scumglob

There is no such thing as a flat hammock. You sleep on the diagonal for flatness. The hennesseys are designed on the diagonal. There's a trade off though. You only get one diagonal instead of two, on normal hammocks. Sleeping in my Claytor is quite comfortable, but you can't really sleep on your stomach. Yes, coldness is an issue. It got down in the 20s some nights during last trip, and it took me a few nights to figure out how to stay warm. Ended up just putting a blanket underneath my sleeping bag. Worked great! Wouldn't recommend it for winter camping unless you had a nice underquilt (basically a sleeping bag type thing for the outside of your hammock).

Yeah, I forgot to mention stealth camping. That's definitely my favorite part of the hammock. It's easy to find hidden niches all over. I've slept right off the road, perfectly hidden on cliffsides many times. You have access to places where nobody will go because it's too uneven or the incline is too high. "Perfect" is a lot different for a hammock than a tent! I tend to like the Perfect hammock spots a lot more than tent ones! They're often free too. The claytor is camo too, which is nice for stealthing! My last tent was bright orange. Not so good.

I wouldn't recommend bringing both a tent and a hammock, unless the hammock was one of the super small cheap ones.

northboundtrain

There are several people on this forum that love their hammocks. I've never tried one of the integrated systems like the Hennessy, so I can't speak to their comfort, warmth, etc. But having traveled and camped around the U.S. quite a bit, I can't imagine using a hammock. Finding a suitable place to hang it would severely limit your options, whether you're in a campground, stealthing it, or otherwise. Perhaps a hammock if you were just traveling around New England or some other forested region, but in the Midwest, Great Plains, desert, you would find yourself in places where you just couldn't hang it.

Also, I like to be able to set up my stove in the vestibule, so that on chilly mornings, I can stay in my bag while I make coffee and have breakfast. I've used hanging stoves in portaledges and while winter camping, so perhaps you can do the same in a hammock, but I like an alcohol stove for bike touring, and I wouldn't use one inside a tent -- they flare up too much when priming.

PurpleK

I have the Eureka Backcountry I. I think its comfortable and didn't leak a drop when I got caught overnight in a downpour. Reasonably light and quick to set up. Getting in and out is a breeze.

https://www.eurekatent.com/p-44-backcountry-1-tent.aspx

BigBlueToe

I also have a Backcountry 1, but I decided it wasn't for me. Everything was great - its nice and long (I'm 6'4" so this is a concern), rain coverage was good, it's light and compact, entry was really easy, and the window allows you to look outside without letting rain in. The thing that caused me to reject it was its narrowness. I'm a side sleeper, and there wasn't enough room for me to stretch my arms out to the side. I also like to read myself to sleep on my side, and there wasn't enough room for me to hold the book out in front of me.

jfry541

I have had much success with the Northface Tadpole. It is a small two person, pretty comfortable for one. Is somewhat compact, weighs under five pounds. Kept me very dry during heavy downpours. Has a vestibule area for panniers and gear too.

Check it out.

Jonathan

kenkayak

IM going to try a hammock/there are lots of new and different types Hennesy Hammocks an easy place to look./Kenneth

Bennypie83

I havent personally used this tent, but I am planning on picking one up to try it!

https://www.rei.com/product/779410

Mountain Hardwear makes great tents, so I trust the name. Plus you get the 100% satisfaction guarantee from REI.

HokkaidoRider

Benny-looks like a decent tent.

I've got a line on a used North Face Peregrine. Its a 2 man tent, but I'll be doing a 3 month tour so it'll be nice to have space. Along with that, I'll have someone for about a month of the trip. Im concerned with its weight (7lbs). Im touring with just a rear rack/panniers.

Anyone whos used this tent or can chime in?

Agentbolt

It's a shame they stopped producing it this year, because my Meridian 2 tent is the BOMB. 2 person, a bit heavy at 4.5 pounds, but hot damn I love this tent. Fully taped, bathtub floor, 2 vestibules, plenty of headroom and plenty of screen. And it was 120 bucks from Moosejaw.

Again, no idea why they discontinued it. If you see one for sale gently used, snap it up.

Blue Roads

Check out Stephenson's Warmlite tents. Been around a long time and well regarded in climbing and mountaineering circles. High quality, very lightweight, great design, lots of room. They have a new smaller "2C" model. Most folks will do better with the double wall as opposed to single wall option (less condensation). Great products -- but pricey.

fantom1 

Looks awfully small for the weight. Interesting idea, but I'm not so sure it's practical or that there's any reason to bring your bike inside the tent, while I can think of a lot of reasons not to. The last thing I'd want in a wind storm is my bike falling over on my probably ripping the tent. Also, propping the bike up is going to be a problem.

buzzman

I use either a small REI bivy tent or a Hennessy Hammock Tent.

I have to say, while I love the idea of the hammock it's just not all that comfortable for me. I like my little bivy best.

bccycleguy

I use the Hilleberg Akto. A great, 1-person tent with lots of storage space. Not free standing but with good ventilation and light.

When bike touring, you will need more room than you would when light-weight backpacking, especially in wet weather.

antokelly

i to have the hilleberg akto ,bought it for my upcomming france tour,i haven't used it yet ,i did pitch it great looking tent loads room.but i've since heard there bad on the condensation, is this true.but surly all tents suffer from condensation .besides keeping all the vent's open ,how do you guys deal with this problem.im sure the op would also be interested in your answers.

Cyclebum

See what you stirred up.

Anyway, I like Mr. Jim's checklist. My personal favorite is the Eureka Spitfire 1. It's inexpensive, very light, durable, lots of ventilation, packs nicely, and has good peak height. Meets all the ticks on the checklist I believe. If you use a full length Thermarest, it is free standing without the rainfly. Useful for pavillion camping. If taller than about 5'10" it'd be too short.

I've used it extensively for about 4 years with no problems. You'll need to cut a ground cloth out of Tyvek or light weight tarp material.

HokkaidoRider

If you could go with an MSR Hubba Hubba, or a Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2.. which would it be? Hubba's a pound heavier (4lbs) but have read its better in the rain, also has two doors. Drawback is the yellow fly for stealth camping. Agnes is light (3 ish) and better fly, small vestibule and one door.. Need it for a multi month tour!

NeezyDeezy

Hokkaido - are you using it for one person or two? If one, I'd say the seedhouse is better.

HokkaidoRider

1 for most bike trips, but 2 for one longer trip.. also will be used for 2 ppl in the odd car camp trip. I kept my last tent 14 years, hope to keep the next one half that long at least!

kayakdiver

I don't imagine that the SL2 is much different than the SL1 when it comes to staying dry..... someone chime in if this isn't the case. My SL1 has been used in the rain more nights than I care to think about and I've yet to get wet. MSR tents are top notch as well though. Both have pretty darn good customer service as well. I would say you would be happy with either choice.

Both companies should be around for a long time to come.... This I like for replacement parts down the road should you need them. IE.... tent pole sections or something else that might need to be replaced after years of use.

pvcrisp

Steep and Cheap have been having lots of tents for sale lately, maybe one will fit what your looking for. https://www.steepandcheap.com

Check the Eureka Outlet for some good deals on 'factory seconds' we bought 3 tents (https://www.eurekatent.com/p-45-eurek...re-1-tent.aspx) from there for our cross country trip last year and they worked great! (not freestanding though)
https://www.eurekacampingctr.com/eureka/

ryker

I wanted the Seedhouse but the layout/dimensions of the Hubba Hubba were better for me. It would depend on your height, I suppose. The material on the Hubba Hubba felt more durable to me too FWIW.

kayakdiver

I don't go out of my way to stealth camp but sometimes..... it just works out that way. When those times do happen the SL1 does a very good job of blending in most places. Last summer out of 60 nights in the tent I spent approx 5-7 stealth camping. Campgrounds closed.... not enough daylight to get me to where I wanted to go..... and so forth. In those times I was happy I had a tent that blended in.

cyccommute 

Even the Big Agnes Seedhouse isn't bad. Only about a pound more and about $100 less. Check out BAP! for a couple of killer deals on demo tents. They have a Seedhouse 1 for $105, a Seedhouse SL2 for $192...damned cheap!

kayakdiver

cyccommute.... I would not recommend that tent from big agnes(seedhouse). I had one. It comes with yunan(cheap chinese no name) poles which do in fact suck big time. Mine lasted about two weeks and broke in 4 different places. The sl comes with eastons..... way better poles. Alternative would be to buy the normal seedhouse and purchase the easton poles from BA. I think they mentioned $35 for the pole upgrade on my original seedhouse 1. The SL version is the way to go.

The Yunans just start cracking. Not operator error at all. The easton poles have been golden on the other hand.

Big Agnes knows about the problem.

seeker333

jeebus

https://www.google.com/search?q=tent+...bikeforums.net