I have a personal affinity for hammocks. Something about resting in weightless suspension naturally rocking like a fetus in embryonic fluid is so innately relaxing. Not to mention some of the best days of my life have ended with a rock in a hammock – a great day surfing with friends in postcard-perfect Panama, a wet hot summer day in Montauk, geez I could go on and on.
My relationship with hammocks has so far been one akin to the lifestyle of an early homo sapien hunter gatherer. That is, if I find a hammock in the wild – on a beach, at a youth hostel – I indulge. Never, though, have I had the straightforward brilliance to domesticate a hammock and take it around with me wherever I go.
To be clear, extremely portable hammocks are nothing new. I’d go so far as to say they’re all the rage. But a brand new product called the NOMAD Hammock doubles as a fully functional backpack. Genius!
According to the creators, it all has to do with the Japanese art of paper folding, just on a bigger scale. Folded and strapped up, the thing looks like a normal backpack, but unstrap and unfold and voila! an instant place to suspend between two poles or trees to lay your head.
The crowdfunding effort to bring this product to life is live now on Kickstarter.
