Oztrail Hammock Review; the ultimate camping companion
Lazing back in a hammock, with the wind blowing gently as you sway in a pristine camp site in the shade is a whole new level of enjoyment, and this post covers our thoughts on the Oztrail Hammock that we’ve had for a number of years.
While in the Broome Woolworths, I stumbled into their camping section, which is never a good idea. Like a kid in a candy store, I keenly looked around at what they had.
You might smirk, but I’ll have you know that a lot of the brand name gear is also sold at places like Woolworths (in more remote towns) and Kmart/Big W for much cheaper than what you’d pay at the local camping store.
Anyway, my keen eyes found a hammock, which I know from experience can make a camping trip absolutely magic; there’s nothing better than swinging the afternoon away, dozing on and off or reading a book. Initially, I dismissed it, until I spied the brand Oztrail on the side, and its price of just $25.
Oztrail make decent gear. It’s not top of the range, amazing quality stuff, but its decent enough to last without falling apart after the first few camping trips. Sarah was very keen on the idea, so into the shopping trolley it went.
We rigged it up for the first time at Lorella Station in the Northern Territory between two trees, using a 300kg ratchet strap, and a 2.5 tonne ratchet strap (don’t laugh, its all that I had that I knew would be long and strong enough).
It stayed there for 7 days, and got plenty of use, with Sarah commenting that ‘this was one of your better ideas’. Happy wife, Happy life. To make things better, Oliver fell in love with it too, and often wanted to sit there while we swung back and forth.
I will say its not as long and as wide as I’d like it; you only sort of just sit in with not much room to twist one way or the other without falling out, but its good enough to kick back in.
A hammock really is the perfect addition to camping, and some people even use them to sleep the night away. We’ve used the Oztrail hammock a fair bit since then, and highly rate it. If you are looking for yet another piece of Camping Gear, they aren’t a bad option at all.
I would be inclined to find something that is a bit wider and longer though, as long as the price was right, but our kids have an absolute ball using it, and its been a good quality product for the last 8 years or so!
