6 Tips to Stay Warm on Winter Camping Trips

If you are planning camping in winters, it is going to be an adventure. Although surviving the chilly winters is more than an adventure in itself. Is it an exaggeration to say it becomes a survival mission? We don’t think so.

We all wait for that cold season of the year when we snuggle and enjoy hot coffees dug in our beds and that season is- Winters. Winters could be as harsh as they sound exciting, especially when you are on a camping trip, away from the warmth of your home. But a winter camping trip could be the best experience of your life. Here are a few tips for camping in winters that would make it a joy ride:

Get the Right Sleeping Bags

Sleeping bags are the heart of camping trips. Without them, a night’s sleep would be almost impossible. Winters make it more difficult, as you need to choose the right kind of a sleeping bag. A wrong choice and you would freeze to an ice cream bar. Picking a sleeping bag is not that difficult. You simply have to check out the ratings. Is it that easy? No, it is not! Wondering why? A sleeping bag rated 0 degrees might not be sufficiently warm when the temperature hits 0 and you might still be feeling cold. The idea is to pick the one which is rated for a chillier place than you have planned for, say -10 degrees. It will give you a warm margin of 10 degrees.

What to Wear

Choosing the right clothes is as important as choosing the right sleeping bag. Don’t go light inside like a t-shirt or so, it will surely make you cold. Wear everything that could insulate you like- thermals, wool, synthetics. You can add layers on the top obviously, but staying warmer inside is crucial.

Familiar With Your Body

Just like every personality differs, every ‘body’ is also different. There could be various factors like- age, gender, metabolism, body fat etc. that differentiate bodies. You should be familiar with your body, knowing general things like- how prone you are to cold, what makes your body warmer, what ailments your body could pick in certain conditions etc.

Take Advantage of the Analogy of the Body

Just like our cars and other devices need a power source or fuel to run, the human body also needs a charge to fire up. This charge is the food we eat. Eat a lot of food on winter camping trips, preferably fatty food. As fat burns slowly generating the heat required to keep you warm. It is exactly what a polar bear does to survive the winters.

Don’t Duck in the Sleeping Bag

It becomes very tempting to duck inside the sleeping bag when it is chilling out there. But that would only shoot up the moisture level in the sleeping bag, failing it to do what it does. In fact, keep your sleeping bag as dry as possible, it will keep your warmer.

Hot Bottles

In chilling winters you would probably not avoid a campfire, in fact, you would plan one. You could stay around the campfire to keep yourself warm, but that would work till you are around. Although you could store the warmth of the campfire. Boil good amount of water that could fill up your water bottles and sneak them inside your sleeping bag. Tell me- That is the best feeling you get! Just make sure you have the best quality bottles which would not leak or else it would lead to a night ordeal.

Camping in winters is not as bad as you think. All you need is to prep up and know a few hacks that would help you beat the chill.