winter camping tips

[drewdunnrespect]

hya every one in the near future i will be starting winter hammock camping and wounded whether if you had any tips
drew

ps i have a decent winter sleeping bag and also snugpack underblanket

 

[sam_acw]

British winter or snowy winter?

 

[ANDYRAF]

Good overhead cover would be useful as well especially over the fire and woodpile.

 

[drewdunnrespect]

british winter
and i also have a decent tarp and second tarp that needs fixing Because the eye lets have come out

 

[robwolf]

you could use a sheep skin under you yhat will help

 

[SimonM]

I always take an issue bivvy bag with me, even if hammocking. I use it as:-

• a rucksac liner when walking in (in addition to packing gear in separate dry bags - wet gear is no fun when its cold)
• a rucksac cover when in camp
• a survival bag if needed

Also, remember to drink. When its cold people seem to forget to drink water. If in doubt about your hydration state, check the colour of your pee. Clear & copious is good, dark yellow, thick and smelly not good.

Wear lots of thin layers, not one thick layer. It will keep you warmer as you are trapping air pockets between them. It is also easier to control your temperature, as you can take off or put on layers as you need to.

If you have cold hands, put on a hat. As your body cools it draws blood from the extremities like hands and feet to keep your core warm. As about 80% of bady heat is lost through the back of the neck and head, putting a hat on warms your hands!

Sounds obvious, but try to stay dry as wet clothing conducts heat away from you very quickly. Don't be embarrassed to wear water proofs if no body else is.

Finally - always get changed into completely dry clothing before you go to bed.

HTH
Simon

 

[john scrivy]

Thats good sound advise Simon also Expect the unexpected and try and plan for it

 

[saddle_tramp]

ive never thought hammocks are the best way to go in the winter.

As soon as the vegitation drops back, the woods seem to get a whole lot draughtier, and if im sleeping under a tarp, il have it pegged low and touching the ground on the windward side, yet as flat as i can get it, cos the flapping keeps me awake.

 

[sam_acw]

I think for cold weather head and feet are key to being warm. You need a hat which is comfortable and doesn't make your head itch - ones with a bit of air space tend to be easier in this respect. You also would benefit hugely from having some sort of sleeping cap.
As for feet I strongly recommend getting some sort of felt inner soles for your shoes. Most heat is lost through the hard bottom in contact with the cold ground. You probably then want a couple of pairs of socks and a spare pair for sleeping in.
Aside from that don't wear too much clothing in a sleeping bag, you'll insulate yourself from the warmth. A liner will help boost it a little as will putting clothing over the top.
A scarf and gloves are important as is decent underwear. You lose a lot of heat where blood vessels are near the surface - neck, head (especially scalp, wrists, groin) the extremities loosing it worst because of circulation.

 

[scanker]

Plenty of warm clothes, and spare ones if they get wet.

Extra socks are handy - you can always slip them on as mittens if your hands are cold too.

Eating a hot meal in the evening helps keep you warm at night.

Gather about twice as much firewood as you think you'll need, because you probably will need it. Also, it's at least twice as hard to gather in the dark and you don't want to start using your axe after you've enjoyed a can or two.

That's all that jumps to mind for the moment, I'll post more if the present themselves!

 

[big_swede]

I have written a lot of general winter camping tips (none on hammocks tho) in the past, there have been numerous threads about it, do a search.

No real need to pack a lot of spare clothes, it's just dead weight, use sufficient waterproof bags instead.

 

[Lodian]

Defintly a warm meal before bed- or atleast a hot drink goes a long way.

And make sure you have been to the little bushcrafters room before you get into your sleeping bag. Because one of the worst things is needing to get up in the middle of the night, disrupt your sleep and won't make you a happy camper.

Also if the resources are available stick with with a long log fire, when i was out last we i had a go at constructing a fire reflecter out of logs. And it really makes a difference.

Regards
Lodian

 

[Matthew.Passmore]

Put your clothes and sleeping bag in their own dry bags.

 

[dommyracer]

My best tip is to use the hammock. I much prefer the ground in winter.

 

[drewdunnrespect]

thanx for the tips most greatly recieved please add more if there is any because they also will be recieved greatly

 

[Matthew.Passmore]

A set of thermal baselayers (top & bottom) just for sleeping in is nice.

 

[Mike Ameling]

Do what you can to block any/all wind from blowing across you where you will be sleeping. Even a slight ... breeze ... still cools you down a lot.

A silk scarf! It is amazing how good they are wrapped around your neck! Especially when just working/setting around camp.

When you wake up in the middle of the night and feel that ... urge ... to answer nature's call, just do it. Don't fight that urge and try to get back to sleep. Just grit your teeth, get up and do it. Fighting the urge is worse than getting out in the cold and having to warm back up. Plus, it gives you the chance to tend the fire.

Have a little "high energy" snack to munch when you do wake up in the middle of the night. A mini chocolate bar works wonders. Or a handfull of peanuts/granola. This "fuels" your body - after that evening meal, but before morning revelry and chow.

Then all those other tips already mentioned: wear a hat - especially at night sleeping; drink more water than you think you want; don't skimp on the TOTAL CALORIES consumed during the day; multiple layers of clothing; dry clothes at night; etc.

And try not to HAVE TO rely upon that fire to survive the night! That's pushing things a bit far. It often shifts to you sitting up huddled around feeding the fire all night!

Earplugs! Unless you are used to the snoring from your buddies near by. Or their moaning/complaining about the cold!

Adult beverages only in small quantities. Go for a quality experience instead of consuming "mass quantities".

Or, one of the better "tips": bring a good "sleeping bag" along -- if she's willing to go along! Two people sharing a bedroll makes it much warmer and more comfortable. Well, at least until ONE person hogs all the blankets! Clunk ... Bang ... Thunk ... oooh ... ouch ... enough with the sticks-n-stones! I'll behave!

Just a few humble thoughts to share. Take them as such.

Mikey - that grumpy ol' German blacksmith out in the Hinterlands

p.s. And nothing prepares you for pulling on those COLD shoes/boots/mocs in the morning just before dawn! Even when you know they are going to be COLD! Especially when you brush FROST off of them!!!!! (You can put them inside your bag with you, but they tend to be ... cold and lumpy to sleep with.)

 

[Bodge]

When you wake up in the middle of the night and feel that ... urge ... to answer nature's call, just do it. Don't fight that urge and try to get back to sleep. Just grit your teeth, get up and do it. Fighting the urge is worse than getting out in the cold and having to warm back up. Plus, it gives you the chance to tend the fire.

Or take a bottle to pee in, it's the way to go try it and you'll never look back.
Bodge

 

[gunnix]

Aside from that don't wear too much clothing in a sleeping bag, you'll insulate yourself from the warmth. A liner will help boost it a little as will putting clothing over the top.

I think you mean that if you take on too many clothes in a sleeping bag (which has a limited size) that there is too little non moving air in between you and the outside. Air being the best insulator. But that also counts for having for example too many liners inside a sleeping bag, it would compress all the air and make you actually colder. But if you have a real big sized sleeping bag you can put all your clothes on and be warmer. For example if you zip together two Nanok -10 sleeping bags it becomes a huge bag, way to big for two, it's more sized for 3 persons. So you have to put a lot of blankets or clothes inside to stay warm, as there can also be too much air inside, as your body has to heat all the air.

This also counts for shoes. You can have warm feet wearing two socks in your shoes. Take an extra pair of socks on and you could get colder feet, as there is no space for the third sock and all the air in the socks is compressed. Again, it's the air in the socks that makes them insulate.

 

[y0dsa]

Sling an underblanket beneath the hammock - its essential to stop heat loss from your underside. Everything beneath you inside the hammock just gets compressed and so gives very little insulating protection, so that its easy to have a sweaty upperside and chilled underside. For cold weather hammocking you really will need extra insulation slung beneath you - check out the options.