Sleeping bag + hammock= cold

Is there a sensible priced thing to keep you warm(er) overnight?

Ended up sticking my feet in the duff bag and using a bin bag for my torso.

Thanks in advance.

Surely you need an underquilt?

Yeah you need an underquilt, otherwise any insulation underneath you just gets compressed. I like hammocking in warmer climes but staying warm in the UK generally doesn’t make it worthwhile

You need an underbag that goes under the hammock and attached. My mate had a DD one in multicam, it’s mental . He says it’s great and I can confirm it is invisible when hanging in woods

Yep, underquilt. The hammock compresses the sleeping bag both under you and round your sides, so you lose a lot of insulation, as well as there being a big cold air gap under you. Underquilt makes a pretty big difference.

Cheers, never knew they existed. Any recommendations?

I have the DD Hammocks synthetic one –  https://www.ddhammocks.com/products/insulation. Not the lightest to carry, but decent enough and not super expensive

a few hammocks have a sleeve for a standard sort of sleeping mat, which you may have already and can do a similar job as an underquilt (insulating your bum from the wind). I’ve got a fancy Exped hammock which takes a 9cm thick winter down mat. No need for an underquilt as well as that!

From similar discussions I’ve read before, a conventional sleeping mat will do, or a self-inflating one if you’ve already got one.
Otherwise just using a bag in a hammock is like using one of those cheap blue flock-covered mattresses you hear being inflated at stupid  o’clock in the morning at festivals – not knowing otherwise I bought one for a weekend festival at a pub at Maiden Bradley; the first night it was ok, then the weather changed to something like it is now – windy, wet, and bloody cold! There’s just no insulation underneath you and your bag, just cold air. 🥶🤬

Also consider getting a roll of Reflectix (that insulation stuff used by vanlifers to blackout and insulate windows).

I find an under quilt is much better than a sleeping pad, as it won’t shift around during the night. I bought a OneTigris synthetic one from AliExpress which wasn’t super expensive and packs down to a reasonable size.

https://www.onetigris.com/eu/under-quilt-01.html

By the time you’ve got a hammock sleeping bag, tar, underquilt , found somewhere you can actually get it up properly and still frozen if there’s the slightest breeze you can start to think how light this is compared to a 1 kilo tent, and if its just for looks really….

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Or you can be sitting comfortably off the wet ground while your friends are still faffing about, trying to find a flat spot between the trees for their tents… 😋

I do tend to sleep better on the ground, but depending on the location, sometimes a hammock is the better choice.

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nah, like a lot of things it’s got a purpose in the right environment, unfortunately that has to be somewhere with trees or things you can tie to.

Your not on the ground that could be wet and your raised from animals and things  and that other big win is that they are very comfortable and in the right colour in a forest pretty super stealthy.

I’ve got a lovely DD but unfortunately it’s slightly sparse on the trees where I am which makes it impractical.

10 years as a scout leader and have recently converted to hammocks. So much more comfortable than a tent!

My kit. DD hammock and tarp. Underblanket is a https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/384595831756

By the time you’ve got a hammock sleeping bag, tar, underquilt….  how light this is compared to a 1 kilo tent

would you not need a bag and mat in a tent?

So really comparing weight of the hammock and tarp to the weight of the tent?

Then, as above, it comes down to where it may be used…

I love hammocking and snoozing, but yeah, they’re cold. I’ve a thick woolen blanket I lay in mine, but I’m not carrying it anywhere, just grabbing it all out of the van.

Reflectix (that insulation stuff used by vanlifers people who sleep in their van to blackout and insulate windows).

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Another great big raspberry to this! My hammock is bloody luxurious. The hammock itself weighs a bit more than a bivi bag. The tarp is a tarp. The sleeping mat is a sleeping mat. Sure, you can’t sleep in the middle of a field or a on moor, but you can sleep over rocky ground, broken ground, soggy ground, steep slopes, brash and fallen wood. Horses for courses.

Clear night so I can leave the tarp off and enjoy the view, please (the tarp can be a bit of a faff) – nothing better!

Rolling over and blearily sticking your arm out of your sleeping bag on a cold morning to fire up the stove can be problematic.

If it windy there are different ways to set the tarp. Angling it, sealing on end and so on.

Big advantage for me is trying it after a wet camp. Can do the tarp on the clothes airer not the tent.

We’re trying to get our Scouts used to them too, because drying big tents is a PITA. Also, hammocks don’t get muddy as the kids don’t walk around on them in their boots.

Would a space blanket work?

Maybe. The under blanket is shaped so that the hammock sits inside it. With my cheapo eBay job you can even clip it closed around the hammock like some massive kebab. Very much a sleeping bag on a hammock inside another sleeping bag.

Getting in and out for a nocturno-wee requires getting the height right so you don’t fall out, or back in. And a small tarp on the ground stops you getting your feet wet.

I piss in an olive jar so I don’t have to get out from under the tarp. Much to the disgust of the scouts.

“I piss in an olive jar so I don’t have to get out from under the tarp. Much to the disgust of the scouts.”

Just so long as you’re eating the olives before, and not after…

This was a night with the scouts, trying out the new hammocks.

Scouts thought it was great in a “survival” kind of way, only a mile from the pick up/drop off so weight isn’t an issue.

Think I was double whammied by too small a sleeping bag being stretched and the hammock chill.

I do like the look of the DD hammock xl sleeping bags…

Moving to a hammock from a tent/bivy has been  a game changer for me with my knee and hip issues. Much more comfy and a built in chair/sofa too 😍 No scrabbling and squatting about in and out of tents and a better sleep. Needs to be a big enough one to sleep diagonal though.

Under quilt or some sort of mat as others have said is definitely needed, as is thought to closing the ends and keeping the tarp low if windy. I’ve slept in mine during the winter in Scotland.

DD all the way. Lovely company to deal with.

You don’t want the under blanket tight to the hammock. Leave it a bit baggy to create an air pocket.

Scouting was my downfall into hammocks. Now have three full Frontline setups and a couple of scout hammocks for chilling in.

Another DD underquilt user here (and scout leader- bit of a theme developing).

You can leave the hammock attached to the quilt when packing away so it’s all ready for next time.

Oooo, does it all fit in a snake skin then? Not tried that. Bigger stuff bag too I guess.

OP – based near Lewes if you want to try and under blanket. I’ve got three ;0)

Nah i have the DD setup, hammock and underblanket.
Underblanket wont fit in a snakeskin.
I am tempted to try with an overblanket, instead of a sleeping bag.

the underblanket has its own stuff bag which will take the hammock if you left it the blanket

Good to know. Thanks.

Thanks for the offer 👍. Bit of a hike from Ireland unfortunately.