Hammock Camping the Dolly Sods Wilderness – Solo Backpacking Trip

3 Days of Hammock Camping, Hiking, & Backpacking in the Dolly Sods  Wilderness.

For this 3 day, 2 night spring backpacking trip, I’ll be hiking a 23 mile loop in West Virginia’s Dolly Sods Wilderness, part of the larger Monongahela National Forest. Dolly Sods is located in the Allegheny Mountains on the highest plateau east of the Mississippi river and features some of the most varied and scenic terrain available to hikers in the Mid-Atlantic region.

For sleep and shelter system on my Dolly Sods backpacking loop, I packed in my Amok Draumr XL hammock, paired with the Amok Borg tarp and Amok Fjol XL sleeping pad.  I chose this combo based on plateau’s less aggressive terrain and the extra time I expected to be lounging and relaxing at camp.

No permit is required to camp in the Dolly Sods Wilderness, but there are rules and regulations regarding backcountry camping. You can find more information on the USFS Dolly Sods website here.

Full GPS track data, including campsites, water sources, etc, for this trip and many others can be downloaded on my Trip Data Page.

Continue reading

Hammock Camping on an Abandoned Mountain Farm – Quehanna Trail Ultralight Backpacking

Hammock Camping, Hiking & Ultralight Backpacking on the Quehanna Trail.

Yes, we’re once again camping in the rain. 🙂 For this overnight backpacking trip, I’ll be hiking a 22 mile loop in Pennsylvania’s Quehanna Wild Area, within the greater Moshannon State Forest.  Luckily, I learned from my last camping trip, and packed more adequate rain gear this time.

Itching for another hammock camping trip, I decided to have some fun and go back to more of an ultralight backpacking load-out for this adventure, clocking in at roughly 8.5 pounds base weight.

My full backpacking gear list, with weights & gear links is available on this lighterpacks.com link. A truncated notable backpacking gear list can be found at the bottom of this post.

Quehanna Short Loop – Route Overview – Sintax77

No permit is required to camp in the Quehanna Wild Area or the greater Moshannon SF.

Full GPS track data, including campsites, water sources, etc, for this trip and many others can be downloaded on my Trip Data Page.

Continue reading

Hammock Camping in the Rain – Cranberry Wilderness Backpacking w/ the Amok Draumr XL

3 Days of Hiking, Backpacking, & Rainy Hammock Camping in the Cranberry Wilderness using the Amok Draumr XL Hammock.

For this 3 day, 2 night spring backpacking trip, I’ll be hiking a 20 mile loop in West Virginia’s Cranberry Wilderness, part of the larger Monongahela National Forest. The specific area for this hike, located between the Williams River and the Cranberry River, is commonly referred to as the Cranberry Backcountry.

Each of the 3 days will be comprised of three different “vibes”. Day one will mostly be a lowlands hike in the woods, day two will be primarily along the the beautiful Cranberry River, and day three will be a mossy, higher elevation ridge hike along Kennison Mountain.

With a new Amok Fjol XL tarp in hand to thwart the forecast of rain, each night will be spent hammock camping and testing the new Amok Draumr XL hammock, which Amok kindly sent for evaluation.

Route Overview Cranberry River Loop – Sintax77

No permit is required to camp in the Cranberry Wilderness, but there are rules and regulations regarding backcountry camping. You can find more information on the USFS Cranberry Wilderness website here.

Full GPS track data, including campsites, water sources, etc, for this trip and many others can be downloaded on my Trip Data Page.

Continue reading

Winter Hammock Camping in the Smoky Mountains

Join me for 3 days of Winter Hammock Camping, Backpacking & Hiking in the Smoky Mountains. 

For this winter camping adventure, I’ll be doing a Gregory Bald Loop Hike, incorporating campsite 13 Sheep Pen Gap, campsite 113 Birch Spring Gap, and a hike to the Shuckstack Fire Tower.  This is my second backpacking trip to the Smokies, but due to the shorter winter days, ice, and snow, I’ll be slowing the pace down a bit compared to my previous hammock camping experience there.

Route Overview – Gregory Bald Loop – Sintax77

A backcountry permit is required for all campsites in this area. You can reserve them for $4 per night on the Smoky Mountains National Park website here.

Full GPS track data, including campsites, water sources, etc, for this trip and many others can be downloaded on my Trip Data Page.

Continue reading