Winter Hammock Camping — Without a Stove!

For this late winter backpacking trip, I decided to challenge myself - cooking “real food” using only fire for the duration of my trip. If you know anything about my patience for making fires, you’ll know this will truly be a bit of a challenge. 🙂

For shelter, I went with my minimalist camping hammock and ultralight backpacking tarp set-up. I also utilized a grill grate, a folding saw for harvesting campfire wood, and some extra cold weather clothing layers, as the temps were forecasted to head down to around 15° F or so. There was also a chance of snow, sleet, and even rain, so I brought a full set of rain gear for warmth at camp and keeping dry while hiking.

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Trailhead Used: Pinchot Trailhead
Pinchot Trail, Wilkes-Barre, PA 18702
41°13’09.2″N 75°37’52.6″W

This is an easily accessible lot with room for a half dozen cars or so.

GPS Data including campsites used, water sources and other POI’s for this trip and many others can be found on my Trip Data Page.

Trails Used Day 1

Powder Magazine Trail
Sassafras Hill Trail
Spruce Hill Trail
Hayes Run Trail
Painter Creek Trail
Watres Trail
Camp along Watres Trail

Day 1 Mileage: 6.6 miles
Day 1 Gross Elevation Gain: 704′
Day 1 Gross Descent: 876′

Trails Used Day 2

Backtrack on Watres Trail
Painter Creek Trail
Scrub Oak Trail
White Line Trail
Behler Swamp Trail
Camp along Behler Swamp Trail

Day 2 Mileage: 5.7 miles
Day 2 Gross Elevation Gain: 543′
Day 2 Gross Descent: 466′

Trails Used Day 3

Backtrack on Behler Swamp Trail
Road Hike on Tannery Road
Return to Bear Lake Parking
Day 3 Mileage: 2.3 miles
Day 3 Gross Elevation Gain: 160′
Day 3 Gross Descent: 93′


Grand Total Mileage: 14.6 miles
Grand Total Elevation Gain: 1.435′

FTC Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through some of my links.

Notable Backpacking Gear

Fjallraven Kajka 75 Backpack https://amzn.to/2Uj8Ew4
Dutchware Half-Wit Hammock https://dutchwaregear.com
Dutchware Whoopie Hook hammock suspension w/ kevlar tree straps.
Hammock Gear Burrow 20 Top Quilt https://www.hammockgear.com
Hammock Gear Phoenix 0 Underquilt
Hammock Gear Dyneema Hex Tarp
Byer of Maine Trilite Camp Stool https://amzn.to/38xgTx1
Zippo Classic Lighter https://amzn.to/3pcpoVw
Light My Fire Mini Fire Steel Striker https://amzn.to/30S3rxm
Toaks 750ml Titanium Pot https://amzn.to/30S3rxm
Sea to Summit Long Handled Spork https://amzn.to/3lBguOW
Potable Aqua Water Purification Tablets with PA Plus https://amzn.to/3uYZ1TP
RevolutionRace Men’s Norwand Pants https://amzn.to/3G53ief
Outdoor Vitals Adventure Jacket, Loftek version https://bit.ly/3r4nhDI
Nitecore NU25 Headlamp https://amzn.to/2YVsp0A
Silky F-180 Folding Saw https://amzn.to/3Fi6F0l
Benchmade Bugout EDC Folding Knife https://amzn.to/2JVfBS5
Casio ProTrek F-30 Smartwatch https://amzn.to/3dtY7Xj
Spot X Satellite Messenger https://amzn.to/3adSjBr
GoPro Hero 8 Black https://amzn.to/2D8n6lL
GoPro Shorty Tripod Grip https://amzn.to/2MPhGOM