Winter wildcamping - what I need to know?

[mark]

My wild camping in winter tends to be in snow holes or bothies, tents tend not to last very long on the Cairngorm Plateau in the middle of winter. What I've learnt is that your water bottle makes a great hot water bottle. Before you go to bed melt some snow to fill your water bottle and put the bottle in your sleeping bag. It warms your sleeping bag up prior to you getting in and you have a supply of unfrozen water in the morning. Just don't get it mixed up with your pee bottle. Sleep with your mouth and nose out of the sleeping bag otherwise you'll breath lots of moisture into it, reducing it's efficiency - wear a hat if required.

 

[Paul_B]

Can we leave the clothes on/off in a bag argument behind? Getting nowhere and both sides aren't really contradicting each other as those who are warmer with clothes off are probably down to compressing the bag from inside with clothes on so no wonder clothes off works for them. Those arguing for clothes on in a bag adds warmth only works if there is adequate room in the bag for you and extra layers without compressing the insulation reducing loft and thermal insulation performance in the process. It is an old argument that can be easily proved beyond all doubt with various online calculators for multi ;layer insulation systems. More insulating layers will always be warmer IF there is space to loft it up to its full capacity for best performance. Otherwise you could lose more performance due to compression than gained by extra layers.

Above all what works with your system works so stick with it but it can't beat the laws of nature.

Me and a mate made a quinzee type shelter I think its clled. A pile of snow is made and a snowhole dug out of it. was quite hard work but fun and could fit two of us in easily. Unfortunately we didn;t have the snow for a proper snowhole in the Lakes. I know all the theory on them about cold sinks and lower entrances and ventilation holes with trekkng pole in it to allow you to keep it open. I just haven't seen the now banks to try it. not for the lasst 20 years or so anyway.

 

[Wayland]

I made this small Quinzhee last year but unfortunately there wasn't enough snow to make a big one with a sunken entrance.

Having said that it still provided a cosy nights sleep and showed me what could be achieved with even quite modest amounts of snow.