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Hey JerryW, SouthMark from HF and Walls of Jericho. I too dismount on my left even though I am right handed. I am the only one in our bike club that does this. It just feels more natural to me but I almost never lay my bike down.

Dale

That should read "two" National Wilderness areas.

None of the Pinhoti in Alabama is open to bikes. It is footpath only. It goes through to National Wilderness areas.

What if there are no trees around?

Matt

Well you are either in the dessert or a parking lot :-).

You can pitch most hammocks as a bivy under your tarp.

This was my first hammock about eight years ago. I did not like the multiple lies at each end. They were always tangled. I didn't like the separate lines for the netting. They did not allow the rain fly to be pitched low in bad weather. I prefer the Hennessy style hammocks for built-in net but I primarily use a Grand Trunk Nano-7 with a structural ridge line or a Warbonnet Traveler with ridge line and a DIY half bug-net for bug season. My Nano-7 weighs 6.9 oz with suspension, my Traveler weighs 7.7 oz with suspension and my HUG bug-net weighs 3.6 oz. You can get a lot more info on the Byer and other hammocks at www.hammockforums.net.

May I suggest that you checkout www.hammockforums.net. There you can all the info on all hammocks, bug protection, insulation methods, suspension methods, etc. There are several bikepacker members over there. I use a Warbonnet Traveler most of the time. I changed the suspension and it now weighs 7.9 oz. I use it without bug net in non bug season and I have a 3.3 oz HUG bug net for bug season. The Grand Trunk Nano-7 can be made lighter by discarding the heavy biners that come with it and using whoopie sling suspension.

I have been just a rode cyclist up until this past year but I'm getting too old or bored. I have been a long distance hiker for 30+ years and I am an ultralighter so I have the gear but not the bike. I am wondering if it would be worth the effort and the expense, and if it would be practical to modify my Giant OCR3c3 with MTB rear cassette, flat bar with thumb shifters for some light road touring. I have a Trek 7000 hybrid that I use for commuting and I like the upright ride but the Trek is just too heavy.

Check out hammockforums.net for some great ideas for under insulation for your hammock. An under quilt is the most comfortable. For the 40 degree lows I usually use an IX under quilt at only 8 oz but you will find loads of innovative ideas over there.

Zpacks Heximid Solo tent. Weighs 8.2 oz, packs to 6" x 6.'5". Zpacks Heximid tarp. Weighs 3.2 oz, packs to 2.5" x 4" x 5.5".