After the fall.... of snow that is...

So as you no doubt know from Mungo, we had a nice little snow storm that turned Sunday's beautiful day of working on the woodshed in a tee-shirt into... "Winter has come again!". Truth be told it made me a little sad. I was really starting to get into the swing of spring there for a couple of days. It did not help that I had to put the blade on the front of the ATV and plow the bloody driveway again... Did not find much enjoyment in it this time.

Anyways.

This last storm actually got me to thinking. Clothing. I am sure you have heard enough times in the past that you should always take enough clothing with you on a trip. But the last week has really got me re-thinking my setup for clothing.

Mors asks a question as to your choice of clothing. "Will the clothes you wear keep you warm for four days without a fire?"

You might answer yes to this. Had I been wearing a fleece over my tee-shirt on Sunday and went for a wander in the bush, my answer would have been a definite NO! Perhaps living here surrounded by nature tends to make me less concerned.

You are probably thinking to yourself: "Yeah but if I go for a hike in June I don't need to wear 4 layers of clothing!" No. Maybe not. But I have been out on a camping trip in the middle of June and the temperature dropped to below 0 Celsius for 3 days and it snowed. Seriously. Weather around here can change quickly and if you are a day or three from the car on a week long trip you could be in for trouble.

One of my earlier post lists off Mors five layer system. Nessmuk considers the following list to be sufficient for most trips into the bush: (most of the listed clothing is considered made of fine woolen cassimere)

• Medium thickness wool coat
• vest
• sturdy but comfortable pants
• 2 thick woolen shirts
• 2 fine but substantial pair of drawers
• 2 pair of socks
• hat and boots.

Whether you try either of these systems or your very own is up to individual needs. No one can tell you how to dress or what will work for you. Not a friend, spouse, or clothing manufacturer. Only through trial and error will you know for sure. When you think you have it, ask yourself this. Will putting every article of clothing on that you are carrying allow you to stay warm if the temperature drops by 20 degrees (celsius) overnite? Will you be warm for 4 days without a fire or sleeping bag?

Will post my Autumn/Spring clothing in a future post.

Thanks for being here...

Decado.