Base Layer

[Billy-o]

It just isn't solid advice though, is it.

Cotton when wet in cold weather doesn't dry, doesn't hold heat, doesn't wick and it will make you cold, and depending on your circumstances that can be dangerously so. If you don't have spare dry clothes then you are in schtuck.

The OP mentioned winter camping. No climbing, mountaineering or winter sports or outdoor pursuits instructor/leader will tell you to wear cotton clothes for winter and if you are going to be out for more than a day they will get adamant to the point of not letting you come along. It is a liability that you don't need. Sure you will likely survive and we can all put up with a bit of discomfort. But there is a greater risk that isn't difficult to imagine and it isn't a joke.

Where's my halo? I need to polish it a bit now

 

[Robson Valley]

Cotton cannot keep its insulating loft when the least bit damp. No, I won't strip down at -20C to change my gotchies.
I live in the west slope. Almost always windy. Going out at -30C is a necessary evil, some days.
Wool base. Hollofill for volume. Windproof shell. Try not to work up a sweat ( eg shovelling 30" snow)

Of equal importance is to protect the huge vascular blood heat loss from your scalp and ears.

 

[Billy-o]

And the climate scenarios need't be all that dramatic.

You head off on a spring snowshoe hike on a level and familiar trail. Walk five hours out at a moderate elevation. It is -3C, still and overcast. Perfect weather for shoeing. You get to your site, camp, stare into the fire, go to sleep. You wake up to glorious bluebird weather. Late morning, still -3C but sunny, you start on the 5hr trek back, grinning and cheery as all get out. But the sun is bouncing off the snow and you are getting hot. You are sweating, and the snow is melting off the trees and, because you haven't got your hood up, it being so warm, it is virtually raining and it is running down your neck. The spring snow is melting on the ground too. Trousers are wet, long johns. Not terrible, just a bit uncomfortable, but you are wet. You'll get home fine, but grumpy

The weather changes. Not dramatically. Still -3C. But it is overcast and a strong wind picks up. You are walking into it, which adds half an hour to your journey. But your wet cotton clothes are now acting just like a refrigerator. You are cooling down and your exertion level has gone up. You are also burning calories faster to stay warm. You are getting tired. You will get home a bit later but very, very grumpy.

Because you are wet, your cotton clothes are clinging making you less nimble, and you slip a bit. Nothing bad in itself, but an old knee injury flares right up. For a start that adds two more hours to your journey. Your gait changes, requiring more energy to be used as you protect your knee. You get more tired than you expected. You are wet and the wind isn't letting up. You eat. You can still get home OK, just several hours late, and the people you have left your information with get worried and are thinking about calling the rescue. You are very cold, very tired now and the grumpiness index doesn't reach this far. You might think about setting up camp again, though you have eaten most of your food. Anyway you'll be fine still, if a bit embarrassed at having put people out. All because of your wet cotton clothes. If you'd been wearing wool or synthetics you'd still be warm, kept your agility, and would likely have dried out by now.

But, you don't camp. Your knee is distracting you. You are tired, cold, shivering, short tempered, impossibly uncomfortable and haven't been drinking enough water .... you are only two and half hours out now so you decide, even though it is darkening, to take a short cut ..... they find you in early June with your show shoes sticking out of a tree well

This infomercial is brought to you courtesy of the Society for the Promotion of Wool and Synthetic Undergarments.

 

[Robson Valley]

Tree wells. Was this winter's biggest killer up here (6 or 7) , not the avalanches as usual. Not even wool can save your sorry carcass.

I've got 3 all-wool sweaters (jumpers?) that have patched patches. They just plain feel good with a Carhartt coat over top.
Given the winter damp, rain, windy cold in the UK, I'd be stocking up on wool everything.
Good sense to get UK family to buy for me.

 

[Janne]

And the climate scenarios need't be all that dramatic.

You head off on a spring snowshoe hike on a level and familiar trail. Walk five hours out at a moderate elevation. It is -3C, still and overcast. Perfect weather for shoeing. You get to your site, camp, stare into the fire, go to sleep. You wake up to glorious bluebird weather. Late morning, still -3C but sunny, you start on the 5hr trek back, grinning and cheery as all get out. But the sun is bouncing off the snow and you are getting hot. You are sweating, and the snow is melting off the trees and, because you haven't got your hood up, it being so warm, it is virtually raining and it is running down your neck. The spring snow is melting on the ground too. Trousers are wet, long johns. Not terrible, just a bit uncomfortable, but you are wet. You'll get home fine, but grumpy

The weather changes. Not dramatically. Still -3C. But it is overcast and a strong wind picks up. You are walking into it, which adds half an hour to your journey. But your clothes are now acting just like a refrigerator. You are cooling down and your exertion level has gone up. You are also burning calories faster to stay warm. You are getting tired. You will get home a bit later but very, very grumpy.

Because you are wet, your cotton clothes are clinging making you less nimble, and you slip a bit. Nothing bad in itself, but an old knee injury flares right up. For a start that adds two more hours to your journey. Your gait changes, requiring more energy to be used as you protect your knee. You get more tired than you expected. You are wet and the wind isn't letting up. You eat. You can still get home OK, just several hours late, and the people you have left your information with get worried and are thinking about calling the rescue. You are very cold, very tired now and the grumpiness index doesn't reach this far. You might think about setting up camp again, though you have eaten most of your food. Anyway you'll be fine still, if a bit embarrassed at having put people out. All because of your wet cotton clothes. If you'd been wearing wool or synthetics you'd still be warm, kept your agility, and would likely have dried out by now.

But, you don't camp. Your knee is distracting you. You are tired, cold, shivering, short tempered, impossibly uncomfortable and haven't been drinking enough water .... you are only two and half hours out now so you decide, even though it is darkening, to take a short cut ..... they find you in early June with your show shoes sticking out of a tree well

This infomercial is brought to you courtesy of the Society for the Promotion of Wool and Synthetic Undergarments.

You just described a normal day for me!



To be serious, there are some crucial things to learn there . To stop and set up camp in time. To always have a basic backup. Initially, to regulate your clothes so you DO NOT get sweaty.

The unit I belonged to in the Paleo times had to rescue people in the Swedish mountains if they did not return. Mountain search and rescue.
Generally speaking, they did two major mistakes.
Not stopping and getting shelter in time.
Initially overdressing, getting overheated, so getting wet, no dry reserve clothes = exhaustion.

Snow falling from branches is a true pain. I hate cold stuff under my collar, so all my outer layers have a thin hood.

I even fit a thin fabric hood on my survival/floatation suits I use when I fish in Norway.