3 Days Hammock Camping with 8 Pounds of Gear

Описание: 3 days of Hammock Camping & Solo Ultralight Backpacking in Virginia’s George Washington National Forest.

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For this backpacking trip, I headed down to the border of Virginia and West Virginia for some early spring camping to get a dose of some warmer weather, babbling brooks, and mountain views.

With the milder temps and decent forecast, I was able to get my base weight down to 7.75 pounds, a welcome change after hauling some pretty heavy loads my previous few backpacking trips.

For sleep and shelter, I went with my minimalist hammock camping setup consisting of a 10 oz hammock, 5 oz tarp, and a pair 40° down quilts. The 14 mile Little Schloss Loop has a decent amount of unofficial pre-established campsites with some nice open areas and decently spaced trees, making it a great loop for hammocks. (backpacking gear list below)

For an easier read, GPS data, and more info, check out my full blog post
https://www.sintax77.com/3-days-hammo...

Water is plentiful on the Little Stony Creek side of the loop, but the ridge side of the loop that I started with is dry for the first 5 miles, so I packed in a full load of water for my first day. Finding water every couple of miles on the remaining two days was no problem at all.

Trailhead Used: Little Sluice Mountain Trailhead Parking 38°54’30.0″N 78°38’27.0″W
Forest Road 92, Maurertown, VA

Trails Used, Day 1

Little Sluice Mountain Trail
Left (south) on trail to the Little Schloss Mountain Vista
Continue on Little Sluice Mountain Trail
Setup camp in the spruce meadow along Little Sluice Trail
This is a large campsite with a huge rock campfire pit and room for multiple tents or hammocks. There is no water here, so make sure to pack it in. The next water source is 2 miles further up the trail.

Day 1 Mileage: 2.5 miles
Day 1 Gross Elevation Gain: 1,415’

Trails Used, Day 2

Little Sluice Mountain Trail
After 2 miles, refill water at “Lemonade Springs”, a piped spring located just off the trail
Left (west) on Tuscarora Trail
Camp along Tuscarora Trail
This is a medium size campsite with a fire pit and room for a couple of tents or hammocks. This is a dry site, but I hiked the additional 1/3 mile to Sugar Knob Spring, resupplied and returned to camp.

Day 2 Mileage: 6.3 miles
Day 2 Gross Elevation Gain: 2,070’

Trails Used, Day 3

Tuscarora Trail
Left (west) on Stony Creek Trail
Refill water at the piped spring near Sugar Knob Cabin
The next 2 miles will be dry, but after that there are numerous spots to grab water where the trail runs along Stony Creek.
Left (east) on Forest Rd 92 for 2.5 miles
Return to parking

Day 3 Mileage: 7.3 miles
Day 3 Gross Elevation Gain: 1,663’

Total Mileage: 16 Miles (includes 2 miles of backtracking & exploring)
Total Gross Elevation Gain: 7,335’

Complete gear list for this trip on LighterPack w/ weights & links
https://lighterpack.com/r/svhbro

Notable Backpacking Gear

ULA Ohm 2.0 Backpack https://www.ula-equipment.com/product...
Dutchware Pack Cover https://dutchwaregear.com/product/wat...
Dutchware Gear Half-Wit Hammock https://dutchwaregear.com/product/hal...
Dutchware Whoopie Hook hammock suspension w/ kevlar tree straps. https://dutchwaregear.com/product/who...
Hammock Gear Burrow 40 Top Quilt https://www.hammockgear.com/premium-b...
HG Phoenix 30 Underquilt https://hammockgear.com/premium-phoen...
Hammock Gear Dyneema Hex Tarp https://www.hammockgear.com/dyneema-f...
BRS Titanium Canister Stove https://amzn.to/3gdHdQE
Light My Fire Mini Fire Steel Striker https://amzn.to/30S3rxm
Toaks 750ml Titanium Pot https://amzn.to/2GR7AJX
Sea to Summit Long Handled Spork https://go.magik.ly/ml/v9xv/
Potable Aqua Water Purification Tablets w/ PA Plus https://amzn.to/3uYZ1TP
Outdoor Research Helium III Rain Jacket https://amzn.to/2BiSnB1
Outdoor Vitals Satu Adventure Pants https://bit.ly/36Hd85J
Outdoor Vitals Adventure Jacket, Loftek version https://bit.ly/3qFoIpy
La Sportiva Wildcat Trail Running Shoes https://amzn.to/3hyKrMi
Nitecore NU25 Headlamp https://amzn.to/2YVsp0A
Benchmade Bugout EDC Folding Knife https://amzn.to/2JVfBS5
Casio ProTrek F-30 Smartwatch https://amzn.to/3dtY7Xj
Packit Gourmet Shepherds Pie https://www.packitgourmet.com/
Peak Refuel Breakfast Hash https://amzn.to/2OPFvJN
Pho Bo Instant Noodles https://amzn.to/38wnXsY
Surplus MRE’s (Meal Ready to Eat) https://amzn.to/3a6cyRL
Spot X Satellite Messenger https://amzn.to/3adSjBr

Camera Gear

GoPro Hero 8 Black https://amzn.to/2D8n6lL
GoPro Shorty Tripod Grip https://amzn.to/2MPhGOM

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