Living in cold Climates

[Templar]

Hello every one,

I have a question for our northern cousins...

I will be living overseas next year in Northern China, now it gets pretty cold there and since I have never lived anywhere near a cold dry climate (-15 to -25c at least in a "warm" year,and a "cold" year I dont even want to think about...) I was wondering if any one could give me some advice on living in this sort of temp range, I am talking daily living in an Urban to semi Rural location with a little Bushcraft when I can get away with it.

I have done some training in Alpine survival whilst I was in the military (snow caves, water collection, cross country movement) but that was in an area that only got down to about -8 at the coldest and was not much help for every day life in a cold / freezing zone...

Any advice would be great, I have asked some of the people who are already working there and they have not been much help to me, they are US and Canadian nationals and dont seem to want to help the token Aussie that will be with them...

Cheers,

Karl

 

[irishlostboy]

from what a friend of mine who moved to Canada was telling me, the "cold" in any particular area is relative, depending on the amount of moisture in the air. in fact, several Russians i know swear it is a lot more unpleasant in the northwest of Ireland in -4 than Russia -25.
that may of course just be because i am in Ireland though, and nothing to do with the weather.
anyway, my friend in Canada swears by a good set of thermals. that and "stay dry", and keep your blood-sugar levels in good shape, and you should be ok i think.
i am sure there are other factors i don't know about though.

 

[Templar]

Cheers mate...

It all makes sense to me...

 

[tommy the cat]

There is alot to learn about working in colder climes and many here who would be a good deal more knowledgeable than me. Do a bit of reading on the subject it will help you get the basics which many are common sense.....metal and skin + cold temps = bad! But then you may not think of a piercing ear or nose etc which could be forgot about.
Anyway what you already know ...layering ,don't sweat watch out for the early signs of frost bite dont lick metal...... batteries will die in the cold keep them next to your body to make them last as long as poss working with sharps and cold hands is tres difficult and dangerous keep it to short periods.....probably telling you stuff you already know....oh well good luck...I love cold climates dave

 

[TheGreenMan]

PM sent, Karl.

Best regards,
Paul.

 

[PaleoHunterGatherer]

Hi Templar. The best advice I can give, is to always keep your head well covered. Get yourself a good winter hat, and your hands and feet will always be warm. As was mentioned earlier, layering of clothing, based upon what type of activities you will be doing, is best.
And don't forget, watch and see what the locals wear, they've been doing it for a while, and it should be ok.
And don't sweat it, you will eventually become acclimatised. Have fun.
Cheers
Alex

 

[RobertRogers]

I live and work outdoors in an area of the United States that gets down close to -40F or -40C every year. Often in the -20F degrees range for a couple of weeks straight and when you add the windchill it is rather cold.

The best way to dress for cold weather is to use a 3-layer system. This allows you to remove and add clothing as needed according to conditions and your level of activity. I really suggest you read this article.

 

[Greg]

I have just posted this on another thread but its applicable here too.

During winter deployments to Norway where we often worked in temps below -30C we used this pneumonic: C>O>L>D

C - Keep your clothing CLEAN. (Dirty / sweaty clothing looses its insulation properties)

O - Avoid OVERHEATING ( Especially when out skiing / snowshoeing - Ventilate at regular periods)

L - Wear your Clothing LOOSE and in LAYERS (Avoid tight boots especially)

D - Stay DRY (Obvious really)

I hope this is helpful.

 

[Greg]

Other tips:

Wear 2 layer mittens (fleece inner and gore-tex outer) although Dachstein mittens are the dog's bits!
A thin pair of mereklon contact gloves should be worn when theres a possibility of touching metal objects, these can be worn whilst wearing your mittens.
Wear two pairs of thick loop stitch wool socks. And make sure your boots have enough space in them to allow this.
If its that cold a neoprene ski mask is great.
Lundhag cold weather boots with Berghaus Yeti Extreme Gaiters are good but Mukluk boots are better.
All outer clothing should be windproof. Not necessarily waterproof depending on the climate!
A good hat is definately required preferably one which covers the ears (Deputy Dog style)
Lowa mountan caps are good.
Sunglasses / goggles maybe required to prevent snowblindness.
Good sunblock aswell.

I could go on but I think you get the gist of it!