Re: Your opinion...overnighter turned nasty...

>I don't care to risk my dry cloths, but leaving the down jacket on is OK
till the tarp/cape are coming down. Then this get loaded with
>the bag and everything gets packed. I can usually warm up on the trail in
5 min or so. You might get a bit cold, but there is no danger
>as long as you are moving.

An obvious (but only after the instructors told us about it) trick that I
learned in a winter camping class:  if you're cold, walk briskly in circles
stamping your feet; if that's not enough then jog.  You'll warm up
quickly.

This is not a solution for hypothermic situations -- even a marathon runner
has to slow down and rest eventually, and hypothermia sets in.  But if it's
not a life-threatening situation, e.g. a question of getting up in a cold
morning, or if you've gotten cold sitting around while making dinner and
eating, this really does the trick.

We students in the class had all brought along those little chemical
heaters, being paranoid about getting cold.  The instructors said forget
about them, just exercise.  Sure enough one of the instructors got cold
occasionally, but would simply get up and stomp around the camp for a
minute.



--MKT