janos k
One of the most important requirements to stay alive in the bush is to stay dry. How do I do this in the winter when i would be all wet and sweaty (hopefully control the sweat to some extent is key) from the snow. What do i i need to do to stay dry overnight?
Answer
You need to take off all the wet clothes you wore during the day, and allow them to dry. If you're in the bush, hang them by your fire, I guess. As for your socks and boots, hopefully you'll have a few chemical hand warmers along...why go out without them? Tuck one in each boot, with your sock, and in the morning they will be warm and dry. Wear dry clothes to bed at night. If you have none, just wear your dry underthings and snuggle down in your (hopefully) temp appropriate sleeping bag. Your body heat will warm the bag and keep you toasty. You are right about trying not to work up too much of a sweat. Take everything slow and easy. Try not to fall in water or lie in snow. Dry out by fire at night. Finally, don't take wet stuff into your tent. Keep your tent nice and clean and dry.
You need to take off all the wet clothes you wore during the day, and allow them to dry. If you're in the bush, hang them by your fire, I guess. As for your socks and boots, hopefully you'll have a few chemical hand warmers along...why go out without them? Tuck one in each boot, with your sock, and in the morning they will be warm and dry. Wear dry clothes to bed at night. If you have none, just wear your dry underthings and snuggle down in your (hopefully) temp appropriate sleeping bag. Your body heat will warm the bag and keep you toasty. You are right about trying not to work up too much of a sweat. Take everything slow and easy. Try not to fall in water or lie in snow. Dry out by fire at night. Finally, don't take wet stuff into your tent. Keep your tent nice and clean and dry.
What about WINTER camping?
Simba
I would like to try winter camping this year. I know it's really early to talk about winter, but I want time to look around to buy the right gear. What would I need specifically for WINTER camping. Starting with the basics like the type of tent and sleeping bag, since everything I own is for summer use.
Also, what do people do when they winter camp besides hiking, or is that it. During the summer I like to be out on the water, but that's obviously not going to be an option.
Any other winter camping tips would be useful.
Thanks
It will be up north, so freezing temps but probably above zero degrees F.
Answer
The Basics:
Available daylight:
You will have considerably less available day light in the middle of winter than you did in the middle of summer. t
These very short days will have an effect on everything you do down the line .You need to be on trail at the crack of dawn in order to maximise the amount of the light that you do have available to you.
Navigation
Snow changes everything
Navigation in and/or on snow creates new sets of problems even on terrain that you are familar with.
Trails disappear only to get found, then lost again and then found
Lakes become meadows and all of those summertime point to point numbers become useless
Your two biggest dangers are falling thru a pond that you didn't realize was there and breaking a leg because of post-holing going downhill
Get into the habit of falling uphill and landing on your azz
Water :
Water problems come in two big varieties
1)Keeping water liquid so that you can keep yourself properly hydrated>I've been known to toss a box off popsicles on board now and then
Contrary to popular opinion cold dry air will dehydrateyou at least as fast as hot dry air will>so you need to keep drinking water on a regular basis
Without getting into another 4 paragraphs about how to keep water liquid ; know that sleeping with it is a big part of the answer and hiking with it next to your body is another part
2)Keeping yourself reasonably warm and dry when you're sweating your azz off cramponing up a hill carrying 90 lbs of gear in minus 5 temps is incredibly difficult to do.
But also very necessary to do b/c a wet body cools rapidly in really cold weather.
Layer layer layer , and remove &replace clothing as your micro environment changes.
Today because of the newer fabrics it's a lot easier to do properly
Back in the day when it was wool and silk & fish net underwear it was a lot more difficult to do, a lot heavier and a lot smellier too
Do not under estimate the value of simple shell garments to your overall well being.
Packweights
Packweights are going to be lot heavier due to three simple facts of winter life :
You are just carrying more stuff including food and fuel
The stuff that are carrying should be of winterweight quality>which makes it heavier.
The summer maxim of " when in doubt leave it home" often gets turned on it's head in winter and becomes "when in doubt bring it"
Lastly when you're buying a winter bag, in addition to it's supposed temp ratings you need to have adequate room in the foot of it to stow your boots ,your full water bottles {>bottles go into sox & sox& bottles go into boots, boots to bottom of bag] and anything that might freeze during the night.>think battery operated stuff
Good luck & be careful
<<
Update
>Tents
Tents that you use in winter have to regarded as extended stay tents.Due the limitited daylight mentioned above and the fact that you could be confined in it due to weather injury or illness a bit more room and a cheery color are desirable characteristics to have in a tent.
That cheery bright color can also be a life saver when after a day of day hiking you try locate your tent in fading light and while it's snowing heavily.
The Basics:
Available daylight:
You will have considerably less available day light in the middle of winter than you did in the middle of summer. t
These very short days will have an effect on everything you do down the line .You need to be on trail at the crack of dawn in order to maximise the amount of the light that you do have available to you.
Navigation
Snow changes everything
Navigation in and/or on snow creates new sets of problems even on terrain that you are familar with.
Trails disappear only to get found, then lost again and then found
Lakes become meadows and all of those summertime point to point numbers become useless
Your two biggest dangers are falling thru a pond that you didn't realize was there and breaking a leg because of post-holing going downhill
Get into the habit of falling uphill and landing on your azz
Water :
Water problems come in two big varieties
1)Keeping water liquid so that you can keep yourself properly hydrated>I've been known to toss a box off popsicles on board now and then
Contrary to popular opinion cold dry air will dehydrateyou at least as fast as hot dry air will>so you need to keep drinking water on a regular basis
Without getting into another 4 paragraphs about how to keep water liquid ; know that sleeping with it is a big part of the answer and hiking with it next to your body is another part
2)Keeping yourself reasonably warm and dry when you're sweating your azz off cramponing up a hill carrying 90 lbs of gear in minus 5 temps is incredibly difficult to do.
But also very necessary to do b/c a wet body cools rapidly in really cold weather.
Layer layer layer , and remove &replace clothing as your micro environment changes.
Today because of the newer fabrics it's a lot easier to do properly
Back in the day when it was wool and silk & fish net underwear it was a lot more difficult to do, a lot heavier and a lot smellier too
Do not under estimate the value of simple shell garments to your overall well being.
Packweights
Packweights are going to be lot heavier due to three simple facts of winter life :
You are just carrying more stuff including food and fuel
The stuff that are carrying should be of winterweight quality>which makes it heavier.
The summer maxim of " when in doubt leave it home" often gets turned on it's head in winter and becomes "when in doubt bring it"
Lastly when you're buying a winter bag, in addition to it's supposed temp ratings you need to have adequate room in the foot of it to stow your boots ,your full water bottles {>bottles go into sox & sox& bottles go into boots, boots to bottom of bag] and anything that might freeze during the night.>think battery operated stuff
Good luck & be careful
<<
Update
>Tents
Tents that you use in winter have to regarded as extended stay tents.Due the limitited daylight mentioned above and the fact that you could be confined in it due to weather injury or illness a bit more room and a cheery color are desirable characteristics to have in a tent.
That cheery bright color can also be a life saver when after a day of day hiking you try locate your tent in fading light and while it's snowing heavily.
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