adventure partners. Whether that's an advantage (for me or for them) is yet to be seen.
Later this summer I may get a Tensa4 stand. That's trading the independence of a fully self-supporting tent with the need of a minimum anchor and no concern about tree roots and level ground.
Here's a photo of my "site" in the Broughtons. Worry about tree roots? We don't need no stinking worry about tree roots:
BroughtonHammock:
Turtle Dog stand on someone's deck:
Solo pole collapsed:
Pole Extended:
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