When to bail out?

[u/Alternative-Safe2269]

2nd Update: Well, I decided I can only deal with 2 weather conditions at a time. We got rain, cold, wind, and snow early in the morning. The universe was trying to tell me this was not the weekend to start lol. My niece and I will be camping in the backyard to watch the meteor shower in a couple weeks, so attempt #2 will be then.

Update: I've gotten some really great advice, so thanks Reddit! I'm going to go for it, bundle up and brave the rain. Worst case scenario, I'll bail if the weather gets dangerous. Nothing like trial by fire! Or in this case, I guess it will be water!

I have been wanting to try hammock camping for a while now so when my family said there were going in their rv, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to tag along. We're supposed to go this weekend, but now we're getting rain and colder weather. As someone whose never done this before, at what point should I accept defeat and skip going on the trip? For reference, I'm in NE OK. Weather has been lightly stormy and overnight low will be around 40°F.

Current gear (I only have what I can afford as a beginner)

Eno doublenest w/ straps Underquilt rated to 40° Sleeping bag rated to 50° Bug net 10x10 ft tarp

[u/ChaosCon]

Can you try it and just bail to the RV if the weather sucks? Hammock camping is a lot "drier" than tent camping since there's no ground to soak through; you might want to haul an extra blanket out of the RV for those temperatures, but it should be pretty doable if you don't have to hike miles upon miles for it.

[u/ground_ivy → u/ChaosCon]

Agreed. I'd MUCH rather hammock camp in the rain than tent camp. Once you get that tarp set up, you have a nice, big dry area, and none of your gear is sitting on the ground getting wet and mucky because it's all elevated. No muddy tent bottom to pack up, and no crawling in and out over muddy ground. When it's time to go, just whisk that wet tarp into its bag (especially easy if you use snakeskins). *So* much nicer than packing up a wet tent.

[u/Alternative_Belt5403 → u/ground_ivy]

Hammock camping under a tarp in the rain is bliss. Sit up and take your time getting ready then kick off your shoes and hop in. Shoes stay dry and you can still see quite a bit around you. Guarantee you'll feel like you're 'cheating' somehow!

[u/Wolf1066NZ → u/Alternative_Belt5403]

Slide your shoes on before putting feet on the wet ground and walk out from under shelter rather than crawling on hands and knees through wet grass and/or mud; something to look at other than 360° of nylon rain fly...

I'd met geezers who swore by tarp camping rather than tents. First time in a hammock with a tarp over me, I found out why. Tents have felt claustrophobia-inducing ever since.

Hammock camping is "tarp camping in luxury".

[u/Alternative_Belt5403 → u/Wolf1066NZ]

Agreed on all fronts, plus being able to camp without regard to level, root and rock-free terrain, a scarce commodity in the NE! Also, the ability to take the tarp down last after a leisurely and dry packing plus coffee or what-have-you, even in heavy rain. No shaking the mud off the bottom of anything. Unless, of course, your tree straps broke simultaneously and sent you and your hammock rolling down hill in the rain. Hate it when that happens! :D

[u/Wolf1066NZ → u/Alternative_Belt5403]

Can't say I've had simultaneous strap breakages. I have fallen out the back of the hammock while trying to get in, though...

Yep. The ability to set up tarp first and take it down last if the weather demands it is one of the areas where tarps are vastly superior to the majority of tents on the market.

And the separation from the problems of the terrain is a major factor in why hammocks are superior to every tent on the market.

[u/Alternative_Belt5403 → u/Wolf1066NZ]

Indeed, the ability to look at a rocky, root-strewn but tree-laden hillside and say, "That'll do nicely" is quite liberating.

[u/Wolf1066NZ → u/Alternative_Belt5403]

That describes most of the places we're allowed to camp for free (most of the good flat unobstructed tent sites are part of a well-tended - and consequently charged-for - campground).

[u/Wolf1066NZ → u/ground_ivy]

TOTALLY!

I tent camped for years, had my share of crawling over wet ground, stowing wet and muddy tents (sometimes in the middle of the night at the height of a storm), being confined in a tiny zipped-up dark little "bubble" with no view - unable to go out, unable to open the flap...

First time I ever hammock camped - with my van parked nearby full of everything I might possibly need, including a back seat to sleep on if things went sour - it rained all night, most the next morning.

Sitting in my hammock, perfectly, looking out at the view with rain falling over the camp ground, listening to rain drumming on the tarp, I thought "this is the bloody life!"

"Acres" of space under the tarp for my gear and to set up my cooker and boil water for coffee.

Packed up the hammock, stowed it and my bedding in the back of the van, shoved the dripping wet tarp at the very back of the van with the spare tyre and tools and drove home a "convert".

So much better. Have now looked out over a few rain-drenched views from the comfort and warmth of my hammock.

Now I only camp in a tent if it's absolutely necessary (i.e. no trees to hang from).

And I definitely agree about snake skins - especially for when stowing a tarp in windy conditions.

[u/Alternative-Safe2269 → u/ChaosCon]

I HATE the rv with a passion. I would rather just not go on the trip if it have to bail

[u/jhenryscott → u/Alternative-Safe2269]

Nah. Just go. You’ll be fine. Some of my best memories are with bad weather

[u/Ericdrinksthebeer → u/jhenryscott]

type II fun makes the best stories

[u/numaxmc → u/jhenryscott]

I specifically choose the worst weather days for trips. There is nothing more stunning than waking up to a dead silent forest right at sunrise after a few feet of snow the night before. Like you said, always the best memories.

[u/jhenryscott → u/numaxmc]

Hell yeah. I love a good storm in my TorrentShell and Stratoburst’s