It’s hard to know if what he was saying was true or not, but I think I believe it. He also saw my VW and immediately observed that it had been in an accident based on the way the doors hung. So, I feel like he knew some stuff.
At any rate it worked in all my snow caves, which was admittedly not a large sample but included places like Teton pass in Wyoming.
Even quite mediocre sleeping bags (by modern standards) are positively toasty at 32 degrees. It was common in my group for people to sleep in their underwear in the caves! Our sleeping bags were 0 degree rated, though.
Sleeping bags have been very good for a long time
"modern standards" means cheaper than goose down
In primitive conditions, pine boughs or fur skins would be used.
Other than that, wear a cap, and if it's truly cold, boil water, pour it into a Nalgene (or similar) bottle, and slip that into a sock. It'll keep you toasty (often too warm) all night.
If you light a candle, the snow will melt and freeze into a film of ice.
The holes are important for ventilation in general, but it also allows vapor to escape.
When we built them we’d use ski poles to make the holes. You don’t want them to be too big or you risk the structural integrity of course. There was a ratio of hole count : people that we followed but I can’t remember that detail (:
This is an interesting post! Can you explain the science behind why 32F/0C is important here? For example: If I build a snow cave in a place where it is -30C, -20C, -10C, 0C outside, will they all "equalize to 32F/0C"?
It was lots of fun. We’d hike into the snow pack set up a tent the first night, and spend the second day building snow caves and sledding. Then we’d build a bonfire that would melt down to the ground (or a boulder) by morning. Good times.
Caves take way less time to set up than an igloo and only requires a shovel for equipment. Although, it requires more maintenance for long-term shelter than an igloo. There’s good documentation on how to build one online.
Oh - and you automatically stay awake, when it gets too cold. Only when you are really exhausted and sleep in the cold, you will never wake up (from various movies and books I was afraid of this trope when I was younger, but nope, as long as you have energy left, your body automatically wakes you up and starts moving to create heat). Not being able to sleep, because of cold, is one of the less awesome outdoor experiences. On the other hand, the more you enjoy the sun on the next day (if you are lucky and there is sun).
I was also homeless with a car for a while, but in a much warmer climate. It's no fun!
So much wealth in the world, and an eighteen year old sleeping in the trunk of a car in a continental winter
"Poverty is a sin A sin of the rich"