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Staying Warm in the Outdoors

It’s hard to stay happy when you’re too cold, too hot, or too wet. Choosing the right outdoor clothing can keep you comfortable and protect against potential dangers such as hypothermia. Outdoor fun is, after all, meant to be fun.

The essentials of staying warm:

• - Stay dry: Water conducts heat better than air. The more water held in your clothing, the faster your body heat will be transferred away. As moisture evaporates it also produces cooling, so wet clothing has two sneaky ways to steal your body warmth.
• - Block the wind: Wind increases convective heat loss by carrying your heat away on currents of cool air. Your best wind-proofing strategy is to wear a tightly woven shell garment that deflects wind but allows some moisture transport.
• - Layer to trap heat: Spaces between the fibres of your clothing trap a layer of warm, still air next to your skin. The amount of air you can trap depends on the number of layers you’re wearing, their thickness, and loft. Layering your clothing is probably the single best way to manage heat loss in the outdoors. It allows you to regulate your body temperature to match physical activity, wind, temperature, and moisture.

She’s Freezing

Women are more susceptible to cold than men. Blood vessels near the surface of women’s skin constrict sooner, and to a higher degree, than men’s do at the same temperature. As a result, women feel cold quicker, particularly in their extremities. Although women have a higher percentage of heat-conserving fatty tissue, they have less muscle mass and do not create as much body heat when exercising. If you tend to feel cold, it’s particularly important that you eat and drink regularly and carry extra layers with you.

Warming Ways

• - Eat regularly and keep well hydrated.
• - When you’re moving, remove a layer of clothing before you start to sweat. When you stop, add a layer before you start to cool off.
• - Wear mittens when possible. Mitts are warmer than gloves because your fingers can share their heat.
• - Use thin, polyester liner gloves. Liner gloves don’t inhibit your dexterity and  provide an extra bit of warmth when you take off heavier gloves or mitts.
• - Wear a wool or fleece hat – and a scarf or neck gaiter. Up to 50% of your total heat loss occurs through the head and neck.
• - Ensure your boots, gloves, and socks are not too tight. Good blood circulation is essential to keeping hands and feet warm.
• - If your fingers feel like blocks of ice, swing your arms in wide circles as fast as possible. After a few minutes enough blood is pushed into your fingertips to warm them. 

Sleeping Warm

• - Buy a sleeping bag rated for temperatures a few degrees colder than you expect to encounter.
• - Before you get into your sleeping bag, exercise for a few minutes until you start to feel warm. When you climb into your bag, the extra heat will be trapped so it takes less time to warm up the space inside.
• - Empty your bladder before going to bed, so your body doesn’t have to expend energy keeping the extra liquid warm.
• - Wear your hat to bed.
• - Use your spare gear, jacket, ropes, and pack, to add extra insulation under your sleeping bag.

Lightweight Packing

Light and fast, thru hiking, and fast packing are all variations on the same theme: you can travel further and faster if you carry less gear. If you have only a weekend or a few days to get away, this strategy can greatly increase the range of trails that you can cover. Sure, you might give up a few creature comforts; yes you might have to wear the same pair of socks for more than a day (gasp!). But ultimately you could reduce the weight of your pack by as much as 50% without sacrificing anything you "really need" or compromising safety.

Start by making a list with two columns, one labelled "Mandatory" one labelled "Nice to have." Once you've completed the list, be ruthless. Do you really need four pairs of socks for a three-day hike? No. One pair on your feet, a spare pair in case they get wet (and your spare socks can double as gloves on frosty mornings). Fleece, sweater, long-sleeved shirt? Suck it up. Take just one. With determination you'll drop 2 to 3kg before you know it.

Shelter

This is one area where you can really minimize weight. Ultra light shelters weigh in at 2kg or less. Many do away with tent poles and use trekking poles and guy lines for setup. Your own tent might become ultra light if you set up just the fly and a ground sheet. Another option is a hammock or tarp. These will take you into sub 1kg territory. Keep in mind super light tarps may not have a mesh inner canopy, making them unsuitable for bug infested sites.

Sleeping Pad

A small closed-cell foam pad is the cheapest and lightest alternative. The true "go-light" freaks will use their sleeping pad instead of a backrest or stays in their pack. This may be a bit extreme for most people. Consider switching from a full-length inflatable pad to an ultra light ¾ length to save a few hundred grams. Switching to a closed-cell foam saves as much as 700g.

Sleeping Bag

The truly dedicated will bring only a Mylar blanket or a simple hostel sheet. For the less committed, a lightweight down sleeping bag is ideal. The catch is that down looses most of its insulating capacity when wet, so it must be kept as dry as possible. A combination bag, with a thicker side and a thinner side, is an option that will span a range of temperatures yet is still relatively lightweight.

Backpack

If you have been successful in lightening your load you can explore the joys of carrying a smaller pack. Choosing a daypack or small weekend pack will force thrifty packing. As a general rule, the bigger the pack, the more gear you'll find to put in it. Full-featured "expedition" packs have about 60-80L of storage space and weigh 2.5-3.5kg. A mid-sized weekend pack weighs 1-2kg less.

The world of outdoor gear is a feature loving industry. If you already have a pack and don't want another, you may able to lighten your load by removing extra pockets, straps, and buckles. True zealots may even start cutting excess features off the pack. However, this will void the warranty and once you cut something off, it's gone for good.

Stoves and Cookware

For short trips an LPG, or canister, stove is the ticket. They are small, compact, and light, but are best suited to 3-season conditions. Save fuel weight by carrying small efficient cook sets, just big enough to boil water for tea and to re-hydrate meals. A double boiler is also practical for heating food in the top while you boil water in the bottom. Some cooking pots are designed so the stove and canister fit neatly inside for compact storage and carrying.

More Weight Reduction Strategies

Bring multiple use gear. Forget plates and eat out of the pot. If you need caffeine, use a French press/mug combo. Replace spoons and forks, with a "spork" one of the best inventions of the 20th century. Use trekking poles as tent poles, use your compass mirror when shaving, use stuff sacks as camp booties. Weight reduction is incremental. You are not trying to find the mother load and pitch it overboard, just save a couple grams here, a few hundred there and next thing you know you'll have shed 2kg.

Be creative. Be industrious. However, never leave anything at home that you feel you truly need. And never compromise safety in exchange for a lighter pack. The goal of packing light is to enable you enjoy your trip with a light load and a light heart.

Survival Essentials

Wondering what to take with you on a hike? Even the best weather can change rapidly and the fastest of parties can be caught out when darkness falls. Use this list of survival essentials compiled by North Shore Search and Rescue and the BC Federation of Mountain Clubs.

• Map
• Compass – Even if you carrying a GPS, it is essential that you can navigate using a map and compass.
• Water
• Extra Food
• Extra Clothes
• First-Aid Kit – The size of the kit will depend on the number of people in your party, the length of the trip, and the remoteness and level of risk you plan to engage in. Remember to restock items in your kit and to check the condition of the contents and any expiration dates.
• Knife
• Headlamp/Flashlight – With spare bulbs and batteries.
• Whistle – A whistle attracts attention, can be heard over long distances, and is more sustainable than shouting for help. Three blasts is a standard distress signal.
• Waterproof Matches/Lighter
• Fire starter/Candle Lantern
• Large Orange Plastic Bag – One of the most valuable items on the list. Crawl into the bag to keep warm and dry. The orange colour is highly visible and helps attract attention, particularly from the air.
• Emergency Space Blanket

Training and practice is essential for using a map, compass, and first-aid kit, as well as for lighting fires.