This is an idea I’ve been incubating for some time as a non-destructive “place anywhere” alternative to nails in trees or breaking branches to hang things on. Shown here is my first successful field test! It is tied using a short stick or similar object found locally.
Treehugger Hitch v1
The main flaws with this implementation are the stretch in the second reef knot and the tendency for the loops to converge allowing the hook to turn sideways.
After some experimentation I think I’ve improved on the initial design in Version 2. The main difference is making the loops around the stick more constrictive so they slip less. I also eliminated the need for the first reef knot.
Step 1
Find the middle of the rope and loop it loosely around the tree at least two times (three is best). Then tie it temporarily with a half surgeon’s knot. Note that the middle of the rope hangs down to attach to the bottom of the stick!
Treehugger Hitch Step 1
Step 2
Wrap the lower loop around the base of the stick at least twice. Adjust its position by sliding more or less rope through the surgeon’s knot.
Treehugger Hitch Step 2
Step 3
Untie the surgeon’s knot without disturbing what you’ve done so far. Wrap the stick about a quarter of the way from the top as follows: a) Take the first rope and wrap it twice below itself as shown here.
Treehugger Hitch Step 3
Step 4
b) Now wrap the second rope twice above itself. This will leave you with loose ends on opposite sides of the wraps. Tie these two ends together with a reef knot or your equivalent of choice.
Treehugger Hitch Step 4
Step 5
At this point you may adjust the “lay” of the hook buy twisting the stick and working the rope. This will be easier of you put a light load on it. Any excess rope will hang down out of the way.
Treehugger Hitch Step 5
Step 6
Once the hook is stable, you can load it up with gear and even packs!
Treehugger Hitch Step 6
Step 7
And you can hang your hat on it!
Treehugger Hitch Step 7
Summary of Steps
Wrap the tree from the front with the first loop (middle of the rope) slightly longer. Tie loosely with a half surgeon’s knot.
Treehugger Knot Schematic 1
Wrap the longer (middle) loop around the bottom of the stick.
Treehugger Knot Schematic 2
Untie the surgeon’s knot and wrap one rope below and the other above.
Treehugger Knot Schematic 3
Tie the two ropes with a reef knot.
Treehugger Knot Schematic 4
Note the minimal number of wraps are show above for visual simplicity. In practice I recommend wrapping the tree three times, and the upper stick twice with each rope (four turns total).
We started at Bearskin Lake and paddled across to the Duncan Lake Portage.
Starting Out
After exploring options on the north shore of Duncan we decided to stay on the campsite closest to the portage on the south shore (conveniently vacated by the prior group as we waited).
Duncan Lake Campsite
Overall this was a great site and not affected by blowdowns like the others we looked at. It had a nice fire area, lots of big trees, adequate tentsites, and a small pebble beach. (4/5 rating)
Hammock Housekeeping
I’ve been a Hammock Camper for the past ten years. This was the first trip where I used an Underquilt and it performed very well. On the warmer nights (50s) I barely needed a sleeping bag. Going to bed felt like entering a warm bath!
After setting up camp, we had Happy Hour and veggie burgers for dinner!
Happy Hour
Veggie Burgers
The smoke haze from the Canadian Forest Fires gave us a very red sunset that night.
Smoky Sunset
Day 2 (Canoe to Rose Lake)
The next morning we were treated to the largest gathering of Loons I’ve ever seen! We counted nine in all. It started with three or four calling and others flying in over about twenty minutes. Then they socialized and fished together for at least an hour. I called it the Loon equivalent of a breakfast club!
We read that at this time of year Loons are after fish called Cisco or lake herring. These are very oily and help the birds fatten up before they fly a thousand miles to the ocean for the winter.
Loons Gathering
We paddled down the long eastern arm of the lake to the famous “Staircase Portage” to Rose Lake.
Down the Staircase Portage
We consolidated into one canoe to cruise around Rose. We saw where Ross and I camped during the The Boys 40th Birthday Trip back in 1996.
Group Photo on Rose
We stopped by Rose Falls to have lunch before heading up the stairs and back to Duncan.
Rose Falls (Click to Enlarge)
Swimmers in Rose Falls
Up the Staircase Portage
Happy Hour Again
Day 3 (Caribou Rock Trail, 4.3 Miles)
Group on the Trail
The next day we decided to hike on the nearby Caribou Rock Trail. This would ultimately take us to Rose Lake, but we did not go that far. Afterwards we read this is one of the “most difficult trails in Minnesota!”
Steep Climb
Ross Above Duncan Lake
That night we recovered with an elaborate taco meal prepared by Ross.
Taco Dinner
Day 4 (Rose Lake Cliffs, 6.5 Miles)
Our final full day was a mix of canoeing and hiking the Border Route Trail to the Cliffs over Rose Lake. It was difficult at times, but the view once we got there was worth it!
Rose, Rat, and South Lakes
Way down on the lake we noticed two large white birds. These turned out to be a pair of [Trumpeter?] Swans! At the top I was able to take a photo through the binoculars with my phone.
Two Swans Thru Binoculars
Top of the World!
Pileated Woodpecker Holes
Going for an Evening Swim!
Day 5 (Return to Civilization)
Leaving Paradise
The next day was pretty simple. We broke camp early because the day was going to be hot (high 80s). When we later drove through Duluth the dash thermometer said it was 101!
Knots of Note
Bear Rope Hitch
Bear Rope Hitch
We saw this one on a video about bear ropes. It is somewhat counter-intuitive as you get started and may require two people if the rope is heavily loaded. The first loop eliminates the need to “wrap the tree” with a long rope. The second vertical loop locks under the taught working end. As a slip knot it is extremely easy to untie so you can add one or two half-hitches for more security when needed.
Soft Shackle
Soft Shackle
These are referred to “Aussie Bowlines”. They are specifically used to secure a loaded line to a sail or other object. The cinch cords shown here already have stopper knots on their ends so it is easy to “shackle” them to the hammock strap.
Treehugger Hitch (or Tree-Hook Knot)
Treehugger Hitch
This is an idea I’ve been incubating for some time as a non-destructive “place anywhere” alternative to nails in trees or breaking branches to hang things on. Shown here is my first successful field test! It is tied using a short stick or similar object found locally.
Starting with the middle of the rope, wrap the tree at least twice and tie loosely with a reef (square) knot.
Catch the lower loop with the stick and add turns to partially tighten the loops.
Tie the upper end of the stick as tightly as possible in front of the reef knot.
Adjust everything to use the resulting hook to best advantage.
The excess rope will just hang down out of the way.
It performed well holding about ten pounds of equipment and it even let me hang up my hat! The main flaws with this implementation are the stretch in the second reef knot and the tendency for the loops to converge, allowing the hook to turn sideways. I plan to address these in the next version.
Once perfected this bit of knot-craft should help eliminate the need for nails in trees!
For the height of this sort of deliciousness is to have nothing but the blanket between you and your snugness and the cold of the outer air. – Herman Melville (Moby Dick)
I became aware of Hammock Camping back in 2016.
Luckily my first hammock
was reasonably well designed and built.
Seven years later that hammock has taken me many places and taught me a lot!
Unfortunately it is showing some wear and I’ve been looking for a possible replacement.
My Original Hammock
One of the things I learned is to keep things as simple as possible. That first hammock was unusual–having a short tent pole spreader at the shoulder (vertical orange bar in photo above). This eliminated the need for tying the hammock out when no rain threatened, and eliminated two extraneous lines to trip over! The rainfly was a standard 10×10 foot diamond with the ridge on the long axis. It also served as the de facto ridge-line when hanging the hammock up. Deploying it took only two stakes and I added some shock-cord to help keep it taut.
Four Point Suspension
I call this the “four point suspension rule” and it works!
Minimal trip hazard–most nights you just hang up and jump in.
Even with the fly fully deployed it is easy to enter from any quadrant.
I carry a few lengths of lightweight rope to solve minor problems as they come up.
I had to search hard to find a hammock with a single aluminum spreader pole similar to the above. Most “spreader” hammocks have non-removable, self-deploying wands at both ends. This makes them harder to pack up, since you have to fold them in a very precise way. I bought one of these a few years ago and found that it made a better bugnet tent on the ground. It works when hung, but not very well. The spreaders don’t spread, they just support the netting. Newer models appear to have wands closer to the ends and that arrangement might work better. (?)
Setting Up the New Hammock
Spreader and Netting
This “TravelBird” hammock looked promising and was not very expensive.
The first thing you’ll notice is the spreader pole on the outside
(my original had the pole inside the netting).
When empty the whole thing tends to tip over in the wind. Not so much with gear in it.
(The video instructions tell you to stake it out, but there really is no need to do this.)
New Hammock
Here’s a closeup of the spreader in action. You can also see the standard carabiner suspension and entry zipper. Note that these are not the supplied straps, which are two feet shorter and could not span the distance between my “hammock testing” trees.
Hammock Spreader
Note that you can enter from either side, and the netting folds away
into a pocket at the foot when you don’t want it. (Nice!)
The dark netting is also better for stargazing at night.
Hammock Netting Folded
When you lay down in the hammock the spreader bends and keeps quite a bit of tension under your shoulders. I’m still experimenting with proper pitch for the most comfortable effect. My only major complaint–at only 100 inches it’s too short. It should be 104-106 inches IMO. I’m 6 foot 2, so if it works for me it will probably work well for anyone who is shorter.
Inside Hammock Pano
Rainfly
The rainfly is a custom shape and the spreader supports it just like a modern tent.
The problem is the inadequate ridge-line tension using the weak elastic tabs on the ends.
I re-engineered this with some shock-cords that tighten the fly and allow it to
rise above the netting for better airflow.
Weak Fly Attachment
I added a six inch shock-cord loop and hook.
Better Fly Attachment
As you can see there is more tension on the fly.
And when the hammock is loaded the fly can better maintain both height and tension.
Fly Under Tension
The fly can be tucked on both ends to keep out blowing rain. This works very well!
Fly Tucked Under
I’ve found that in many situations the foot can be left lightly tied or loose.
The side pull-out tabs can be tied to each other as shown below (black tabs near the ground).
Loose Footed Fly
If more wind is anticipated you can stake out the fly as shown below.
The hammock came with thin elastic cords that I replaced with heavier shock-cords and lightweight rope.
(The knots are an adjustable Taut-Line Hitch and a Zeppelin Bend to connect cord to rope.)
Hammock Knots
The final result meets the four point rule outlined above, and keeps the head and sides clear of ropes!
Staked Out Fly
If you want to hedge your bet you can reef the fly along the ridge-line. This also makes it easy to pack up when you’re breaking camp. Note that one of the reef points was not sealed properly and caused a minor leak. I will be adding some seam sealer to address this.
Fly Reefed at Ridge-Line
Note that this is the first hammock I’ve seen where you can
access and deploy part of the rain-fly from the inside!
Fly Access from within the Hammock
There are two pockets, one at the foot and one along the right side.
As always, I wish there were more pockets and larger.
A “loft” near the head would also be helpful.
Hammock Pockets
Recommendations
PROS
a good hammock overall, at a great price (~$69)
single external pole design, fewer ropes!
enter from either side
netting folds out of the way
dark netting is good for stargazing
CONS
too short (needs 4-6 inches more IMO)
rainfly needs better suspension (easy to fix)
included hanging straps are adequate, but short
no ridge-line, so harder to hang (minor)
side-zipper bag included, a stuff sack would be better
