How to optimize your sleep warmth while camping?

Getting a good night’s sleep outdoors is a key factor in a great outdoor experience.We are often asked, "Will it be very cold in outdoor camping, especially in winter, sometimes in the snow?" This is a difficult question to answer because many factors can affect nighttime sleep during an outdoor camping.

1. The choice of camp and what to sleep on?

The location of the camp is the key to choosing, flat, sheltered and dry.The unevenness of the ground directly affects the feeling of sleeping. Even if you are using an air cushion, try to find flat ground. In outdoor camping, the wind will take away the body surface temperature, and the outdoor environment made by the wind will be very noisy, so it is also very important to choose a camping site that is sheltered from the wind.

In some tests, the researchers found that three times as much heat was lost through the ground as in the air. A poor-quality mattress can make an expensive sleeping bag feel more or less useless, while a good sleeping pad may improve sleep quality. A good sleeping pad will keep you comfortable on the uneven ground of worse campgrounds, while also providing a critical barrier against heat loss.

Any thermal material in any sleeping bag will be compressed to almost nothing when you lie down on it, so sleeping pads are essential to stop heat from being conducted to the ground. Body weight can compress sleeping bags and sleeping pads, especially on the hips and shoulders, which can cause cold spots.

In cold conditions, using an air cushion with a foam pad helps maintain comfort and prevent cold spots, but it will undoubtedly add bulk and weight. It is up to the user to weigh this.

2. What do you wear in your sleeping bag? Layered clothing is second nature to most outdoor enthusiasts, but most campers still use sleeping bags the same way they would at home. The colder the weather, the more important it is to ensure that body heat loss is reduced. Likewise, overheating in the sleeping bag can cause moisture to build up in the sleeping bag filling. To help regulate body temperature over a wider temperature range, it is necessary to wear tight-fitting quick-drying clothing. Wear dry clothing into your sleeping bag, and warm clothes will make it easier to get out of the tent at night when you have to. Personally, I think that if you can have a thermal vest, wearing it when you sleep can greatly improve the thermal insulation effect of the nuclear heart organ area.

3. Make sure the limbs and head are warm

Your head, hands and feet are full of blood vessels and blood, so they are also the first parts of your body to feel cold so you need to keep them warm. This means that if your head, hands, or feet are cold, you'll find it difficult to sleep and may chill the rest of your body.

Camping in the coldest conditions, putting on a warm hat, gloves, and socks before getting into your sleeping bag will greatly enhance your warmth. Whether to wear them can add more or take them off according to your physical condition.

4. Whether you eat well before going to bed - it can also keep you warm all night. Camp location, sleeping pad, and sleeping bag are all external factors, and the more critical internal factor that affects your sleep is your diet. You have trouble falling asleep when you are not full, if you are outdoors or in the cold when you are not full,noteating well, not getting enough calories, you can't sleep well. Protein, meat, cheese and nuts and fats, high-calorie food is essential for camping in cold environments.

The human body needs water to convert these foods into energy. Staying hydrated while camping can prevent sleep deprivation at night.

Most people wake up between 3 am and 4 am feeling cold and lying there shivering until morning. This is because your body does not have enough calories, nutrients, and water to maintain the metabolism of comfortable sleep.

5. Keep your sleeping environment dry

What protection do you have to keep you and your sleeping bag dry and windproof? Where do you sleep, a cabin, a tent, a snow cave, or an alpine hut? All of these can affect your sleep. Staying dry is not just about protecting yourself from precipitation, but dealing with condensation is just as important. If your sleeping bag gets damp, try to dry it in the sun or on fire before going to bed.

While ensuring ventilation, minimize convection, especially cold air, in your sleeping area. Cold convection or cold air can increase your heat loss, especially when using a thin sleeping bag.