something like these ??? tree tents

If I use my HH with cold wind, I use a Thermarest Prolite 4 inside the HH, to prevent cooling by conduction.
I'm looking for another solution, to lighten the weight of the system.
I have not tested the undercover/underpad system, now available at HH.

You can use it as a chair, while cooking under the rainfly;

Snake skins are a MUST : hammock is set-up or packed in a few minutes.

Yes, by all means, choose a big rain fly with the hammock ; or take both the standard and the hex fly.
Last night spent in the HH, with wind turning and blowing the rain in every directions, I get a bit of rain inside, because I had not correctly positioned the rain fly. So, next time, I will ensure a better coverage.
Anyway, a large rain fly will also give you a dry area under which you will be able to cook, to store your gear, ....
Or you can double the fly to better shade the sun ...

My main problem with my HH : I do not have enough time to use it more frequently....

After a ton of research last year, I purchased a Hennessy Ultra Light for my Appalachian Trail hike.

In short - I loved it.

My entire sleeping system weighted under four pounds! (Hennessy Ultralight is just under 2lbs...)

Some people are critical of hammocks because of the fact that you must find two trees within range. My experience has been that it's MUCH harder to find a flat and clear spot of soft earth for a tent!

I regularly strung my hammock over rocks and bushes on sharply angled ground. I like the fact that you can make camp with minimal impact on the plants and ground cover.

You must, of course, consider the issues hammocks have in cold weather (cold air flowing underneath you and sucking out warmth).
A simple foam pad in the hammock handles temps down to about 40F. Below that you need additional insulation on the outside. However, in a pinch you can simply lower the hammock down to the ground and sleep *as if you had a tent.*

Can't say enough about the Hennessey. It handled hot, cold, and very, very, very wet conditions with no problem. There were bad storms where I was sure I was going to get soaked... But with the fly properly set, there's no problem. Plus it's easy to set up in the rain - just pitch the fly first, then put the hammock up underneath nice and dry.

I have to admit, the first few nights being suspended like that made me a little nervous. I felt like a "bear tootsie roll." But I soon realized that in the very unlikely event that I had to wake up and run in an emergency, the hammock was MUCH easier to get out of than a tent. No zippers to find in the dark. Just sit up, shove your feet through the velcro seal at the bottom and drop neatly to the ground. (Then realize it wasn't really a bear at all. And change your shorts.)

I currently camp in a tent (my girlfriend wants to snuggle). But I do miss the comfort of my Hennessey. (Though not enough to leave my girlfriend alone in the tent...) ;-)

The US military used to have a jungle hammock that could be set up on the ground. If I recall correctly, the most recent version was the M-1965, but there were similar models from WWII. I did some googling but could not find a decent picture of one set up as a ground tent. Being military, it was undoubtedly heavier than a similar commercial model. And speaking of commercial models, at least one, the Clark Jungle Hammock states in its manual that it can be set up on the ground. Not being a hammock person, I have never owned one to try...

I have used one and once you get the hang of it, IMO they're great.

I had difficulty getting the hammock stretched tightly enough, until I took a survival course from Mors Kochanski, in the course of which I was introduced to the turnbuckle (or parbuckle?) knot. Basically, you tie a figure-of-eight knot in the line, but don't feed the end of the line all the way through; so you have a loop sticking through one end of the figure-of-eight. The end of the line goes through the straps around the tree, and is then fed back through this loop. The loop acts like a pulley and changes the direction of the pull; the result is, when you pull on the line to tighten it, you are pulling it toward the tree rather than away from the tree. This makes it much easier to tie off the line without it slipping and causing the hammock to sag.

I also found that if you get a small foam pad and stick it inside your sleeping bag, it will stay put far better than if you use a full-size pad and put it under the sleeping bag. Don't try to use a HH without a foam pad or other insulation, your bum will get cold.

On the lack of trees issue with hammocks.

Hennessey was showing a tripod assembly at NOAC 2006 (Boy Scout Order of the Arrow convention).

This setup involved two tripods with a ~10ft ridge pole connecting the peaks of the two tripods. The ridge pole and the tripods were constructed of 1inch (if I remember right) rigid metal conduit and a fitting for the tripod joint.

One hammock was suspended by two tripods and one ridge pole, with the fly strung over the ridge pole.

Two hammocks required three tripods and two ridge poles,
Three hammocks required three tripods and three ridge poles.
12 could be suspended using seven tripods and 12 ridge poles (hexagon with center tripod).

Not an system that I would want to take backpacking, but looked interesting for a base camp.

Thanks for the great idea of putting the pad inside the sleeping bag!! I wish I had thought of it several years ago. I will now get a lot more use from my hammock.

Spud

I've used a HH for about 5 or 6 years, and am very happy with it. I second the recommendations on the larger tarp; I have the standard tarp (I bought mine before the larger one became available) and often wish it covered more.

I use a Big Agnes sleeping bag, which doesn't have bottom insulation - just a sleeve to securely hold a sleeping pad. I've made a pad/reflector from a mylar windshield cover and some fleece material (a common DIY mod for HH users.)

In warm weather I use just that reflector pad, in moderate weather (most of the year here in OR) I put it on top of a Ridge Rest pad and put them both in the sleeve. In cold weather I put the reflector on top of a Thermarest pad.

It is the most comfortable way to sleep in the woods!

-=[ Grant ]=-

Don't know if this is helpful, but here are some thoughts and responses from another forum on the subject of hammocks: Hammock Topic

A word of caution: I was doing something similar to what aardwolfe is describing above with my Hennessy Hammock. One night, the ridgeline snapped with me in the hammock. It snapped exactly at the point I had tied a figure eight loop for the purpose of tightening (as described above). Apparently, as the knot constricts around the inner fibers, the fibers can be weakened. I talked with the folks at Hennessy Hammock via email. They say they've seen very few ridgeline breaks except when some kind of knot or tensioning device has been applied to the line. The line can be replaced by the way.

If you do use a figure eight to tighten the line, make sure it's in the foot end. When my line snapped, my feet hit the ground first, no big deal (except for severely wounded pride). If you tie the figure eight in the head end and there is a break, guess what hits the ground first. A lot more than your pride could get injured in this scenario.