Sleeping on board

Great ideas and video!

Just wondering if there have been any developments in the hamock department?

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or one of these to make it easy to set up

http://www.instanttents.com/

although having said that I've got my Hennessy on order as well

they are having a special and you get a free scout tent with every order over $136 as well as the free snake eyes etc

I really don't need to hear that....
(That's a New Year project)

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Phil and I have exchanged a few emails, comparing notes. Our implementations are slightly different, but we have a consensus on the main points of the setup. Setting up the hammocks on the AI is not really a problem - in fact, in many ways they work better on the AI than when slung between trees, as they are designed to be used. I think the main issue for both of us has been the concept of hammock camping itself. It is an activity which I had never heard of, but which has many devotees who seem as keen as AI sailors. They even have their own forum and refer to tent dwellers as "groundlings". The hammocks are very comfortable and you get a nice sense of weightlessness in them. Both Phil and I have found using a sleeping bag inside the hammocks to be awkward. The solution which the aficionados employ is to use an undercover, which holds a foam mat under the hammock and insulates from beneath. Then you only need a blanket or sleeping bag on top of you, even in very cold conditions. I've just purchased one and it works well. It doesn't overheat you on warm nights and it stops mossies biting you through the nylon. I've slept a couple of nights out on my dam, but haven't had a chance to take it into the wild yet - something I'm hoping to rectify next week. If anyone's interested, I'll post details of my latest setup. At this stage, I think I could say it's complete.

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Brisailer, I also got a free Scout when I ordered my undercover. They are really about the right size for an average female. You'll probably end up getting an undercover as well, so you will have two Scout hammocks - one for Helga and one for Inga perhaps

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I wish ..

but they're too tall - what did you expect with names like Helga and Inger?

Is the under pad the '4 seasons' system?

That's what I bought. It's $US129 (+$60 postage ). It's a bit ambiguous, because they talk about an additional overcover on the website, but it doesn't seem to be part of the system. I gather the overcover is only used for extremely cold conditions. The undercover/underpad is very cosy - it obviates the need for a sleeping bag. Makes the whole thing very comfortable.

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My Hammocks arrived today. That has to be a record for post from the US - terrific. Haven't had a chance to play with it yet but the size of it makes it obvious why people swear by them. Can't believe how small this is.

That's great Brisailer. Just a tip to get you started - you need 40mm PVC pressure pipe - rated at least PN12. Lighter or narrower pipe tends to flex under load.

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Haven't had a chance to try rigging the boat yet but I did set the hammock up on land. Very comfortable and much easier to set up than I thought.

AND, for I think the first time ever, a piece of camping equipment actually went back into the bag provided

exceptional

I'm waiting for a day the family is away to try the boat set up. They would have way too much fun at my expense if anything goes slightly awry (as well it might)

I finally got around to camping out on the boat. I stayed overnight at Stingray Bay in Kuringai National Park. Sublime.

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Chris, that looks like something that might have beamed in from another planet -- even the Star Wars folks would be inspired!

From concept to full application, what a great development. Talk about proven versatility, we can now add "hotel" to the long list of other uses for the AI! Congratulations on a terrific job!

Thanks RR. Most of the credit must go to Phil, for his original concept. I am but R2D2 to his Yoda.

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