Ok, a newbie entry from me....not strictly bushcraft but a lesson for some.
I got married in Jukkasjarvi on december 30th 2003 (thanks tenbears). For those who don't know where that is, about 200km inside the arctic circle in Swedish Lapland. We took 2 flights, a few days earlier, to get there and as an interesting (for us, anyway) observation to the journey, Ray Mears was sitting about 6 rows in front of us for the first leg, & was also on the plane for the second. This positively affected my mother (a nervous flier), so for those woodlore blokes that are members please extend my thanks for this unintended assistance from Ray. As a sidenote, when we got back to the UK we got severe grief from my sister for not asking Ray for his autograph. Much as I'd love to have a chat with the man, I figure he enjoys his privacy as much as the rest of us.
Anyway, on with the actual tale. On the day of the wedding it was around -20C outside, and for the morning prior to the ceremony we had booked a dogsled tour with some local guides. 'Don't wash before taking these trips' they had told us, 'you need the oils from your skin to protect you. Gents, don't shave, it'll make your skin more sensitive to frostbite'. I was wearing thermals, lightweight trousers, 2 pairs of socks (1 thin, 1 thick) plus bootliners, long-sleeved synthetic t (cotton kills), fleece, all-in-one thermal outer-suit and over the top I had my north-face polar jacket, balaclava and fur-lined hat, gloves & outer mitts.
Our tour took us across along (and across) the frozen lake that borders the ice-hotel complex we were staying in, and the initial journey took around 45 minutes to get us to our destination, coffee break in a big sort of teepee affair. During the journey I put my camcorder (sony ip55) through it's paces & it coped well with the temperature, however my feet, face & hands did not!. The balaclava froze around my face due to the moisture in my breath, my hands went through cold/numb/sore/burning, though my feet got as far as numb. It was impossible to keep the eyes wide open & staring straight ahead, as there was a constant fine mist of floating ice-particles that stung the skin at speed (which could only be seen as sparkling reflections of the camera flash when taking pictures). The dogs didn't seem to care about this, though. Considering there were 4 of us on the sled plus the driver, they made searing progress equally well through the woods as across the ice and snow, slowing only on command & with the assistance of brakes on the sled.
When we got there, our guide asked us if anyone had a lighter. Being a smoker, I offered him the zippo which I had filled fresh that morning. Think it would light? Nope. sparks aplenty, but in 45 minutes my petrol lighter, which was in the inner pocket of my polar jacket, had frozen solid! So, those novelty turbo-flame lighters that are widely regarded as merely that - novelty, do actually have some use. When kept fastened around the neck & against the skin, they will survive while any other method of lighting fire are rendered useless by the elements.
I suppose you could say my bushcraft competition entry is this : Zippos Freeze! If this is your primary method of lighting fire, keep it close to the body, & put it back there as soon as you've stopped using it - the wick freezes in seconds.
Anyway, to continue the day's story, while we were stationary the dogs proceeded to clear off the ice that had formed on their fur by rolling around in the snow, half burying themselves in their almost feverish flurry of activity (I have some of this on video), and within 10 minutes or so were tugging at the reins to get moving again. I'd learned my lesson, & the camcorder was safely in my pocket, along with my hands.
I was married to Claire McDonough (now murphy), in traditional scottish garb in a chapel made of ice & snow, indoor temperature was around -4C, outdoor was -17C, and the camcorder finally started to show signs of being affected by the conditions so the wedding video footage, kindly taken by my (also traditionally dressed) cousin, is incomplete. The aurora was in full swing that evening, and our wedding night was spent in an ice suite. The procedure is to remove the outer garments in the warm constructed reception, then make a mad dash to your room in the poorly lit hotel (the lights all get turned down as there are no doors to the rooms). It is a sight to behold, all these shadowy figures in a state of undress sprinting down corridors with sleeping bags over their shoulders & getting lost trying to remember where their room is.
Claire had insisted on a double sleeping bed, and while she slept like a baby in the middle of the bag, I spent the night alternately sweating & freezing squeezed on one side. If any reader is swithering on whether to go to the icehotel or not - GO. It's amazing. But keep to single sleeping bags. From landing on an ice-coated runway to being way overcharged for nouveau cuisine on hogmanay, it was like being in some sort of fairytale. One other piece of advice, though, is not to drink the local moonshine. It really is evil stuff.
And for anyone curious, yes, I am a true scotsman & have the (rather too revealing) pictures to prove it, as one over-curious waitress found out to her shock, though this is a family website so no pic will be posted as evidence!
I don't know how to post pictures into this message, but if someone can give me some clues I'll glady put them up (apart from the rude ones)
I believe Ray Mears also does survival courses in the area (hence he was on our flight), I imagine the experience is probably equally special.
): ).
:hyper: