133
votes
Accepted
My car broke down in Siberia. What do I do now?
When travelling on extremely remote roads, you need to prepare for the worst. This is even more true if you are travelling in a climate where the weather might kill you within days, such as in ...
- 27.1k
68
votes
How do you take field notes at below 0 °C, without freezing fingers?
Use a pencil. They do not freeze and can be easily sharpened. You might also use a grease pencil; they can write on metal, plastic, wet, oily, or waxy surfaces as well. These don't always afford ...
- 2,343
53
votes
Why don't climbers use electrically heated suits?
Edit: It turns out battery-powered heating in clothing actually is used on Mt. Everest: Hotronic makes battery-powered heated insoles that are used by Everest climbers, for example. Battery powered ...
- 599
52
votes
My car broke down in Siberia. What do I do now?
First, if you go somewhere in a car, take along the clothes necessary to be outside for an extended period.
406 MHz PLB (Personal Locator Beacon)
All the tragedies have one thing in common: they ...
51
votes
Is it warmer to sleep in a car or in a tent?
I suggest using both the car and the tent together.
A car will lose heat fastest through the windows, so use the tent to cover them (and the top). The windows are a thin single layer of glass, while ...
- 26.1k
49
votes
My car broke down in Siberia. What do I do now?
Well, I'm from Russia, and I heard that in the most desperate situation like this you can burn your car's tires. The tires are made of oil, so they burn well. Using fire from tires you can use other ...
- 591
45
votes
How do you take field notes at below 0 °C, without freezing fingers?
I have previously used a tape recorder and nowadays, a smartphone or tiny handheld microphone. Then I simply speak my observations and findings in a way I know I will be able to easily tabulate when I ...
- 553
45
votes
Accepted
Is sleeping on the ground in cold weather better than on an air mattress?
Effectively, it isn't much better to sleep on an air mattress that isn't specifically made to insulate from the ground than on the ground itself although it does make a slight difference.
The main ...
- 5,045
44
votes
How do you take field notes at below 0 °C, without freezing fingers?
To address the issues you're having with audio-based solutions, keep the phone inside your clothing and use a "hands-free" headset (wired). This will stop the phone dying due to a cold ...
- 26.1k
40
votes
Why don't climbers use electrically heated suits?
Firstly there's the weight issue - as Paparazzi commented, batteries are heavy!
Then there's temperature - battery performance drops considerably in the cold
And finally reliability - if your ...
- 24.9k
28
votes
Under what conditions does heating a tent artificially make objective sense?
The general rule I use is if your tent needs to be heated to be comfortable, then you're "doing it wrong" and should have gotten a better tent. There isn't really any weather (especially backpacking, ...
- 2,810
28
votes
How do you take field notes at below 0 °C, without freezing fingers?
When I was hunting, I found that the best way to keep my fingers warm, while still allowing me to free them for delicate manipulation (loading a magazine, etc) was to wear "convertible gloves" - that ...
25
votes
How do you take field notes at below 0 °C, without freezing fingers?
Prepare a form for the information you collect.
Make the blanks big. Fill in the form by grasping your "pencil" in your gloved fist. Use an over-sized writing utensil (so your fist doesn't cramp)....
25
votes
Have you slept outdoors in only warm sleepwear (no bag or quilt) at or near freezing?
I'm sceptical that it would be good, or efficient on packing.
I have slept under cover (bus shelters, on wooden benches) in cycling gear suitable for the conditions, even for sitting outside to eat ...
- 26.1k
24
votes
Accepted
Using a thermometer for hypothermia diagnosis in backcountry?
Diagnosing hypothermia requires a special thermometer, as most over-the-counter thermometers are not accurate below 34.4 °C (93.9 °F). Additionally, local body temperature variations means you need to ...
- 10.7k
23
votes
My car broke down in Siberia. What do I do now?
This is not constrained to Siberia. A snowstorm/blizzard can occur at many locations and throw down so much snow that roads are blocked and people outside the main routes (or even on main routes) get ...
- 909
21
votes
My car broke down in Siberia. What do I do now?
I have always learned that when you go to remote areas you should have at least a basic knowledge of car repair and depending on the make of car and the area you go to your knowledge should be good to ...
- 3,579
21
votes
Is it warmer to sleep in a car or in a tent?
The car, mostly because you can use the heater. You will want to make sure that the exhaust is clear to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning and only run it for a short periods at a time. This also helps ...
- 69.2k
20
votes
How do you take field notes at below 0 °C, without freezing fingers?
When I worked at a salebarn in the winter we had this problem and the solution was multiple pens inside your shirt pocket under your coat.
Pens will work for a while then get too cold at which point ...
- 69.2k
20
votes
When do you put on long underwear?
There is some merit to acclimatisation, but you have to be careful if you're out in the cold for prolonged periods. It's also unclear to what extent you acclimatise in terms of just comfort, and in ...
- 26.1k
19
votes
Under what conditions does heating a tent artificially make objective sense?
I would say there really aren't any. Even a hypothermia patient would get wrapped in a hypo wrap and the stove would be used to boil water to go into Nalgene bottles.
The problems with running a ...
- 69.2k
19
votes
Have you slept outdoors in only warm sleepwear (no bag or quilt) at or near freezing?
No, we have not slept outside in near freezing temperatures in no sleeping bag and in only warm pjs plus a tent. But YES, we have done something similar. We have frequently slept outside without a ...
- 23.4k
17
votes
Accepted
How do I get my fingers and toes warm before rock climbing at cold temperatures?
Before the climb
As @ShemSeger suggests, most of the work is to be done before the climb itself. You need to stay warm belaying your partner and waiting to climb yourself - if your hands and feet ...
- 890
17
votes
How do you take field notes at below 0 °C, without freezing fingers?
One time, during a winter research project, it was only after after a full-day ski to the study site that we realized that none of us had a pen or pencil. So we wrote the numbers in the snow with a ...
- 892
17
votes
How do you take field notes at below 0 °C, without freezing fingers?
Think of the basic triangle - you need warmth, dryness, and wind-free.
OP's question does not mention being wet but does reference the cold AND the windchill. So limit the wind with some kind of ...
- 1,090
16
votes
Blizzard Chaser: What to take on a 5-hour Blizzard Hike?
Drinking alcohol in a blizzard with potential for whiteout conditions is reckless, irresponsible, and possibly dangerous. Alcohol causes your blood vessels to dilate, which leads to an increased rate ...
16
votes
How to assess cold water boating/canoeing safety
This is hard/impossible to answer on various levels, depends on too many factors including on your definition of 'safe'.
There are a couple of charts giving a rough estimate on survival/passing out ...
- 1,077
15
votes
Accepted
Blizzard Chaser: What to take on a 5-hour Blizzard Hike?
Caveat: Heading out into a blizzard seems an easy way to get killed. Personally I'd only do it in dire situations.
Regarding your layers:
Cotton stores about 27x it's weight in water. This makes ...
- 8,428
15
votes
How do you take field notes at below 0 °C, without freezing fingers?
-10°C (14°F) is not that cold.
If you keep moving a thin "glove liner" or "running glove" should be warm enough for a while. The glove liners are thin enough where a regular #2 ...
- 557
15
votes
Is sleeping on the ground in cold weather better than on an air mattress?
There is an old adage
One blanket underneath is worth two on top.
but I can find little support for this idea except a mention on mumsnet.
The reasoning is, that the floor or the ground ...
- 3,908
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible