BWCA New REI Half Dome Hammock Boundary Waters Group Forum: BWCA Hanging
Chat Rooms (0 Chatting)  |  Search  |   Login/Join
* BWCA is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Boundary Waters Quetico Forum
   Group Forum: BWCA Hanging
      New REI Half Dome Hammock     

Author

Text

04/15/2017 03:37PM  

Thought I would post here too. Used my REI dividends to purchase a new bridge hammock. If it was not free, I would have probably purchased a different one, but it was free so here is my review:
I have used hammocks for several years and, as a side sleeper, never got the greatest night’s sleep. The flat lay of the bridge hammock will hopefully help with this. I have only slept one night in this hammock but overall I was very impressed with its design and comfort.

The Pros: The Quarter Dome hammock has everything you need right out of the box to camp overnight and all for a very reasonable price. It comes with rain fly, hammock, straps, whoopee slings, bug net, stuff sack and stakes. It is not bare bones either; REI has thought of all the little touches that make hammock camping more enjoyable such as: hanging loops, tension locks, side pockets, stake bag integrated into the stuff sack, and even drip line cords. The adjustable bug net design is fantastic. It will definitely keep the net off your face, and allows you to hang light items from the loops on its ridgeline. I hung my Luci light from one of the loops and it held it there with very little sag. My full length under quilt also snugged up well so I see no issues with that. Finally, my son who is 6’4” definitely fits in the hammock, so it is plenty long.

The Cons: I would prefer to have removable spreader bars so I could put them on the outside of my pack when I hike. The whoopie slings attach permanently to the tree straps. I would like it better if they were attached to the hammock suspension instead. That would give me more flexibility to use other straps if I need to hang on very large trees. The biggest issue I see with this hammock system is the rain fly. It will definitely keep you dry if you have a straight down rain. However, if there is wind, I don’t think it is large enough to keep you dry. I will probably use mine as a cook fly and use my ENO House Fly with the hammock. The final issue is shoulder squeeze – I am 6’2”, 210 lbs and have fairly broad shoulders. If the bottom of the hammock was a couple of inches wider, it would be much more comfortable. As, I said earlier, I am a side sleeper, so this will not be a big issue.

Overall, it is well designed and I will definitely keep it. My first night’s sleep went very well and I was able to comfortably sleep on my side the entire night.
 
      Print Top Bottom Previous Next