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Cold weather camping

whereisgibson

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Joined
Dec 11, 2010
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307
Does anyone have experience of Nordic winter camping and what equipment they prefer (-10 on)? My 'North Face' high-street gear nearly left me sawing off digits a few years ago and it's time for a proper refresh, both clothing and shelter. Only restriction is to be back-packable. Army surplus?
 
Only been down to -5. Outside of tent covered in sheet ice. Cold enough to cut you in two with wind chill. But in my army surplus bag I have to say I was warm. Damn good bag. It's the UK army one with the zip up the middle. Most important is to get off the ground. Mats are OK but a small cot is better. Sleeping in that layer of cold air is just nasty.

But, really warm doesn't go hand in hand with compact. You can use a compression sack but you need a good one or when you pull the tapes they just pull the stitching. I'd really like a bag from RAB. I think they are the mutt's according to the smart money
 
Have a look at PHD designs, but speak to the bank manager first... :whistle: or not as the case may be...

A lot of good gear is available, but it's not from Blacks et al. Cotswold might have a bit (depending on store location, as the range is tailored to local markets, so the stuff in London is going to be more fashion orientated compared to Betws Y Coed or Keswick) I'd avoid Snow and Rock (Slush and Rubble) as their gear is much more snow sport orientated, and the same with Ellis Brigham's.

My recommendation would be to look at the following places:
PHD Designs: Online company that doesn't have a shop front presence, made in the UK, lots of cold weather gear for both Alpine (fast and light use) and expedition (heavier and often designed for Polar/Himalayan regions)
Tamarack Outdoors: Company specialising in bushcraft stuff, run trips to Scandinavia, and based in Lancashire.
Trekkitt in Hereford; General outdoor equipment store, have a good relationship with "the base" in Hereford.... so lots of sand and black coloured equipment

All of those places have staff who do the stuff they're selling for (well, with some exceptions... I think that some of the places that Trekitt's customers go to are a bit off the beaten track, and the FCO don't encourage travel there for your own safety); Tamarack in particular will be worth talking to about cold Scandinavian travel.

From those places I would have a look for:
a high R-rated sleeping mat (Exped Down mat or similar, the highest in that range is rated at 9.0, my MegaMat is 9.5 but is perhaps a bit bulky for backpacking) as that will insulate you from the cold ground.
a sleeping bag with a comfort temperature of about -20*C, so from PHD you're looking at one of the Diamir 700 or Hispar 600's (and the £550 mark) or something from the Rab Andes Range at Trekitt, or the Helsport range from Tamarack (again around the $500 mark) My down bag (a £200 Mountain Equipment bag... in 2002) has lasted about 12 years, but it was used pretty solidly for months at a time, whereas my synthetic one (an Ajungilak Kompakt) lasted from 1995 to 2002, the final couple of months of use for it killed it... again, it was heavily used for a couple of months at a time.

Clothing is a much more personal choice; I'm a big believer in layers of thinner clothing rather than a lot of thick ones, and dressing a bit cool to start with on the assumption that you'd warm up, minimising sweat build up - which will cool you down as quickly as you warm up. When I used to do whitewater canoeing and kayaking in the UK I'd often be out in the winter in a drysuit with anything from a thin thermal and a pair of Ronhill's, to 3 layers of 100-weight fleece on my top half, or if I was bank coaching/jumping in a canoe every so often then I might even have a down jacket or a Buffalo Type Jacket on under a dry suit.

Hope that helps,

Ed
(10 years Outdoor Ed and activity leadership/guiding, 4 years outdoor equipment retail experience in the UK)
 
Cheers Chris, my challenge is indeed space. It all needs to pack down into motorbike cases.

Ed, epic information, fantastic. I will digest and come back to you - thanks!
 
If your sleeping on the ground putting one of them silver foil survival blankets under your bedding or even under your tent should help .
 
It's not just cold ground you see, it's a layer of cold air above the ground. This is why when you make a snow shelter you dig a hole to form a heat sink so that colder air 'drains' into that. Getting up off the floor even a few inches makes a huge difference. I have tried those camp beds with the wire legs and poles and despite being a champion pie eater they held. Best £7.00 I have spent. Hi Gear I think. They pack very small. Looking at your vids, you don't look to have visited quite so many pie emporiums as me, so you'd be fine. I also saw something on You Toob this week where this chap had an inflatable sort of stretcher thing that you slide into your sleeping bag. It looked like a long pretzel. Packed up tiny and weighed ounces. He raved about it. Like a sort of skeleton mat.
 
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So we camped in the arctic north of the circle during January and February. Lowest camped temp -25C (although the worst we encountered was -41C).

EDIT: sorry just noticed you're on a bike......

Our equipment:
Tentipi tent 7 man Zafir c/w Tentipi Eldfell wood burning stove
Nanok -45C 'military grade' full arctic sleeping bags
Foil backed foam liner Thermarest Ridgerest Solar
Reindeer pelts
Down filled air bed Exped 9dlx
Down filled bed socks (for the ladies - they feel the cold more)
head to toe thermals
Balaclava.

Your biggest enemy is cold ground/permafrost conducting through your sleeping bag etc. hence the reindeer pelts, the thermarest and the down filled air bed. You can't always guarantee to camp on snow and dig in: you need to be prepared to camp on frozen lakes/hard packed snow/ice.

Don't underestimate the chill factor - you can easily get a "feels like" temp of the order -60 to -80C and the winds can be pretty stiff up near Nordkapp for example where it is barren

If you can sleep in your truck then that is a viable option. You should also consider the low temp issues with running your vehicle at extremely cold temps and consider a Webasto/block heater. Lead Acid battery performance should be considered (Odyssey has fantastic performance), use of lighter oils, anti-freeze mix ratio, etc etc if you want to go really cold. I prepped my truck to go to -60C as I considered the risk of exceeding -30C a real one where batteries/anti-freeze fails.....which is just as well because we had -41C in Karajok/Sweden.....less well prepped rig blew core plugs and had to be trailered home with a knackered engine. Oil at that temp is like toffee.

Putting a tent up on frozen ground will mean you need to use rock pegs. When tenting on snow you will need a shovel to dig the tent into the snow. Get a big tent to allow room to move around the stove and to have all your clothes etc in the "warm"

The guys at Nordic Outdoor are very knowledgeable and supplied most of my kit. Feel free to PM me if you want more info
 
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He's going on a motorbike.
 
Log cabins are £30 a night and get communal kitchens and showers camping is at least £20!!!
 
He's going on a motorbike.

Yes I twigged when I re-read it after posting, then had to edit.....doh!

Thought it might be useful for another reader.

Personally if I were going with a back-pack I'd stay in a hotel :)
 
I like the idea of the deer pelts. They seem to keep deer warm. The other item I do take when it's really cold is the balaclava. I tried a hat but it kept coming off. I love my canvas tent with the wood burner in, but I don't think that would go on the bike or back pack. Especially the log pile. I did by a 12v electric blanket recently. That's pretty nifty and certainly keeps the chill off.
 
Look at Exped or Thermarest for insulated pads. A foil light weight blanket might help. Get a high quality down sleeping bag. I have a Western Mountaineering for -40.
I can stay warm at -20C with an original thermarest ( remember the brown ones, 1/2" thick?) Also look at the low height cots, I have an old Eddie Bauer that is 7" high, weighs 2 lbs and very easy carry on two wheels.
Curious, you want -20 and colder and motorbike packable?? Remember, always wear a toque and socks when you sleep in cold weather.
 
Right, update time! I've just returned from the Primus Rally where the winter was fairly mild and we saw around -17. The biggest challenge for me wasn't actually the camping kit, it was equipping a motorbike for icy roads. http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1046430

I went with an Snugpak Antarctica RE (cost vs phd), an Exped Down mattress, and a bunch of kit from an army surplus store.
 
Let us know when you update that thread please Gibbo ;-)
 
Great read Martin, entertaining and informative, what a trip! Thanks for the link :thumbup:
 
Great writeup Martin - thanks for sharing :icon-cool:

Now then, studded tyres for my R1... :think:
 
Thanks for sharing trip report


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