Winter Hiking: How to Stay Warm When Temperatures are Cold

Jan 27, 2010

Camping, Clothing, Health, Outdoor Sports, Outdoors, Uncategorized, backpacking, climate, conservation

Winter hiking can be fun. But, staying warm must be on your list of top priorities. Here are some stay-warm rules to follow when hiking in the winter time.

Rule #1: Be proactive and stay warm. Don’t let your body get cold in the first place. It is much easier to stay warm than it is to get warm.

: Image via Wikipedia

Rule #2: Layer your clothing so that you can modify your heat retention incrementally. You don’t want to have your only options to be a heavy down jacket or a T-shirt.

Rule #3: If you stop moving, put on more clothing to retain the heat that you have generated by your hiking activity. Don immediately a jacket or a hat or gloves to conserve your hard-earned body heat.

Rule #4: Don’t get too warm. This may sound ironic. But if you start sweating, you may end up with damp clothing that can really chill you. When you start moving again, to avoid getting hot and sweaty, take layers off or open vents.

Rule #5: Avoid cotton. They say that cotton kills. This fiber retains moisture next year body and thus brings down your temperature, sometimes to the point of hypothermia. This condition can kill.

Rule #6: Especially for base layers, wear fibers like merino wool or silk or man-made fibers that wick moisture away from your body.

Rule #7: When you rest, avoid sitting or leaning on a rock whose cold surface can draw the heat from your body. Be especially wary of sitting or lying in snow for the same reason.

Rule #8: Avoid tight clothing, especially on your extremities. They tend to restrict the flow of blood, and good blood circulation is vital for keeping warm. Do yourself a favor and save your fingers and toes. Just because you have 10 of each doesn’t mean you need to sacrifice even one of them.

Follow these rules this for keeping warm and stay safe on winter outings.

by Richard Davidian, Ph.D.