Coldest Overnight Outing

[thetrail]

My coldest night was -34 F while doing an annual winter camp weekend here in mid-Michigan. That was unusually cold for the middle of Michigan's lower pennisula. That was about 8 years ago...and since then our coldest temp has been -14 F which was this past February.

Thanks to North Face for making a sleeping bag that keeps fools like me warm when the temps are bitterly cold!

[pjohnson]

-20 in 1979 on a mountain overlooking the East German border. My truck (wrecker) got stuck in the mud and snow, and I had to wait out a blizzard in a small pup tent. I had a whole case of c-rations and plenty of fuel and tin cans to make stove. I ate good, but unfortunately too many greasy spiced meat meals and John Wayne bars kept me running into the woods. I almost froze my butt off!

[Pencil Pusher]

This question is kinda dependent on me having a thermometer, eh? Beats me what the temps were.

[SGT Rock]

About 7 degrees F.

[Connie]

St. Mary, MT

The warmest day, in three days, was -34 F

I have no idea how cold it was at night. I stayed under my 0 F Polar synthetic sleeping bag (boy scout store) as a quilt, my 20 F Dream Weaver 3D Polarguard sleeping bag, and I wrapped my core in my 100% alpaca fashion poncho over the top of my wool-silk longjohns. The sleeping pad was about 3" thick.

I only stuck my arm out to make three "cookies" of instant oatmeal, sugar and lard patted into cookie shape and pronounced, "You are a cookie." I ate one each day.

I kept water warm in bottles, next to me. I drank the water.

Curiously, I did not pee. I did pretend I was a hibernating bear.

The rangers asked me how I survived. This is it.

I walked out, in my Baffin -50 F boots I had purchased because the boot soles don't fracture in the cold.

[Bloodroot]

Mine was when I was the 10th Mtn Div in Watertown NY on a field training exercise in Feb. Temp over night was -25 . This was back in 1999, stayed fairly comfortable in the "New Army Sleep System Bag". Worst part of it was that I had just recently returned from a year in Saudia Arabia so I was not yet aclimatized to cold weather conditions.

Harry

Brother I can relate you your experience so well! Before coming to Iraq I spent a month doing field exercises in Ft. Drum (Jan-Feb). It got down -40 several nights. I was better off wearing tennis shoes rather than the Mickey Mouse boots. Coldest I have ever been in my life! Never knew wind could blow that cold! Great thing is when I de-MOB I get to come back to Drum during the same season. Yey!

[Bloodroot]

What is this New Army Sleep System Bag, and how much did it weigh?

Unreasonably heavy! Nothing you would want to take on a extended pack. But when you use all 3 layers it's like a furnace. Gortex shell repels water extremely well.

[chknfngrs]

Also as a boy scout, spent 2 nights in minus 30F in Jaffrey NH at the BSA camp, at the base of Mt Monadnock. It was February of probably 1988.

We stayed in 3 sided shelters, and tried to keep the wind out by tarping the front entrances. Didn't work, and it was cold.

[Ramble~On]

Hmmmm. A small Thermometer weighs how much ?
Guess I should start using one for winter hikes.
Coldest night out would have to be while in military in either Alaska or Korea.
Cold.

[Deerleg]

Almost forgot about those early scouting trips…we did something called “the Klondike” I was about 12 or 13 and stayed in a large tent with about 6 or 7 other kids. Don’t remember being that cold, but the scout master told us it got down to about 9 below during the night. Most of the other troops pulled out. I was wearing a army issued wool coat and my dad’s wool artic boots he had from WWII. They kept my feet toasty warm! I think it was the most fun of any scout trip I was on.

[deadair]

new years eve at the red river gorge in eastern ky. few years ago it got down to about -10 wind chill, that was a fun night

[Wyoming]

Dec 72, Wyoming, minus 45, wind gusting to 50 mph. Everyone got frostbite. One of the toughest days I ever experienced. To this day one of my fingers is still numb on the end. hmmm think I will go get in bed

[Ramble~On]

I don't know how accurate it is but I bought a little survival whistle, compass, thermometer combo. A couple weeks ago a buddy and I went into Citico Creek Wilderness, SW of GSMNP. One night we decided to spend the night up on a bald. At 7pm and out of the wind my thermometer read -15.
Two people plus winter gear is more than a Golite Trig II can handle...all buttoned up I came to realize that in that kind of temerature the tent has a major condensation problem....we stayed warm though but in the morning anytime we moved ice from condensation rained down on us.
-15 at 7pm just after sundown..I have no idea how cold it actually got later that night..it was cold

[The Solemates]

-12F or so without windchill New Years Eve 2001 on the summit of Cold Mtn, NC in Pisgah NF. wind was blowing 35-40mph, so no telling how cold it actually was. about 18 inches of snow base.

[squirrel bait]

Cripple Creek CO 1971
9400 ft
fire out
wet gear
cold.
This was the day I discovered the power of jumping jacks. Got back to town and mom said we all crazy. 4 degrees.

[Bearpaw]

During arctic warfare exercises in Norway (while I was a young Marine) we encountered temps close to -30 F on a few occasions......... I think the lowest was in the -40's, but the coldest was a frightfully windy night at -22 - with howling winds that gave an estimated wind chill of -80.....................

[Loafer]

Spent a night on top of Mt Cheaha In late Jan. of 1996. The actual temp. was around 0. The wind chill was around -20.

[minnesotasmith]

I've dealt with as low as -42o F. actual in Minnesota.

[Blue Jay]

I've dealt with as low as -42o F. actual in Minnesota.

Cough, Cough (bull****), Cough

[minnesotasmith]

In January 1996, I was up there in MN/WI. Here's what www.weather.com shows the low temps there in Wausau, WI then:

Jan22°F4°F13°F1.09 in52°F (1973)-40°F (1951)


I was outside the town, where it was cooler, according to multiple thermometers at the plant at which I worked. Those temps in 1994 tied many records that they did not break.



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In Zimmerman, town just north of Minneapolis, another place I've spent time near: Jan22°F0°F11°F1.11 in55°F (1981)-41°F (1994)




Note the big regional cold spell in 1994 that tied or broke a lot of records in several states.
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And, Ely, MN, a town I spent a winter near:

Jan14°F-9°F3°F1.06 in49°F (1981)-44°F (1982)
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See, it really does get that cold in the upper MidWest. North Dakota and of course Alaska do get colder, but Minnesota will never be a substitute for Palm Beach or Phoenix for those people so old they have one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel.