Winter camping

Last weekend, we had a fair dump of snow.  As I had been tied up virtually every weekend over the last couple of months, I decided to pitch my tent in my backyard to test out my winter setup before actually heading out there.

Ozark Trail Scout Junior Dome 2-person tent

The setup was simple.  The tent is by no means a winter tent but it was enough to keep most of the wind out.  I had two foam mats, one -30C mummy synthetic sleeping bag.  I was wearing a cotton t-shirt, a thermal shirt, a spring windbreaker, thermal underpants, wool socks, fleece gloves, and a fleece toque.  I placed my ski jacket under the sleeping bag to add more air between me and the ground.

The first night, the temperature went down to -6C inside my tent.  I was warm but my feet were cold so my sleep was not too comfortable that night.

The second night, I decided to insert in between the two foam mats a space blanket and made a bootie out of a fleece sweater for my feet.  Also, to protect my face from the cold, I wore a neoprene/fleece mask.  The temperature dipped down to -12C inside the tent but I was toasty warm that night.

I think I am ready for real winter camping.  I've got what I need to sleep comfortably in below -10C.  Now, I need to pick a place to go to.

P.S.  The cotton t-shirt is no way for winter camping (and it did get soaking wet after I finished shoveling our driveway) but as long as it's dry, it should be ok to sleep with.