After spending the winter planning and gear shopping for a two-week trip on the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast Backcountry Discovery Routes, I wanted to start the spring with a shakedown run to make sure I had everything sorted for my planned load out. Mostly I wanted to make sure I had the chance to test the refinements I’d made to my hammock and luggage setup after the BDR section I’d done the previous fall. My friend Jason was itching for a weekend camping, so he loaded up his car and supplied some luxury from his family camping gear in the form of coolers, a full camp kitchen, and a dining fly.
Over the winter I’d added the Parabellum wind screen to the headlight cowl, switched to an ODI handlebar and grip set, and added the Tusk pannier racks with the Kriega OS-platform for more luggage flexibility. Mechanically the bike was untouched from the previous year. For my camping gear, I’d picked up a Kammok Bobcat underquilt and gear sling to complement the hammock, as well as the Kammok UL shelter to act as a rain/picnic fly.
Friday night went great and the weather stayed pretty favorable all evening. We attempted an upside-down cake in Jason’s Dutch oven, which went not-as-great, but the unburnt parts were pretty good. The temperatures stayed in the 40s overnight and the addition of an underquilt to my hammock made all the difference in comfort.
On Saturday, things took a bit of a turn for the dreary. Rain started in the afternoon and continued for most of the evening, so I was definitely grateful for Jason’s rain fly. We made another attempt with the Dutch oven for cornbread that went about as well as the upside down cake from the night before, but I’m prepared to blame the rain for the uneven temperatures. Unfortunately, the rain also came with much lower temperatures overnight. Adding some additional mid-layers and chemical handwarmers kept me just warm enough to get some sleep, but I definitely learned that I don’t love hammocks for cold-weather camping.
We woke up to frost and a still-frigid morning, so we decided to skip out on the last night and head home. My riding gear blocked the wind, but I found myself missing the heated grips and wind protection from the Tiger.
Overall the weekend still accomplished what I wanted it to. Assuming I wouldn’t have any freezing nights on my summer trip, I was happy with the hammock setup and my camping gear. I did realize that the full setup was still a bit of a tight squeeze, so I decided to upgrade from a pair of Wolfman large Rollies to the Wolfman Expedition panniers for my long trip later in the year.