SKILLS: COLD WEATHER CAMPING
Keeping warm on out-of-season trips in your tent
Camping in autumn and winter can provide some wonderful memories. Imagine sitting outside the tent on a crisp sunny morning, with frost on the ground, enjoying a steaming mug of coffee and a bacon butty. Or opening the front door as dawn breaks and seeing the ground covered with a blanket of pure, white snow.
Many family-friendly sites stay open all year round, even if some of their facilities might be limited offseason. But camping in chilly temperatures needs a different approach than you would take when the weather is warmer.
You need to consider how to heat your tent, how to stay cosy during the night and how to protect your tent and yourself from the elements. Preparation is the key. The Scandinavians say there’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing, and that applies equally to sleeping in a tent. If your tent is up to the job and is pitched properly, it should be able to stand up to most weather conditions. And, if you take the right gear, you’ll be warm and cosy no matter how low the mercury drops.
HOW DO I HEAT MY TENT?
Whether it’s a large family tent or a weekend model, if you are camping in autumn or winter, you will want to keep it warm and a heater is the best option.
The safest option for using a heater in your tent is sticking to electric – a hook-up will allow you a whole world of heating choices, including fan, halogen and radiant options.
Naked flames are a definite no-no when it comes to heating, with the double threat of carbon monoxide poisoning and fire. NEVER be tempted bring a smouldering barbecue into your tent for warmth. The fumes can kill.
Don’t wait until the temperature is unbearably cold before putting your heater
on. Once your body is cold, it can be difficult to heat up again, so try to avoid that happening by flicking the switch as soon as it starts to get chilly.
After the initial blast of heat, it’s better to keep the heater on at a low, steady level, rather than constantly switching off when it gets too warm then back on again when you start to get cold again.
Even in the coldest weather, it won’t take very long for your tent to get up to a nice ambient temperature.
Leave plenty of space in front of your heater and don’t drape wet clothes over it.
A wood burning stove with a heatradiating chimney pipe is a marvellous way to heat a traditional canvas bell tent.
Whatever your source of heat, it’s not a good idea to leave a heater running unattended or through the night. Switch off when not needed.
A decent-sized windbreak will block chilly winds from howling through the tent. Alternatively, pitch in the shelter of a wall or building if there is one.
A tent carpet is considered a must-have accessory by many family campers these days, especially out of season. They offer real protection from the cold ground, and you can get tent-specific carpets or simply lay a blanket or fleece out on the floor.
HOW DO I STAY WARM IN BED?
Pack your three-season sleeping bags, and duvets and fleece blankets from home. Take more than you think you’ll need and you’ll be fine. Hot water bottles, bed socks and woolly hats will all help keep you and your family cosy at night.
At bedtime, wear base layers or thermals and a woolly hat to bed instead of your normal pyjamas.
Sleep on a thick self-inflating mat or a camp bed, rather than an airbed. The air inside an inflatable mattress will get cold quickly and stay cold throughout the night as the temperature drops.
If you don’t have a camp bed, insulate yourself from the ground as much as you can to avoid the cold floor drawing heat away.
Make sure you use a sleeping bag that is warm enough for the time of year you will be camping. Sleeping bags are rated for the season, and also have a recommended minimum temperature.
A sleeping bag liner will improve the bag’s warmth significantly. Sleeping bags will lose insulation values when damp so, tempting as it is, try not to sleep with your head under the covers breathing out moisture.
Go to bed on a full stomach as the food will generate body heat. But don’t be tempted to have a hot drink or you’ll need to get up to go to the loo in the cold!
A hot water bottle or a small hand warmer wrapped in a sock slipped down to the foot of your sleeping bag a couple of hours before getting into it will help to keep you warm.
WHERE SHOULD WE GO?
Choosing the right site is important. Check out what indoor activities are on hand for the kids before you head off. A games room or an indoor pool will keep them occupied no matter the weather. And a nearby familyfriendly pub, preferably with open fires, is a definite asset come the evening.
Remember that it gets dark early, so don’t leave it too late to set off from home or you’ll be putting your tent up by torchlight. Finally, go local. If it turns too cold and wet, you can always go home.