The decision to bugout is a serious one and not to be made lightly. If you’re forced to in the winter it could lead to the deaths of you and your family if you’re not well equipped and prepared, so I highly suggest that you have solid transportation and a destination before deciding to leave your house or apartment. Cold weather camping is a skill best learned by going with someone who has experience or going through some formal training. I grew up in Maine and did some cold weather camping when I was younger, but really got into it after I joined the Marine Corps. At one point we spent two weeks in Minnesota and the temperature plunged to between –30 and –40 degrees at night and never crossed into positive territory even during the day and we camped out for ten of those nights.
Yep, that’s ice. Me camping on a lake in Maine. Notice the military bag in the tent.
One of the first things you’ll want to get is a decent sleeping bag and a sleeping mat. If you have a very warm bag you’ll be able to survive after the power goes out even if you have to lay it out in your apartment. A good bag meant for backpacking (meaning lightweight) is expensive, but if you live in a cold weather environment I suggest you look into getting one. The military cold weather bags do the trick nicely, but they’re heavy! If you want to leave it in your closet at home or in your car in case of emergency I’d say go ahead and get one, but if you’re planning on carrying it in a backpack go out and get a lightweight mummy bag. I am currently working on a post about sleeping bags so I won’t go into too much detail here.
Another thing to consider when camping in cold weather is the amount of food you consume during the course of the day. If you’re hiking ten miles or more a day with a 35 pound pack in the summer you’re probably consuming somewhere in the neighborhood of four to six thousand calories a day. In the winter your pack weighs more and everything you do is met with resistance especially if there’s snow on the ground. People mountaineering can consume upwards of ten-thousand calories a day! The point here is that you’ll probably need to double your rations and food is heavy.
Clothing is also crucial when doing outside activities in the winter. First of all, the old saying, “cotton kills” is especially true in extreme cold weather. Think wool, polypropylene and fleece. Here’s a typical scenario when I’m winter camping: I start out hiking or snowshoeing and once I warm up I’ll strip down to a polypro top and maybe a fleece jacket with lightweight gloves if the temp is above 15 degrees F. Here’s a tip that could save your bacon if you’ve never done any hiking in cold weather. As soon as you get to your destination – top of the mountain, winter camp, whatever, IMMEDIATELY change your undershirt. Yup, unless the wind is blowing 60 mph and it’s 75 below zero change your bottom layer as soon as you can.
If you change immediately your body will still be warm enough to stave off the effects of having your torso exposed for the few seconds it will take to change. Any hike I’ve ever been on I’m usually quite wet with sweat by the time I get to where I’m going and if I don’t change the wet clothing will eventually make me colder. Change into something dry, put your hat and an outer layer on, and you will be much warmer and far more comfortable than if you didn’t change.
Hiking Old Speck in ’07. This is why I sweat. Look at the size of that pack!
To Be Continued…
12 comments
Dang bro, you have a right eye like The Terminator, nice mod! :^)
Good advice, you never know what the weather will be like when / if you have to stay out for extended times. We don’t nearly as cold as you folks do up North, lat time it snowed down here (2004) was the 1st time in nearly a 100 years. It don’t get cold like that is all I’m saying.
good suggestion, about changing the undershirt. i’ll need to put a few more of them on my shopping list. (polypropylene or wool…)
real important to stay dry in your sleeping bag, especially if it’s down filled. don’t over dress, and perspire. next ones i buy will be synthetic filled.
Your paragraph 3 is inaccurate, or misleading at best. It is not the resistance or heavier pack that costs you so much energy in the winter: it is the higher delta T (temperature difference between objects). I looked on line for a calculator, but the people who discuss calorie counting online do not even have the slightest clue what they are talking about. You probably could get a decent number from a mechanical engineer who knows how to do HVAC load calculations.
If you work outside a lot, you will probably find yourself eating more and bulking up in winter: the delta-T is the reason.
Water is more efficient at transporting heat then air (or wool) so wet clothes are dangerous. Wind also effects the transfer rate.
Weight can also effect the amount of energy you use hiking by quite a bit: a 180 pound person hiking up a mountain might use up 600 calories, while a 90 pound person may use 330.
However, smaller people also have a higher surface area to volume, so in they will loose heat quicker. So you have to be particularly careful with small children. They can have a hard time keeping their temperature up.
What I have never figured out is why if it has been 20 degrees outside, and suddenly warms up to 55 it seems so warm. But if it was 80 degrees and suddenly cooled of to 55, you are shivering.
Many years ago I flew from Anchorage AK. to San Francisco. It was a beautiful 20 degrees and sunny in Anchorage and I was in short sleeves. It was high 50’s to low 60 in San Francisco and foggy and I put on everything I had with me including a wool jacket and I was still cold.
Interesting Gone With Wind – presumably the moisture in the air when the air is cooler than you makes for better heat exchange. But when it is really hot, the moisture reduces the heat exchange because we use an evaporative heat exchange to cool down (the energy for our sweat to turn into water vapor comes in part from our overheated body- even if the surrounding air is warmer than our bodies. So when it is hot and the air is already saturated, you get no cooling.
I have maintained a winter BOB for a long time. I inspect it every year to be sure I have everything in place. Your post has prompted me to change a few things in it this year. I’m adding more clothing changes based on your advice. Thanks.
PS – One good tip I heard years ago is that wool retains its insulating ability when damp, whereas cotton does not.
I heard once that silk was great for winter hiking. So I have silk shirts in our BoB’s. Nothing fancy, or made for exercise, but just 100% silk shirts found cheap at garage sales.
😀 I have NO IDEA why they are good . Do they wick moisture away from skin? Hold in heat? I don’t know. Do you know? Have you heard this bit of lore? I think I remember they should be one of the bottom layers.
Any advice on what I should do with the silk shirts I have stashed in our BoB’s would be greatly appreciated.
Hi Jennie,
Sorry I didn’t see your question! Let’s see if I can answer it. I had heard a little about wearing silk a long time ago, but with the introduction of the newer hi-tech materials hadn’t thought about it in age. Your question got me thinking though, so after several Google searches I found this page –> http://www.women-on-the-road.com/cold-weather-clothes.html <—- She talks about using silk as long underwear to help wick sweat away from the body. As she notes in her article the secret to dressing for cold weather is to dress in layers, the first layer being a wicking layer, an insulating layer, and a protection layer. Therefore, silk long underwear, a wool sweater, and a heavy jacket would keep you warm and dry in cold weather. You might want to refer to my post about changing up soon after hiking to stay warm though! Make sure to carry extra long underwear!
In short, the silk is an acceptable wicking layer to use as long as you have the extra protection to go over it.
Thanks for the great question!
-Jarhead Survivor
Hey thanks man.
I did catch the changing after the hike and I totally agree.
Thanks for the thoughts on silk. It’s hard to find the newer-tech-fabric underwear at garage sales and such, so I’m still working with old school stuff. 😀
Hi Jennie,
You’re welcome. Hey, I got thinking about this the other day while I was out walking into the teeth of the wind. Here’s something I would do and you can take it or leave it. Take what you have in your BOB and wear it in the cold for a day and see if it works. You’ll hear me say it often, “Test your gear!”
Good luck!
-Jarhead Survivor
russel1200–that is a great observation! I would venture to say that the reason for your astute temperature change observations is that it is easier (quicker) for the human body to cool itself than it is to warm it.