Hammock Camping Basics

Hammocks vs Tents

• Hammocks have many advantages over tents when it comes to camping.
• Hammocks are lighter and can be carried easier. It then packs perfectly to fit in a small-sized area. The one pound hammock is ideal when you have the bug net, the tarp, and straps, among the ties and a couple of blankets if it’s chilly out.
• Compared to tents, you’ll see why hammocks are keener.
• Tents may be too hard to sleep in because of the ground. Unless you have a blowup mattress or lots of comforters to sleep on, it isn’t practical because of the space it takes. In fact, you may end up finding that perfect solid ground to pitch it may be too solid to sleep on.
  Tents have to be set up and while messing with the stakes and the poles, plus dealing with the nonsense technicalities with the modern ones can take you about an hour or more to finally pitch it.
• Modern tents are very intuitive to set up, but many people still don’t enjoy fumbling with Tents are bigger and bulkier Read more about set up the tent here.
• Tents do provide walls for protection, as well as cover for your head, but the elements all around you will not allow for the experience of the natural environment to put you to sleep. Star gazing at night is half the fun when you sleep on a hammock.

Wilderness Ethics

The wilderness has the tendancy to rejuvenate our spirit. This is the reason for the popularity of outdoor camping (or at least for the majority of wilderness lovers). Therefore, we must resume future generations with the same responsibilities for ethically maintaining the outdoors when we use them for our pleasure, such as hunting, fishing, camping…etc. This list is an outdoor ethics guide for those who go camping and are outdoor enthusiasts. The basic principles of outdoor ethics is based off the community of campers on a global scale.

Read Also: Tarifa: One of the most beautiful and undiscovered regions of Europe

Prepare and plan for your hammock camping trip – There’s nothing better than preparedness for any activity you do. Therefore, plan ahead of time before you travel or camp out in a private or public park. Reserve, reserve, reserve your camp grounds if it’s a public camping park that may cost you per day at the location.

Waste properly – When hammock camping, most public and private places have waste areas. This is where you can leave your waste and where it will be picked up. If there is no such thing as a waste area, then make one but take it with you. For instance, keep trash bags hung on a sturdy tree branch, keep it all away from the campsite. When you leave, then get it and take it with you until you find a proper waste disposal for it down the road.

Travel and camp on durable surfaces – People can leave behind a mess and damage the vegetation which grows naturally at certain campgrounds.  Sometimes it’s beyond recovery. They’re non-repairable according to the site LeaveNoTraceBehind. In other words, “the vegetation and the communities of organisms,” which become barren because of human activity. For those who have to go back country traveling, it means that the “trails and off-trail” areas campers rely on can also get damaged. So, travel and camp on durable surfaces.

Leave what you find– Anything you find at the campsite you should leave behind. If you leave something behind (by accident) and it’s important to you, you may want it back, right? With that in mind, for those who’ve left something behind, they may want it back. In fact, most public and private campgrounds renting out “camp sites” have a “lost and found” area. Unless you see it’s property of someone else’s (i.e. mobile, radio, flashlight…), they may have just left it behind by accident. Find a “lost and found area” at the entrance of the campground or where you registered at and leave what you’ve found there.

Minimize campfire impacts – With those who love to camp out and have firepits, don’t leave the area unless know for sure the fire is out! Most fires are caused by smokers. Also, when you have lighter fluid that is empty and the can sister is empty, it’s best that you make sure it’s empty by putting water in it if you plan on leaving it behind as waste. If you go to a national park or a private park, you’ll see places where they have waste “fills and spills” as part of the “camping package.”

Respect wildlife – When it comes to nature’s “critters,” we, as humans, have to respect they live in the wildlife, we’re just visitors. Try not to feed them, in some cases this means raccoon, squirrels, ducks, …etc. unless the park ranger has okay’d this on billboards and signs. Most camp spots have an area where this is okay, but in the woods, you don’t want to start an “animal food and rescue” show at your campsite.

Be considerate of other visitors – What being considerate to visitors means is to understand that you not the only one visiting the camp site. Therefore, don’t put on your mystic so loud that you can hear it for blocks. Also, if you can drink alcohol at the site, maintain your age and your amount of drinking. Disorderly conduct at a campsite is not very appealing.