Cold_Weather_Camping1

Let me start by introducing myself and give you a quick background of my experiences of camping.
My name is David and I have been a "grunt" in the United States Marine Corps for the past 29+ years, (and counting). As a grunt, I have camped out in many strange and foreign places, all over the world. From the forests of North Carolina, to the mountains of northern California; from the jungles of Panama and Okinawa, to the desert sands in the Middle East. Living in temperatures of over 120 degrees in the desert, to 60 degrees below zero in the Arctic Circle. Slept below the ground, above the ground, and in snow caves.

With all of that experience, I thought that I would share what I have learned over those years; and taught as an instructor to others, with you. Hopefully you will find a few golden nuggets of information that you can use and benefit from.

Before we start with gear, clothing, and more, let's start with a few fundamentals about camping in a cold weather environment.

1. 1It is going to be cold all of the time. Know that, accept that, and BE PREPARED for it.

2. Here's an old saying for you: "Travel light, freeze at night." So, how does that apply to you?

First, find out how you will be arriving at your camp site, and if you are going to be doing any hiking, cross country skiing, or snow shoeing with your gear to a different campsite. If you are driving right to your campsite and staying there, you can afford to pack more cold weather gear = a heavy backpack. If you are going to pack up and move to another campsite by foot, you may have to sacrifice some of that extra gear = a lighter pack and probably not be as warm.

3. 3Your body will need more fuel (carbohydrates) and water intake in a cold weather environment to keep you warm- so make sure you eat and drink throughout the day. More on this later.

4. 4When dressing for the cold dress in layers. There are two main reasons for doing this:

a. By layering your clothes, you trap air between the layers. This air is warmed by your body and acts as an insulator keeping you warmer.

b. As you work, hike, put up your tent, chop and carry firewood, you generate heat. During these times of increased activity you can unzip your coat, or take off a layer to avoid sweating. Sweat moistens your clothes and freezes during periods of inactivity. When your work is done, put your layer back on.

5. 5. Frostbite and hypothermia. Both are considered cold weather injuries and both are dangerous. Read pages 322- 324 in your Boy Scout Handbook before heading out on your campout and know how to treat them both!

6. The BUDDY SYSTEM! There is strength in numbers scouts and now is not the time to be alone! ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS stay with your buddy in a cold weather environment! Accidents can happen in an instant and when your buddy goes down- he stops generating heat and hypothermia can start to creep in.

Those are very important tips (I call them "Golden nuggets") to remember! Now, let's discuss cold weather for a second before moving on.

COLD Weather Environments - Cold weather falls into 4 basic categories:

Wet Cold. Wet cold conditions occur when temperatures are near freezing and variations in the day and night temperatures cause alternate freezing and thawing. The temperature ranges from 20 to 40 degrees F, not including wind chill. These conditions are often accompanied by wet snow (you can make a snow ball) and rain causing the ground to become mushy and muddy. With these conditions, Scouts require clothing that consists of a waterproof, wind resistant outer layer, and an inner layer with sufficient insulation to provide protection down to 20 degrees F.

Dry Cold. Moderate cold conditions occur when average temperatures are lower than 20°F, the ground is usually frozen, and the snow is dry (you can not make a snow ball). Temperatures range from –5 to 20 degrees F for Moderate cold, not including wind chill. Insulating layers must protect to –5 degrees F, these layers must be protected by a water resistant, wind resistant outer layer.

Intense Cold. Intense cold temperatures range from –5 to –25 degrees F, not including wind chill. Substantial insulating layers are required. All tasks and movement is severely slowed down. Extreme care must be taken to avoid environmental casualties.

Extreme Cold. Extreme cold temperatures are –26 degrees F and below, not including wind chill.

ALWAYS CHECK THE WEATHER REPORT BEFORE HEADING OUT, AND PREPARE FOR AT LEAST ONE CATEGORY COLDER THAN THE WEATHER REPORT SAYS IT WILL BE!