Cold camping?

[GhostHawk]

Being young and dumb and wanting to prove myself one fine winters afternoon I walked into the woods with a knife, gun, axe and lighter, and wearing good cold weather gear.

Picked a nice spruce tree with a good snow load on top that went almost all the way to the ground. Big deadfall right next to it for firewood. I don't remember much of that night. Other than I survived, it was incredibly long. No dry place to sit. So I had a damp cold butt most of the night.

Couple of garbage bags would have improved my comfort a lot.

I also spent a night in my Dodge 76 pickup one night at -35 below. Did not want to leave the lake (was ice fishing) That one was actually pretty comfortable as I had a very good sleeping bag. I'd run the truck long enough to get warm, then tuck in and sleep until the cold woke me. So sleeping in roughly 2 hour shifts. Then start the truck and repeat.

I was lucky, if I'd had truck trouble I could have been a frozen corpsicle.

Slept in a tent in mid January on a trout ice fishing trip. Was actually 2 big tents, first one was put up, they piled cut grass 2-3 feet thick on all sides, top, then stretched the second tent over.

But the fire in the stove was never allowed to go out. Long as the stove was cranking it was comfy enough. But going outside to pee in the snow was no fun.

[redhawk0]

Not my coldest (which was -20 in an unheated cabin)...but it was my worst. A year after I was married at the beginning of June, my wife and I took a camping trip in Eastern PA. For an ENTIRE week (day and night) it rained and daytime highs were in the 50s. Nightime lows were in the mid to upper 30s. We had so much rain that the tent we were in actually filled with water by 4" and we couldn't keep a fire going. We slept very little on that trip. I say it was the worst only because....well let me put it this way...."have you ever camped with a skinny, shivering, wet, cold woman"?....yikes...it was torture. If it wasn't for the fact that we lived 4 states away...we'd have called it quits early.

redhawk

[DocSavage]

Had a camp in Boothbay Me and during the fall/ winter you had to go out side to warm up. Had a potbelly stove that was more decorative than a heat source.
Went up with my cousin and his girl friend one time,she had a small dog almost no fur what I call a rat with a thyroid problem anyway I remember it was so cold the poor thing crawled in with me in my sleeping bag to get warm. He was shaking so bad you'd have thought he had Parkinson's.

[BrassMagnet]

You should get a military surplus extreme cold weather sleeping bag. It was back in January 1980, but I was stationed at Fort Carson, CO. We were in the field on our M-60 tanks, and we had to sleep in combat conditions. That means all four tankers had to sleep on or in the tank, and it got really cramped. So I rolled out my bag on the front fender stripped to my skivies and put my fatigues on the inside, climbed in and went to sleep. I was warm as I would've been inside with the tank heater running. Slept like a log all night.
Haven't done a lot of cold camping these days, the wife wouldn't go and camping alone ain't a lot of fun. But with one of these sleeping bags I wouldn't hesitate.

You can get those at Wiggys in Grand Junction, CO. He makes them. Black, Camo, earth tones, and other colors.
https://www.wiggys.com/

I like to visit there. It does get expensive because I always buy a bunch of stuff!
Great guy and great stuff!
Prices are better in person, so stop in and visit if possible. With a little pre-planning, we might even find a cup of coffee! Maybe even breakfast!

[RGrosz]

You should get a military surplus extreme cold weather sleeping bag. It was back in January 1980, but I was stationed at Fort Carson, CO. We were in the field on our M-60 tanks, and we had to sleep in combat conditions. That means all four tankers had to sleep on or in the tank, and it got really cramped. So I rolled out my bag on the front fender stripped to my skivies and put my fatigues on the inside, climbed in and went to sleep. I was warm as I would've been inside with the tank heater running. Slept like a log all night.
Haven't done a lot of cold camping these days, the wife wouldn't go and camping alone ain't a lot of fun. But with one of these sleeping bags I wouldn't hesitate.

I got a couple of things to add about that. We were a around-out for the 6LID for some of my military carer. That means that we were suppose to be an arctic unit. We at a 'summer' camp in Camp Ripley MN one year in Jan. We went right to the field and stayed for 2 weeks. it never got above 0. Them arctic bags are warm. We were comfortable all times. Even when we got 73 below one night, by our Met station, the BGE was using Brainard as the offical temp and said it was -59. But our Met station had an alcoholic thermometer that registered -73. We also had some over nights at the unit where I slept out in the open in just a sleeping bag and was toasty all night.
The other thing, once on a trip to the Black Hills, I stopped for gas in Winner SD, it was the tail end of May, and two old boys were sitting on a bench outside the station talking. I overheard one ask the other," is a snow on the 4th of July, an early snow or a lite one". The other one didn't answer and I about tripped.
Rob

[popper]

I feel for the GIs that used the 'mummy' bags. Non-waterproof canvas cover over a thin wool inner with a cotton liner. Those are darn cold when the ground is so frozen you can't pound in metal tent stakes. Especially with the old canvas wall tents with no floor.

[starmac]

Many changes in 5 years. A lot of new business, and traffic. SAMs club closed up. PV Guns still going strong.

Do they still have the all day 4th of july water gun fight? Some of the homebuilt water blasters folks built were awesome.

[Idaho45guy]

Many changes in 5 years. A lot of new business, and traffic. SAMs club closed up. PV Guns still going strong.

I couldn't imagine more traffic! Heck, I used to live on Stetson Drive near Robert Road and Fain Road. To get to Home Depot would take nearly 15 minutes and I would see at least one case of road rage every time.

Since I've moved up here, I've seen two cases of road rage in five years. People were crazy down there. And also since moving up here, there has been one murder in the area in the same five years. I can't imagine how many there have been in the Prescott area in the same time frame.

I've bought a bunch of guns from PV guns. Spent a lot of money a few doors down at the A&B Prospecting store as well. Spent a lot of time prospecting on Lynx Creek and had some pretty good success. I do miss the easy gold in AZ.

Attachment 217295

[bob208]

in the 60's I was in the boy scouts. we would go camping once a month. go out Friday evening come back sunday. clean out a spot in the snow put up the tent pack snow back around the tent. after the first trip we learned how to stay warm.

[Lloyd Smale]

sorry. I live in the UP of mich where we have winter 4 or 5 months a year. Plenty enough cold for me just in my normal day to day. If I slept out in the cold with this wore out old body id pay the price. Even the Indians and eskimos had fires in the winter..

[KCSO]

At 17 below in my Tipi we were only able to hold 60 degrees in the darn thing and under the buffalo robes and wool blankets we were almost too warm...darn these old things I guess I need a pop up to really enjoy winter camping...NOT!

[zymguy]

In my younger days we did a week long winter camp/fur bearer hunt/trapping trip in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. -20 or lower in mid December! Wall tent with 2 wood stoves so 45 to 50 in the tent unless you picked the straw for the cot next to the wall. I got tired of freezing so I stacked cut pine boughs against the outer wall then buried it in a layer of snow. Older brother came back to my corner and tried to talk me into moving, it was 65 degrees due to the extra insulation! Told him nope, we drew straws, you are stuck next to the door where you froze from everyone going out to pee at night LOL After that trip he bought a 5 gallon toilet setup and an anteroom for the front of the tent to keep it warmer, go out to pee in the bucket and not let outside ice cold air in! We made a months income in that week and it was a LOT of hard cold work. But furs sold well back then.

Mary where about in the BW were you? we may have stayed at some of the same places , or not as its over 1000 acres. ive done a fair bit of winter camping trout fishing in the winter. ive no idea what the coldest is as our cheopo light thermometers only go to -20. my least favorite way is a wall tent w/ wood stove. too hot then too cold and lots of noise every three hours. ive slept in sleeping bag cacoons right on the ground (tyveck then thermorest then sleep bag or two then wool, very important top layers can breathe. the most common now is an insulated hub icehouse in a cacoon with no heater.

ive slept near 60 below without windchill , but have been way less comfortable sleeping in the above 30s and less prepared.

[MT Gianni]

I have done two trips with Boy Scouts in the last 15 years that they earned 100 frost points on. [one point for every degree below freezing night temps.] One -20 night gets you 50 points. You can't do that well in a nylon tent, you need either a lodge with liners, tarped over nylon on 12" of straw or something rto cut it. For small kids it is a bag within a bag. Most of all cold is a mental attitude. 18 this morning and an inch of snow didn't stop 200 kids at the local Easter egg hunt.

[robg]

In my youth I left a party very late wearing an army great coat very drunk decided to sleep under a bush woke up with my hair frozen to the ground then had to walk a few miles to get a bus home .never again ached for days.

[tinsnips]

When I was in the Boys Scouts years ago we went winter camping once every year. It always seem to snow everytime. When I was young it never seemed to bother me. Now I don't even like to work outside in the winter.

[Plate plinker]

My cold weather camping tip is to place a layer of plastic between the rainfly and the tent. The plastic makes a huge difference in heat loss.

[MaryB]

Mary where about in the BW were you? we may have stayed at some of the same places , or not as its over 1000 acres. ive done a fair bit of winter camping trout fishing in the winter. ive no idea what the coldest is as our cheopo light thermometers only go to -20. my least favorite way is a wall tent w/ wood stove. too hot then too cold and lots of noise every three hours. ive slept in sleeping bag cacoons right on the ground (tyveck then thermorest then sleep bag or two then wool, very important top layers can breathe. the most common now is an insulated hub icehouse in a cacoon with no heater.

ive slept near 60 below without windchill , but have been way less comfortable sleeping in the above 30s and less prepared.

Near Snowbank Lake... drove in as far as there was road from Ely then it was snowmobiles we rented for the week. Back then the roads weren't kept open to the lodges like they are now... Lot of swamp with beaver etc around the south east side of the lake back then. Now the area has a half dozen roads into it and BWCA #27 jump off is not to far away... ice fished too and always brought home a full freezer of fish. It was a working vacation for us.

[zymguy]

Near Snowbank Lake... drove in as far as there was road from Ely then it was snowmobiles we rented for the week. Back then the roads weren't kept open to the lodges like they are now... Lot of swamp with beaver etc around the south east side of the lake back then. Now the area has a half dozen roads into it and BWCA #27 jump off is not to far away... ice fished too and always brought home a full freezer of fish. It was a working vacation for us.

neat ! its probably changed allot. I was able to easily drive right up to the (staked correctly this year) wilderness border on the ice. ive spent time both snowbank and up the number chain, i was likely east of your grounds if you were before and south of snowbank.

If you (or any castboolit-ite ) make it back to ely stop by the brewery and say Hello

[Spooksar]

When I lived in Fort Nelson BC, I was involved with Search And Rescue, we would do a winter exercise called Snowcave. Hike up a mountain dig a snowcave and sleep inside it at -30 celcuis. It’s amazing what pine boughs and a candle can do he keep heat in a place like that. Used a North Face -39 mummy bag throw a Nalgen bottle with hot water in it and it was quite comfortable.

[blackthorn]

When I lived in Fort Nelson BC, I was involved with Search And Rescue, we would do a winter exercise called Snowcave. Hike up a mountain dig a snowcave and sleep inside it at -30 celcuis. It’s amazing what pine boughs and a candle can do he keep heat in a place like that. Used a North Face -39 mummy bag throw a Nalgen bottle with hot water in it and it was quite comfortable.

My oldest boy used to do just that on a fairly regular basis when he was in his late teens/early twenties. He had good equipment and really enjoyed it, now, not so much, but he is 57 now and feeling it.