Staying Warm - pro tips from Derek DeBruin
Derek DeBruin recently published an article in the journal of the Wilderness Medical Society @wildmedsociety on ways to manage cold in the outdoors. It’s called: “Tips to Stay Warm and Dry (and Injury-Free) in Cold Montane Environments” (Volume 39, Issue 1).
While his tips may not be earth-shatteringly novel, they are the accumulated wisdom of thousands of days spent in challenging environments. Just about everyone can learn a few clever ways to manage the cold from Derek’s article.
Click the button below to read the whole thing.
Here are a few tips that resonated with me.
When driving to the trailhead, put your boots on the floor of your car and crank the floor heater vents to preheat them.
Have all your gear as fully packed and ready-to-go as possible, so you're not standing around at the trailhead longer than necessary. Put axes on the pack and skins on the skis at home. Encourage your partners to do the same. (In case they don't, see the next tip . . .)
Use a “car puffy” - an extra big jacket that you can throw on over everything while you're at the trailhead waiting for other people to get ready. Toss it back in the car just before you're ready to head out.
Putting some KT tape on exposed skin, like your cheeks, can help prevent frostbite if it's really cold and windy.
Consider super gaiters such as the Outdoor Research X-Gaiter. This adds an extra layer of warmth over your entire boot.
The simple trick of squeezing your hands into fists, and curling your toes at every step, can encourage blood circulation and keep those digits warmer.
You get the idea. There are dozens more tips like this in Derek's article, check it out at the link below.
If that official link to the Wilderness Medical Society page gets broken, here is the article in a PDF on my Google Drive.
