Nubé Hammock Shelter Gear Review
For those of you who know me, you know I have a passion for the outdoors, which means I also have a passion for the equipment that I take out with me. I am a gear-junkie. Plain and simple! I like the best, and I invest in the best whenever I can. This is why I trust Sierra Madre Research to occupy my backpack with the outdoor gear that I need. I literally wish they made everything I take with me. The quality is unrivaled. It is truly made FOR outdoor adventurists, BY outdoor adventurists.
We adventurists take gear out, try it, bring it home, and then decide what we like and what we don’t like. We then begin to ponder in our heads how we can change, or alter that piece of gear to make it perfect. Sierra Madre Research has done all of this for us. They make their own gear, and they make it with the features, weight, and feel that we all dream of! I could rave all day about my Hammock, and EZSlings, but this review is saved for something absurdly special and wonderful:
The Nubé Hammock Tent - cloud of protection.
I am in love, and it’s not with a woman…..yet at least. I’m sure that day will come.
But seriously, my first thought after seeing the Nubé:
“Where the heck has this been all of my life?!”
After having the pleasure of setting up, and testing a prototype version, I am EXTREMELY excited to invest in one of my own. Some of the things that popped out immediately to me during setup were:
THE COMPRESSION SACK. The Nubé packs into a small, bright color that makes spotting it in your bag easy. It had a conveniently placed second pocket that was detachable, to organize your tent stakes. Which brings us to number 2:
THE STAKES. Small, lightweight, and sturdy! They are perfectly designed for a fast connection to your ground lines on your Nubé. They are perfect. It’s hard to believe you can have “perfect” tent stakes, but these are them! (Although, hitting rocks underneath the surface will bend them, but it seems it takes a lot of force.)
THE GROUND LINES, and pockets to keep them in- with the ground lines permanently attached to the Nubé, a small pocket to tuck them away in is ideal. The pockets seal with a hook and loop closure, making it extremely easy to hide/expose your lines to keep them as organized as possible. The lines are tied with a loop at the ground end, which simply catches the top of the tent stakes for a convenient, and secure set.
SKY LINES. How the heck can they get any better?! I used 2 half hitches to secure them to the trees. Easy to tie, easy to take out, and secure as all get out! “Set it, and forget it!”
PATENTED CLOSURE SLEEVES. How cool is it to be protected from the rain running down your hammock lines? Pretty dang awesome! How cool is it to be protected from these southern fire ants crawling down the same said hammock lines into your sleeping quarters?? EVEN MORE AWESOME!! These are an SMr exclusive, and a MUST have.
THE BUG NET felt like an invisible Chuck Norris roundhouse kicking any and all bugs that looked at me. Thick enough mesh to be effective, but not too thick to obscure my vision of the beautiful river I set up next to.
SPACE. I have never seen a hammock shelter with the defined space like the Nubé. It has an aerodynamic shape, and with tight lines, it gives you the feeling of being protected without being suffocated. It is the perfect mix of not too small, and not too big.
THE GEAR STORAGE hangs right below your hammock, and is so great to have. Setting my pack in it gives me a sense of ease knowing my belongings are as protected as I am, within arms reach, and yet not in my way.
SET UP. I set it up by myself, with no printed instructions, and it took me only a couple of minutes. It is SO easy! That was the best part! Well, the whole thing is the best part!! It is the perfect combination of lightweight, necessary features, and comfort.
THE FABRICS SMr use are so light and soft, yet strong and durable. I’ve accidentally drug my Pares hammock through sticks on multiple occasions, and haven’t had a rip/tear/or puncture yet.
To clear up one thing that seems to be misconceived: The Nubé is a hammock SHELTER, not a hammock. Your hammock lines easily run right into the Nubé through the SMr exclusive closure sleeves, and then set up to your hammock which is suspended inside the shelter. It works with just about any hammock you might currently own.
So in review, this hammock shelter is the ONLY COMPLETE hammock shelter on the market. It gives us all the bells and whistles, without losing touch to backpacker mentality: lightweight, lightweight, lightweight. At just over 2lbs (silly light), every single feature on this hammock shelter plays a crucial roll in ensuring we have the most pleasant sleeping experience that one can possibly have in a camping hammock. I will certainly own one of these for the rest of my life, as well as SMr hammocks. I look forward to creating many fantastic memories in it, and share it with the people I care about, because THAT, my dear friends, is what it’s all about.
"When you find the best, you stay with the best. Plain, and simple”
Jack M Oliver -Self proclaimed gear schnob, adventure racer, kayaker, SMrfanforlife, Nubist4Life
