Bedroll & Haversack Camping in the 1800s: #5 Hammocks

Описание: Welcome to the miniseries "Bedroll and Haversack Camping in the 1800s." Part 5 is titled, "Make Your Own Hammock." You will learn 1) the advantages of a hammock, 2) how to make a hammock from a bed sheet, 3) how to hang a hammock without trees or posts, 4) how to be safe from vermin, 5) how to keep eggs fresh without refrigeration, and 6) about camping in central Texas, USA.

Now that summer is here, camping on the ground, without a modern bug-proff tent is risky, especially in hot areas like Texas, USA. There are many nasty creatures on the ground: snakes, scorpions, and biting insects that tend to crawl into your sleeping area. In the 1800s, if you did camp on the ground you tried to find places that were dry, high and without vegetation. The recommendation was to build a sleeping platform at least 10 inches off the ground, OR if you had a permanent camp, use a hammock.

Hammocks were developed by native inhabitants of Central and South America for sleeping. They were popular because of they provided safety from disease transmission, insects stings and animal bites. Spanish colonists noted the use of hammocks by Native Americans and adapted them for use on ships. Over the years, interest in hammocks increased.

In the late 1800s, hiking and camping became a popular form of recreation. Many people used wagons to carry the "all the conveniences of home" - much like modern day car camping. They sometimes carried hammocks in their wagons. But camping with modern (1800s) hammocks wasn't popular with folks who did more rugged/primitive camping, because it was difficult to find places to find places to hang them and most were too bulky to easily carry. This changed in 1872 when Sir Francis Galton described an ingenious invention for hanging hammocks without any trees or posts. (The art of travel, or, Shifts and contrivances available in the wild by Sir Francis Galton, 1872).

Knot for bed sheet hammock:   • DIY Easy Hammock Knot 2.0 - Easiest No Sew...  

This miniseries demonstrates hiking, camping and wilderness survival techniques used during the 1800s. Many of these techniques have been largely forgotten, but are as effective today as when they were first discovered. This is not a re-enactment; Although I use modern clothing, tools and technologies in the videos, I attempt to use older technologies and improvise solutions to survival problems in a way similar to what our ancestors did before the American West was "settled." The miniseries is based on historical accounts from American pioneers (http://www.pioneerhandbooks.com), Civil War Veterans (such as: John M. Gould, 1877, How To Camp Out, Advice From A Civil War Veteran) and naturalists, such as John Muir and Henry David Thoreau.

Videography by Ken Kramm; filmed at Pace Bend Park, Spicewood, Texas, USA, June 2013, Canon Vixia HF G10, Final Cut Pro X. Music: Sandy River Belle (F tuning with guitar) by Tom Joad, Creative Commons 2.0,http://archive.org/details/Joad_Sandy...