Hold Out With Room for two

Hammocks are underrated. Sure, they take up a little more space in your pack. But what’s better than lounging by an alpine lake after a grueling hike? Or getting off the ground at a campsite? All you need is two trees sturdy enough to carry your weight.

While backpacking, a luxury item is anything that isn’t essential to the mission. But when the mission is a relaxing weekend in the hills, you can bet I’ve got my hammock with me. Snoozing, sleeping, and cracking a book or a beer are all better in a hammock.

The Eagle Nest Outfitters (ENO) DoubleNest Hammock ups the ante with enough room for two. Snuggle up with a friend, a partner, or even a daring dog that doesn’t mind being a few feet off the ground.

In short: The ENO DoubleNest Hammock has wormed its way into every daypack, backpack, and truck bed I can throw it into. It’s that piece of gear that adds a little extra pizazz to a day or night outdoors. The hammock is sturdy, easy to set up in a flash, and can hold a lot of weight. The two-person DoubleNest size is great for couples, although sometimes when you’re using it alone it can feel big. But it’s great to have the option if you want to lounge comfortably with a friend, that special someone, or your canine companion.

ENO DoubleNest Hammock Review

When it comes to comfortable camp furniture, the value of a double hammock is hard to deny. Camp chairs call for a single seating position (and to be lugged from the car). And while the stump you found in camp came preinstalled, it’s a little lacking in the comfort department.

This summer, the ENO DoubleNest was my go-to mobile camp couch, lounger, and occasional bed. It earned its spot in my pack, and now I can’t imagine heading into the backcountry without it.

High Marks in Durability and Sturdiness

From the first moment I pulled this hammock out on a day hike in Montana’s Bitterroot mountain range, ENO’s DoubleNest Atlas Strap system (an extra $30, sold separately) instantly impressed me. It puts my other one-person hammock straps, with flimsy-feeling narrow rope attachments from a competitor brand to shame. 

ENO designs its own carabiners to create a safer, easier hang. They do the trick holding weight and acting as a sturdy connection point between the double hammock and the tree. The brand refreshed all of its hardware components for this season, and it shows. Little details like a notch to make unclipping the carabiner easy, and a groove to secure a rope or wider strap, are thoughtful touches.     

The hammock itself is also created with durability in mind. The triple-stitched seam construction holds up to the weight, wear, and tear of two people. My friends count on me bringing this hammock anywhere and everywhere now. On hikes all over my home mountain ranges in northwestern Montana, to a basecamp before trekking deep into the Idaho White Cloud Wilderness, and on glamping excursions nearby.

I’ve also set up the hammock in my backyard, jerry-rigging a setup without trees between a house and fence pole. That’s how much I want to hang out in this double hammock. Long straps help make a variety of setups relatively painless.

Room for Two (But Not Too Much for One)

ENO didn’t skimp on space with its DoubleNest hammock. The extended 9’6″-long and 6’4″-wide hammock body is spacious enough for two — myself, a 5’6″ woman, and my boyfriend, who’s 6’3″ and almost double my weight. It can hold up to 400 pounds. You can strike multiple poses in the hammock. I prefer sitting to use it as a sling backrest or lying down on my back. 

Compared to the ENO SingleNest ($55) — ENO’s solo occupancy offering — the DoubleNest adds 18 inches of fabric in order to accommodate added passengers. And while the additional fabric might seem unwieldy to use solo, that wasn’t the case. The DoubleNest is also totally fun to use by yourself. There’s room to spread out and lay on your side, and there’s enough stability that I didn’t flip over. 

I found the extra fabric works well as a wraparound sun shade or bug deterrent from pesky mosquitoes in a pinch. It can feel large when you’re in it alone. But you aren’t swimming in the excess fabric — it’s still very manageable.

The 70D nylon fabric feels nice against your skin: It’s comfy and fast-drying. It’s also Bluesign-approved, meaning the materials don’t contain harmful chemicals that are bad for the environment. And, ENO’s factory meets standards for pollution control and safety protections for its workers.

The ENO DoubleNest hammock helpfully packs into an integrated bag that’s permanently attached on one side. Never lose your stuff sack again! When the hammock is out of the pocket and in use, the little sack functions as a drink holder or place to keep goodies like your phone, camera, chapstick, binoculars, or snacks.  

The DoubleNest compresses to a travel-ready size. I can easily hold the packed double hammock and the packed straps in one palm. It folds easily to about 6″ x 4″ x 5″.

It also only weighs a handful of ounces over a pound, making it a solid middleweight for a hammock. Ultralight options like the Hummingbird Hammocks Single or ENO’s own Sub6 Ultralight Hammock will weigh less. But they also give up a significant amount of hammock space to hit their sub-6-ounce weights.

And, because the straps and hammock travel separately with those models, I’m afraid I might lose the different pieces. I’d probably have to strap them together in order to keep track of them.

There’s very little limitation to adding some flair to your hammock when it comes to color choice, as well. The DoubleNest is offered in 16 different solid-color combinations, as well as a grip of different prints. Match your hammock to your tent, match the mountains, match your eyes — all fair game.

The ENO DoubleNest is compatible with other ENO products you might have handy, like hammock straps, stands, and accessories. Bug nets, rain tarps, and insulation systems can help make these hammocks great for overnighting sans tent.

Things to Keep in Mind With A Hammock

The ENO DoubleNest is sturdy and durable, but all hammocks have limitations. They’re not impervious to damage from heat, so don’t set this up too close to your campfire embers or other flame source.

I didn’t have any problems with fabric sensitivity, but taking off your shoes and checking for sharp items in your pockets can help extend your hammock’s lifetime. Longtime owners rave about 9-plus years of useable life, even without being super careful.

Just like choosing a durable place to set up your tent, your hanging site selection is also an important consideration. Trees are made of living tissue. Choosing ones that are large and hardy enough to handle your weight is key to ensuring that you don’t do any inadvertent damage.

For the best results, hang your DoubleNest from a resilient species like oak or maple, with trunks upward of 12 inches in diameter. The broad strap surface of the Atlas Straps helps distribute the weight.

Finally, ensure that you’re familiar with your hammock suspension before committing your weight to it. (A good ground rule is to never hang higher than you’re willing to fall.) Daisy-chain-style suspension systems are excellent for adaptability but do have a failure mode when clipping more than one loop in the strap.

Room for Improvement

Because there’s extra material, and your trees won’t always be the exact distance apart you’re looking for, you may sometimes end up with a particularly saggy or taut setup. The addition of something like a structural ridgeline — a line that attaches both gathered ends of the hammock together — could greatly fine-tune your hang. ENO does offer one, the Microtune Structural Ridgeline ($25). But you’ll need to purchase it separately. 

Also, while relaxing in the DoubleNest with your hiking partner is highly recommended, sleeping is a different matter. It’s pretty tough to get good, comfortable sleep with two occupants. Gravity takes over and pushes you together, making for sore arms and shallow sleep. For two-person sleeping, a large spreader-bar hammock like the REI Co-op Outward is the ticket (or more ideally, two single hammocks).

Finally, while the DoubleNest is by no means bulky, it likely wouldn’t be the first choice for a long backpacking trip where every ounce counts. Both the hammock and straps take up some space that would otherwise be for extra snacks.

ENO DoubleNest Hammock: Conclusion 

For quick overnights or just hanging in the park, this hammock now finds its way into my pack most days. It is the lightest camp chair, couch, and bed all rolled into one. By eliminating knots for the suspension system, the hammock is as simple as can be to hang and only requires two sturdy anchors to support it. It takes a little while to get it down perfectly, but a great hang is typically only a small adjustment away.

Even though the DoubleNest is made for two, anyone who is in need of a hammock could benefit from packing it along for the adventure. The extra material doesn’t make much of a difference when used solo, and it can even be used as a wind or sunblock.

In less than 5 minutes to set up, the ENO DoubleNest Hammock provides a comfortable place to get some relaxation. It’s a necessary addition to your music festival setup, your neighborhood park hangs, your mountain and lake days, and overnight packs.

Your friends, perched upright in their camp chairs (even worse, on the hard ground) will eye you enviously and beg to be the second person in your roomy DoubleNest hammock.