Here is Part Two of the four parts series. It could have been titled “Stay Warm and Dry”. To read part one click HERE.–
Author’s Note.
 |
In a winter survival situation, the most important thing to do is to stay as warm and dry as possible.
37oF
(3oC) with rain and gusty wind is vastly different from 0oF
(-18oC) with howling winds and whiteouts and so are the survival
challenges that you will need to overcome.
There is more than one type of winter environment, there is the “wet-cold”
climate and there is the “dry-cold”, and each has its own dangers. Depending on the region in which you are
forced to survive you might need to deal with one or the other, or both and
different days!
Wet-cold
climates are those in which the temperatures are always near freezing, and do
not normally falling below 14o F (-10o C). The ground will thaw during the day and will
turn to mud covered with slush and the snow will be wet, at night the ground
and the snow will refreeze. It can be
hard to stay dry under these conditions.
And dry-cold climates are those in which the temperatures are always
below freezing, and do not normally rise
above 14o F (-10o C).
The ground is always frozen, and the snow will be dry, day and night in
these areas.
How do you get cold?
Your
body loses heat through four processes, convection, conduction, radiation, and
evaporation.
Convection or
wind chill can cool you very quickly. Alan
E. Course, in The Best About Backpacking, wrote “a two-mile-an-hour
breeze can drag down body temperature as effectively as a twenty-mile gale if
the victim’s clothes are wet”. Your body
will lose between 10% to 15% of its heat through convection.
Conduction is
the loss of your body heat to the world around you, to the ground, if you are
sitting or sleeping on the snow or ground, to the air around you, or to water
if you are swimming or immersed in it. Body heat is lost to the air at temperatures
lower than 68°F (20°C), and your body will lose about 2% of its heat by air
conduction. However, you lose body heat
to water about 25 times faster than to the air, so you can lose body heat very
quickly if you are in cold water or wearing wet clothing.
Radiation is the process of
heat moving away from your body, like heat leaving a hot stove, and usually
occurs in air temperatures lower than 68°F (20°C). The body loses 65% of its heat through
radiation.
Evaporation
of water from your skin if you are sweating, or from your clothing if it is wet
will cool you. During heavy exercise,
your body will shed 85% of its heat by sweating. Also, you lose some body heat through
respiration (breathing). Heat loss by
evaporation and respiration will increase in dry or windy conditions.
How to stay warm...
 |
Soldier’s Handbook for Individual Operations & Survival
in Cold Weather Areas TC 21-3, page 7. |
Dirty
clothes are cold clothes, because dirt and grease clog the insulating air
spaces and reduce your clothes overall ability to insulate you from the cold. In most survival situations today, you will
be rescued long before your inner and outer layers need to be cleaned, in
long-term survival situations, or if you get grease and oil on your outer
layers, that won’t be the case and you will need to wash them.
You
need to stay comfortably cold and as Les Stroud says, “If you sweat,
you die!” So, don’t
overexert and overheat. I you are
working up a sweat, remove some layers, before your clothes become damp.
 |
An excerpt from the Polar Manual, page 149.
Comfortably
cold is when you are neither too warm nor too cold, you’re just right, maybe a
little bit cool, and you are not perspiring.
You can keep comfortably cold by reducing or increasing your activity
level as you become too hot or too cold.
But the best way to stay comfortably cold in the outdoors is by layering
your clothes, and by loosening, removing, or adding layers as you warm up or
cool down.
 |
An excerpt from the Polar Manual, page 47.
For
more read “Comfortably Cold, What’s That?©”, HERE.
Layering your clothes, wicks
away sweat, adjusts insulation, and protects against wind, rain, and snow. It allows you to make quick adjustments based
on changes in the weather and your level of activity by adding or removing
layers. It is always better to
underdress and be too cool, than to overdress, be too hot.
There are three layers, and each layer has its own job.
· The
Base layer or
under layer is the most important as it is against your skin and keeps you dry,
it should of dry fast fabrics, like wool, synthetics, or
silk.
· The
Middle layer,
or insulating layer, helps you retain heat by trapping warmed air close to your
body and it should be made of wool, fleece or goose down.
· The
Outer layer is
sometimes also called, the shell layer, and it is the weather-proof layer or rain
gear.
 |
An excerpt from the Polar Manual, page 30.
Also, make sure that each
layer is sized larger than the one under it so that the clothes fit loosely,
because tight clothes make it more likely that you will become cold or
frostbitten.
For
more on layering your clothes, read “The Top Ten Wilderness Survival
Skills...Number One ©”, HERE.
William
S. Carlson, an early Arctic explorer said that to “Keep dry is the first
rule of the North”1. That
means not sweating or not getting your clothes accidently wet.
 |
An excerpt from Naval Arctic Operations Manual: Part 1 General Information, pages 161.
During
the winter, but any time really, you must stay dry to stay warm, because water will
cool you between 25 to 32 times faster than air2.
 |
An excerpt from the Polar Manual, page 47.
If
you don’t stay warm and dry you can suffer frostbite, immersion foot or hypothermia,
and hypothermia, or exposure as it is also called, is one of the leading causes
of death in the wilderness!
What is Hypothermia...
 |
From A Pocket Guide to Cold Water Survival, by the Coast Guard, page 7.
According to the USDA Forest Service,
“Hypothermia is the progressive mental and physical collapse that
accompanies the cooling of the inner core of the human body. It is caused by exposure to cold, is
aggravated by wet, wind, and exhaustion”3.
Hypothermia
is the lowering of your body’s core temperature to 95oF (35oC)
or below and is often caused by a combination of three factors, cold or quickly
changing temperatures, strong winds, or being wet, either from rain, sweat or
being immersed in cold water: it has three stages, mild, moderate, and severe.
· Mild
Hypothermia is when your core body temperature falls from 98.6o
(37oC) to between 95o and 90oF (35o
to 32oC). The symptoms of
mild hypothermia are intense, but controllable shivering and cold numb hands or
the “fumbles”3.
· Moderate
Hypothermia is when your core body temperature falls from 90o
to 86oF (32o to 30oC). The symptoms of moderate hypothermia are uncontrollable
shivering, confusion and movements that become slow and labored, and slurred
speech -- look for the “stumbles”, the “mumbles”, and the “grumbles”.
· Severe
Hypothermia is when your core body temperature drops to between
86o and 78oF (30o to 25oC). The symptoms are extremely cold skin,
sleepiness or unconsciousness and a pulse that is irregular or difficult to
find.
For
more read “Hypothermia, It Can Happen Any Time, Anywhere ©”, HERE.
What is immersion foot?
 |
A mild case of immersion foot or as it is also known “trench foot”, from Wikimedia HERE.
In
the winter, wet feet and hands are frozen feet and hands, and frozen feet and
hands spell disaster! Even if it isn’t
below freezing, wet feet or hands can lead to “immersion-foot”, which is
also known, “trench foot”, is a non-freezing cold injury (NFCI), that can
happen either the hands or feet, but often affects the feet. It is caused by long exposure to wet, cold,
but not necessarily freezing conditions, with temperatures of 32 to 59°F (0 to 15°C)4.
Like
any cold injury, it is aggravated by wind and windchill, when wet boots or
gloves and evaporation combine to cool the surface of your hands, feet, and
ankles. This cooling causes the body to
shut-off the blood flow to the skin surface and to the tissue just below the
skin of your hands, feet, and ankles, causing them to look white, waxy, and
dead. If untreated, immersion foot can
lead to serious and painful complications, such as gangrene.
Survivors
of accidents and others who are exposed to cold, wet conditions for days
without removing wet boots and socks or gloves risk immersion foot.
For
more about immersion foot, read “Accidental Lessons … Boots Freeze!©”, HERE
and “Survival Tips From Jack London, Part One©”, HERE.
What is frostbite?
 |
Mountaineer Nigel Vardy being treated for frostbite, from Wikimedia, HERE.
Watch
out for frostbite, which will appear as a wooden or waxy, gray, or white patch. It most commonly occurs on the hands, feet,
nose, cheeks, forehead, and ears. Frostbite
results from the freezing of exposed skin and is a disabling injury but is not
likely to be fatal.5
Four Tips for keeping the heat in
Tip 1: Huddle close with the other survivors to share body heat. Keep your huddle always moving because moving will keep you warm. If you have no warm clothing or gloves, claps hands energetically once an hour. If you are by yourself, exercise by tensing and relaxing your muscles, this will also keep your body warm and the blood circulating throughout your body.
Tip 2: The loss of heat from your body depends on the air temperature and the square of the wind speed and is called windchill. So, stay OUT of the wind, and avoid windchill. Windchill makes already cold temperatures FEEL even colder, because the wind steals away your body heat through convection. When there is little to no wind, a layer of warm remains around your body to help you stay warm. When it's windy, or breezy, the moving air blows away that insulating, warm layer, quickening your heat loss, and making you feel colder.
So,
ALWAYS shelter from the wind!
Tip 3: Preventing frostbite and immersion foot is easier than treating it.
To
check for frostbite, wrinkle your face, wriggle your toes, and clench your
hands, if it feels like there are stiff patches, it might be frostbite.
 |
An excerpt from Arctic Survival PAM (Air) 226, by the Air Ministry, 1953.
Remember
if it hurts, it isn’t frozen, because frozen patches have no feeling, however
this doesn’t mean you should ignore the situation.
To
treat frostbite on your face, warm it with an un-mittened hand; for frostbitten
hands slide the un-mittened hand inside your shirt against your skin; for
frostbitten feet, take off your boots and socks, and slide your feet up inside
your partner’s shirt against their skin.
 |
An excerpt from Naval Arctic Operations, page 167.
To
prevent immersion foot, keep your circulation moving to your hands and feet, by
clapping your hands, stomping your feet, moving around, and staying dry.
 |
An excerpt from Army Talks, Vol. III, No. 5, February 10, 1945.
To
treat immersion foot, to either the feet or the hands, if your socks or gloves
get wet, change into dry ones as soon as possible. Also, have a set routine to dry, warm,
massage and inspect your hands and feet daily.
 |
An excerpt from Army Talks, Vol. III, No. 5, February 10, 1945.
Tip 4: Put on a hat, since heat loss from your bare head can be up to 33% at 60oF (15oC), up to 50% at 40oF (4oC) and up to 75% at 5oF (-15oC)6. And keep your hands and feet dry and warm.
 |
An excerpt from the Polar Manual, page 37.
Wear
mittens or gloves and protect your hands, because if your hands freeze or are
injured, you are helpless, and survival becomes very difficult. And don’t forget your feet, being disabled in
the wilderness is remedy for disaster.
Tip 5: Protect your eyes from snow blindness. Snow blindness, or photokeratitis, is caused by UV rays sunburning the corneas of your eyes. It is very painful, and is often experienced snowfields, particularly at high altitudes. So, be prepared and always have a pair of with retaining straps. In an emergency, if you don’t have a pair UV rated, wrap-around sunglasses, you could blacken your cheekbones and your face below your eyes with Chapstick© or Vaseline® mixed with charcoal to reduce glare and the UV rays reflecting into your eyes. You could also tie a bandanna or piece of cloth, with eye slits cut into it, over your eyes, when possible, choose a dark colored bandana or piece of cloth. You could even fold a piece of duct tape back over itself and cut eye slits into to make a pair of Inuit style snow goggles.
 |
An excerpt from Arctic Survival PAM (Air) 226, by the Air Ministry, 1953, page 54.
 |
“Make Your Own Snow Goggles!”, by the Bowdoin Arctic Museum, HERE.
 |
Beware of snow blindness, An excerpt from the Polar Manual, 1953, page 67.
For
more on making “slit goggles”, read “The Survival Uses of Aluminum Foil ©, HERE.
Tip 6: To stay dry, don’t sit in the snow and ALWAYS brush off any snow or ice from your clothes, before entering a shelter or approaching a fire.
 |
An excerpt from Arctic Survival PAM (Air) 226, by the Air Ministry, 1953, page 57.
Don’t forget to come back next week and read “Winter Survival for
Tommy...Part Three©”, where we will talk about improvising for survival, using
plane parts, calling for help and signaling for rescue.
I
hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me
on YouTube at BandanaMan Productions for other related videos, HERE. Don’t forget to follow me on both The Woodsman’s
Journal Online, HERE,
and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube. If you have questions, as always, feel free
to leave a comment on either site. I
announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at
bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.
That
is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!
Notes
1
From Naval Arctic Operations Manual: Part 1 General Information, p. 157
2 Wilderness
Survival states that the heat loss is 32 times and A Pocket Guide to
Cold Water Survival says that the heat loss from being wet is 25 times that
of when you are dry.
From
Wilderness Survival, by Ministry of Forests, page 46; and A Pocket
Guide to Cold Water Survival, by Coast Guard, Department of Transportation,
page 12.
3
USDA Forest Service, “Exposure/Hypothermia”
4 “Nonfreezing cold water (trench foot) and warm water
immersion injuries”, by Ken Zafren, MD, FAAEM, FACEP, FAWM
5“Frostbite:
Emergency care and prevention”, by Ken Zafren, MD, FAAEM, FACEP, FAWM
6 Polar
Manual, Fourth Edition, by Captain Earland E. Hedblom, MC, USN, page 37
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