5 Tips to Prepare your ENO DoubleNest Hammock for a Thru-Hike

When I first was introduced to the world of hammocks, there seemed to only be one choice: the ENO DoubleNest.  I used it mainly to lounge around eating snacks while watching my friends climb at the local crag.  An ENO DoubleNest is a comfortable, reliable hammock— mine has lasted six years with almost no signs of wear.  This use includes me sleeping in it on my hammock stand off trail 75% of the time at night for the past 6 months.  Even though they are relatively heavy, I saw several dozen DoubleNests on the AT, and the occupants were happy with their choice. Why do so many people carry these? In my opinion, it could be partially from the flat lay you get in the luxuriously wide hammock in combination with ENOs wide availability in sporting good stores across the country.

ENO’s DoubleNest (as configured with steel carabiners) weighs 1.5 pounds, or 24 ounces. Carrying this hammock on a thru-hike? Here are five tips to shave weight and streamline your setup.

Note: This post is written to help hikers save weight with a popular gear option, and is not sponsored by ENO or any other hammock brands

1. Lose the storage pouch (save 1.5 ounces)

The ENO double nest comes with a storage pouch attached to the hammock.  As a thru hiker you should have a pack liner to keep your gear dry.  This pack liner will hold your hammock nicely and you wont have to carry the extra weight of the storage sack. I used a seam ripper to remove mine but scissors work.  Be careful not to get carried away and cut the hammock.

2. Swap steel carabiners (save up to 3.6 ounces)

When I purchased my ENO Double nest it came with very sturdy steel carabiners.  While long lasting these carabiners weigh in at 4.3 oz.  ENO figured this out and now offers aluminum carabiners with its newer hammocks.  When you buy carabiners buy them from a place that deals in hammocks.  Just because a carabiner says not for climbing doesn’t mean its not suitable for hammocking.  Three options to check out.

• ENO Wire Gate Aluminum Carabiner 

ENO doesn’t list a weight on their site (a red flag when shopping for a thru-hike). I will assume they are comparable to the hammock gear ones below.

• Hammock Gear Aluminum Carabiner

Two carabiners weigh in at 42 grams or about 1.5 oz

• Dutch Biner

Two carabiners (breaking strength = 1,000 lbs) weigh in at 20 grams, or 0.7 ounces. Note: Using Dutch Biners may require additional suspension changes on the tree side.

3. Hammock suspension swaps (save 0.6 ounces)

The stock cordage in the sewn end channel of the ENO double nest is very thick black rope.  The two pieces together weigh in at 0.8 ounces. Most cottage hammock makers use continuous loops made of a thin, strong material known as amsteel.  Two pieces of this material weigh in at 0.2 ounces.

• Loops from Dutchware

4. Ditch Atlas Straps (save up to 8.7 ounces)

ENO does a very good job of pushing hikers to buy Atlas Straps, but they weigh 11 ounces.  You can get the same adjustability in a whoopie sling arrangement. If you can’t imagine saying the word whoopie without laughing, try the Beetle Buckles from Dutchware.

• ENO Helios 
  • ENO’s lightest suspension at 5.7 oz
• Dutchware Beetle Buckle Suspension
  • For those who don’t want to mess with whoopie slings—easy to adjust and durable at 6.4 oz
  • I used these on the AT from Delaware Water Gap to the end in Maine and can vouch for their dependability
  • Note: This works with smaller diameter continuous loops discussed above so do both and get more weight savings.
    • This configuration is shown in picture prior to point 3.
• Hummingbird Tree Strap Combo
  • Whoopie sling tree strap combo weighs in at 2.3 oz for $30

5.) Button Link Hammock Suspension (weight savings varies)

Hummingbird Hammocks have developed a button link suspension system, using a piece of spectra with an sewn-in bead to form a soft shackle on the sewn channel of the hammock(pictured above). By doing this, you eliminate the carabiner in favor of the plastic bead spliced into the spectra cord. With hammocks, any opportunity to get rid of hardware is an opportunity to save weight. I used the button link for hundreds of miles on the AT with no failures, and plan to use it again in conjunction with the tree strap combo on my upcoming PCT thru-hike.

• Button Link Suspension System

Total Potential Weight Savings: 14.4 oz

Once you get into the world of thru-hiking, a 14.4 oz weight savings is like an early Christmas present. If these tips helped you or if you have any questions, comments, or tips, feel free to comment below.

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