Cold Weather Primer(related to winter hunting/camping)

[Rich LaBombard]

"no thanks" to the "open flame" concept while actually hunting, for me!

[C2@TheLibrary]

TTT now that the cold weather is hitting even Florida, it may save some Southern lives after all.

[VTer]

C2, I have noticed that I stay warmer when I set my tree umbrella up. Actually, I notice I get colder when I take it down,     so I just assumed the opposite was true. Maybe I'll set it up more often!

[Eric in FLA]

The Florida hunters Thank You. Temps in the high 40's this morning.

[Curtiss Cardinal]

You're Welcome Florida Hunters.I'm Glad I could help.

[Curtiss Cardinal]

TTT 4 This Winter

[JEFF B]

hey c2 whats it like in Indiana in oct-nov cold or not bad?

[Lost Arra]

C2: good info.

Question: what do traditional bowhunters have against goose down or a synthetic insulation like Climashield/Polarguard?

Once you are in a treestand and not sweating why not wear a down vest or jacket with a good windblocker layer on top? The best cold-weather sleeping bags are down, not wool or fleece. With all the new raingear available, keeping the down dry is not a problem.

[huntsmanlance]

I have been wondering what to do about keeping my feet warm. When they get cold or worse cold and wet i am just miserable. Now mind you i am wearing medieval boots....but with a layer of rubber on the bottom. I have treated and treated them with the water proffing stuff but it doesnt seem to relly help.

I wear these both for hunting and when we have archery competitions.....no matter what the weather turns out to be you are out there shooting.

It never did occur to me to keep my feet on some kind of padding     and i will do that when possible.

The only thing i have found that helps is for me to change out my wool socks. If it is just from the sweating then that works for awhile but if the leather is wet of course it doesnt matter.

So....i was thinking about getting some of those water proff socks at Bass Pro....that would stop your feet from getting wet and will probably help with insulation....but wouldnt they also just keep the sweat in and make my feet cold?

Thanks for any advice!
Lance

[Curtiss Cardinal]

Lance you may want to try a pair of Seal Skinz Gor-tex socks. The gor-tex socks allow sweat to escape while keeping water out. For leather boots you can't beat Sno Seal for weatherproofing. You could also use a pair of old fashion galloshes(sp) over your boots. From the reading and research I've done the medieval hunter abandoned the leather boots in the Winter and bound up their feet in multiple layers of wool and raw animal skins with the hair side in and maybe tar or pitchpine covering the outside.You could use some "eskimo" mukluks that were "traded for from a man from the far mystic Northlands." I stalk into my stand with footwear suited to that and bring along footwear suited for staying comfortable on stand. Oh one last thing, medievaland primitive hunters did their level best not to get wet in the first place. When they had to cross water they were likely to strip completely, cross the water au naturale after throwing their gear in a bundle across or carrying it over head and then drying with the leaf litter or grass on the other side and building a fire to warm and dry themseleves further and then redress and continue on; but then they were a hardy lot.  

[fisherick]

It was 7 degrees with a 10-20 mph wind here Monday morning but i managed to stick the morning out in a treestand. Thanks to several LAYERS, Berber Windsheer and Boot Blankets.
Looked like the Michlen Man.

[Curtiss Cardinal]

HO'NEHE Jeff it doesn't get anywhere near as cold here in southwestern Indiana as it did in ANY part of Michigan where I grew up. Maybe one or two days all Winter where it is 0 degrees F.
The bad thing here is it can be right near freezing and rain instead of snow and wet and cold is even less fun than it sounds. I don't have to wear more than 3 layers here usually. I went to a Winter shoot in Kentucky last year and all the Kentuckians were dressed for a blizzard. I had on cotton/poly BDU pants, a T-shirt a light weight wool button down shirt and fleece jacket with a wool felt fedora I also had a Peruvian alpaca chullo cap but it proved too warm for me. On my feet I had wool socks and New Balance Country walker shoes, sort of a low rise hiking boot. I was the only one that didn't complain about the 35 degree temps.

[sendero25]

Good topic C2,
Great info.
Even though my profile says I am in Florida, I spent some time in cold places.
I am also a former Marine and after that joined the Army.
I retired from the 10th Mountain Division at Ft. Drum in upstate New York, I also was in Colorado and Iceland.( and a few hot sandy places)
Two words I learned very quick - "Cotton Kills"
Stay away from cotton undergarments or t-shirts in cold weather, especially wet cold.
Go with polypro, wool, underarmor cold gear, etc..
I can't add anymore to what C2 said, he nailed it.
Semper Fi, and "airborne"
John

[huntsmanlance]

Thanks C2 i wil check out those socks! but i sure as heck aint getting naked to cross any rivers!!! Now that would be a sight i dont even want to picture much less see!

 

[Curtiss Cardinal]

You're welcome Lance.
You'd make youtube for sure.  

[Curtiss Cardinal]

ttt2educateothers

[Curtiss Cardinal]

Hey just a bit more info.
On the subject of sweaters, jumpers the brits and aussies call them, are for adding a layer under your coat. They add loft with their cable weave in the knitting. This makes a wool cushion filled with dead air that your coat or jacket lay over. As outer wear themselves sweaters aren't as good. Sure they are warmer than unlined jackets; but their best suited to add loft and wool warmth under that unlined jacket.
I actually made a minor mistake today in dressing for the weather. The weather channel told me it was 20 degrees this morning so I put one my merino wool longjohns and then my bdu pants. The wind was really whipping so I decided to put on my Codet wool bibs too and a thick sweater over my shirt. Then I put on a medium weight shirtjac. I did this to take my daily 5 mile walk without getting a chill. Well I got about 1/2 a mile with the pack on my back when I realized I was just a little over dressed. I didn't need the sweater or the alpaca wool chullo hat I had under my wool Donegal cap. So I had to stop and strip layers. I should have just brought the chullo and the sweater for "in case" straped down on the pack. I was just getting over a cold so I wanted to take extra care; but I over did it a little. I think this is a good example of a common mistake. Bring an extra layering item like a sweater for "in case" but start out dressed lighter and add the layers you've brought along if you find you need them. Sweating is BAD. Luckily I stripped down before I had really broke a sweat.

[OkKeith]

Huntsmanlance,

My Granddad always wore unlined leather "chucka" style boots with leather soles and heels. I have no idea where he got them.

Anyway, his boots sound similar to yours. To totally waterproof his he always sat them by the woodstove (in front of an open oven would too I guess). When they were a little more than warm to the touch, but not hot, he would slather them with the beeswax based boot dressing to excess. He would put them back next to the heat till it soaked in. He would repete this a few times.

To finish it off he would reheat the boots and put a can of neatsfoot oil next to the heat to warm up. Then he would pour it in each boot to as close to the top as he could get it and let it sit for half an hour or so, then dump the oil back in the can (I think it comes in brown plastic jugs now). After he let them sit next to the fire a while longer, the oil soaked in and I guess blended with the beeswax stuff from the outside forming an impervious layer.

I followed him around as a kid for many years. He was a cranky, onery old cuss (Oh how I loved him though..) but he never had wet feet and those boots were always soft and lasted a long time.

It's been really cold around here in Oklahoma the past few days as well. I stay pretty warm in my wool and use the little heat packs folks use for backache. They are bigger than the hothands deals and have a snazzy "belt" that wraps around my lower back. I can get away with fewer layers and am able to move around easier. It is hard for me to draw my bow when I have on too many clothes.

OkKeith

[Curtiss Cardinal]

TTT because Winter is here

[Curtiss Cardinal]

Cold fronts moving in and rabiit hunting going on so TTT