Hammocks

[[70521]]

I've been giving sleep on long, single handed passages a lot of though over the last few weeks. I rarely sleep well, as in deep sleep, onboard any vessel and am wondering if it is worth trying a hammock.

Does anybody have a design for a hammock?

I have a net one from my mountaineering days but you tend to sleep in a curve and I am looking for something a bit flatter and wider, perhaps with a couple of solid stringers at each end.

 

[[194497]]

I have no idea what it would be like trying to sleep in a hammock in a yacht on passage, but look into Hennessy hammocks. They have an innovative cut whereby you sleep on a diagonal across the hammock so that your sleeping position is much more flat. I find them extremely comfortable.
That said, you need a long space to hang them in, so the actual product might be no good, but the concept could potentially be used.

 

[Roberto]

All cloth is best, without spreaders. If you lay you body at an angle to the curve of the hammock, you can be perfectly straight, you can even sleep facing downwards.
I went down the whole Amazon river (from where it becomes navigable, abt 4k km) with local boats, this is how one sleeps. Once in Belem my back was straighter than when I left
On a small boat, a lot of thought must be given to resonance among the boat and the hammock roll periods, sometimes people are simply ejected from the hammock.


If the boat is stopped we generally use this type

 

[RunAgroundHard]

A single handed sailor, racer, used a device that was rigged in his companionway hatch space. Think of it like a deckchair shape. They sat in it, facing aft and could sleep comfortably, stay out the weather and get fast access to the deck if required. Worth some thought.

 

[Roberto]

A single handed sailor, racer, used a device that was rigged in his companionway hatch space. Think of it like a deckchair shape. They sat in it, facing aft and could sleep comfortably, stay out the weather and get fast access to the deck if required. Worth some thought.

There you go, this is mine

 

[Davy_S]

We slept in hammocks in a Lochin 38 on our way from Plymouth to Guernsey, it was surprisingly very comfy, it was a lumpy sea and when we were woken up to fish a wreck it took a long time to readjust to the movement of the boat, when in the hammock the motion was very smooth, would certainly suit someone who suffered from seasickness.

 

[ctva]

I have a couple of DD Hammocks for use in the back country. Very well made but to keep flatish, you put a lot of strain on the mounts but then the mast is pretty silid one would hope.

 

[Daydream believer]

My hatch sleeping solution

I have a sponge to brace my head to stop it rocking from side to side as the boat rolls. On eother advantage is that I can lay in this & with a view of the horizon it helps reduce seasickness

 

[[70521]]

I have a couple of DD Hammocks for use in the back country. Very well made but to keep flatish, you put a lot of strain on the mounts but then the mast is pretty silid one would hope.

Thanks @ctva that looks like the sort of thing I am looking for.

I'll keep everybody posted on how this mad hatter idea progresses.

p.s. I still think 'Boat Cloaks' are seriously underrated

 

[MontyMariner]

These are surprisingly comfortable

 

[ducked]

Was on a German square rigger that accompanied the Tall Ships Race out of Leith (wasn't actually in the race) and went to Norway, which had hammocks in the focsle. I was in a conventional berth, but the people in the hammocks said they were very comfortable. Less swinging room in a small yacht though.

If in the area, very cheap "backpacking" hammocks sold in Bangkok market, though I had to extend the tethers with paracord to have a reasonable chance of reaching between appropriate trees.

These are tubular, which gives some mosquito protection, which you sometimes very much need. Work rather better against Scottish midges, which dont seem to be able to bite you through the textile.

 

[Blue Seas]

HMS Palliser (google) in the 1960's. We had around 40 of us all in hammocks in the mess. 30 out of 40 returning from a night out on the lash in Barry Island falling over the 10 or so sober duty watch trying to stay asleep was fun - many gave up and slept on the floor after a bout of minor injuries.
The secret is in the nettles (strings) adjustment.
See;
Making Clews, their jigs, and making a camping hammock.

 

[[70521]]

HMS Palliser (google) in the 1960's. We had around 40 of us all in hammocks in the mess. 30 out of 40 returning from a night out on the lash in Barry Island falling over the 10 or so sober duty watch trying to stay asleep was fun - many gave up and slept on the floor after a bout of minor injuries.
The secret is in the nettles (strings) adjustment.
See;
Making Clews, their jigs, and making a camping hammock.

I know HMS Palliser well. She was a frequent visitor to Lyness when my late father was OIC.