ENO DoubleNest Deluxe Hammock Review

As an avid whitewater kayaker, I spend a good deal of my time outdoors. Matter of fact, we were just thinking about it and we're pretty sure we've been spending 43% or so of each week at the Ocoee. Possibly a little crazy but it is what it is.

Seeing as how I'm camping a good portion of the time, accomodations have become more important to me. I started out with a tent and a sleeping bag. Then an instant tent and an air mattress. I was pretty content. Now, my buddy Mike had bought ENO hammocks for both him and his wife. I had kinda scoffed at it for a couple of weekends and felt good about my tent sleeping arrangement. Then came the day where we decided to chill in his two ENO hammocks while we waited for some friends at the campground. That was all it took...

The ENO hammock I was relaxing in was actually the DoubleNest, not the DoubleNest Deluxe. While the DoubleNest says it is a two-person, I highly suggest the Deluxe if you are actually planning on spending any serious time with someone else in it with you. The difference in the two is an extra seam and material. Not only does this give you more space for two, and keeps you off each other, when using it as a single it gives you a lot more extra fabric to drape over you. I personally like doing this when not using a tarp for rain cover as it keeps the dew, bugs, etc off you. Not to mention it just feels nice, like a pea in a pod I imagine.

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The ENO's are super comfortable and are made of what looks and feels like parachute fabric. The ENO website states that it is Nylon and that both the DoubleNest and DoubleNest Deluxe can hold up to 400 lbs. The former weighs in at 22 oz while the latter is slightly heavier at 29 oz. The hammocks also fold up into a tiny bag that is sewn onto the side of them. Very handy and insures you will never loose them. In addition, you can store things in the bag while the hammock is hung up. Watch, glasses, book, drink, etc.

Now the hammock felt great and everything but what really sold me were the straps. While I thought it was kinda strange that they didn't come with the hammocks, the straps themselves are awesome. ENO, who's full name is Eagles Nest Outfitters, has several different straps available. There is the Slap Strap, the Slap Strap PRO and the Atlas. While all three are nice, the PRO manages to add another 2 feet of length to the non-PRO and shave off 4 ounces at the same time. That being said, I'm not really a backpacker so weight isn't an issue and I'm also a little paranoid about hanging off the ground. Therefore, I went with the Atlas straps. Not only did they look very heavy duty and don't seem like they would stretch, they have 30 different points on them to which you can connect your ENO. That's a lot of versatility to where you hang your hammock.

So check this out. In order to hang up your ENO hammock, you first find two trees that are within a reasonable distance from each other. Doesn't even have to be a tree. We used Mike's truck rack as one connection point and a tree for the other. Now, get one of your straps, wrap it once around the tree and slide one end through the loop on the other end. Rinse and repeat with the other side. No tieing knots or anything needed. Now clip on the carabiners that come attached to the ENO to whichever connecting loop seems appropriate for the distance between the trees. Try it, adjust if necessary and bam, you're done. It's really that simple. Literally took me around 2 minutes to set up while in no particular hurry.

You have probably gathered by now that I love my ENO. It is one of the first things I put up when camping. While it has not completely replaced my tent yet, I think it is the perfect compliment as sometimes you just want to be completely sheltered. For example, the other night I was rudely awakened by a steady downpour. The next morning I was on the ENO website looking at rain flys. They have quite a variety but I have not pulled the trigger as of yet because of the price. The ProFly Rain Tarp is what I would want and at $80 it is the same price as the hammock itself. This does seem to be kinda the norm with other manufacturers but I think I am going to try a homemade one for the moment. Or I'll break down and buy one in a moment of weakness, who knows? I'll definitely write a review of it if I do.

So would I recommend the ENO DoubleNest Deluxe Hammock? An emphatic yes and I give it two thumbs up. In fact I have already raved about it and convinced some others to make the purchase themselves. ENO has truly made a remarkable product and it will greatly enhance your camping experience with its ease and comfort. Go grab one and treat yourself!

To see all of the great ENO products, visit http://www.eaglesnestoutfittersinc.com/