Winter bug out/get home bag

[Petoski]

I am trying to put together a bag. The issue I am having is trying to figure out the best shelter options for a typical Finnish winter. Last year it was -30c here. Obviously I don't want to be carrying around a great big lump of a sleeping bag and I normally don't like to part with too much of my money. Any ideas on a good setup? I was thinking along the lines of a wool blanket and bivvy. Anyone have any experience of camping out in those types of temperatures?

 

[jontte]

yup, did it back in -86 , had a wool blanket and a sleepingpad and a tent, it's doable if you have a heat source like a stove,was it cold?
sure it was.
the trick back then was to keep your feet dry, boots dry and the miracle fiber was ; wool.
as little snow under you as possible,spruce branches on the ground for insulation,so you'll have to work for that tent place

 

[Mountain trapper]

Yep, do it every winter. In my everyday winter carry bag I have; extra insulated gloves, extra winter hat, wool blanket, hatchet, Bowie knife, wool socks, small canvas tarp, emergency reflective blankets, canned and or freeze dried food, fire starter, storm proof matches, wax cubes mixed with wood shavings or dryer lint, 50' of rope, small animal snares, small flashlight with spare batteries and extra ammo.
Many of these items I use every winter, when I get stuck in the snow or if I run late on the trap line.

 

[Brent S]

My advice is get the thickest, heaviest sleeping bag you can. If this is for the car then your fine, vs having to carry it on your back on a long hike. Sleeping in the freezing cold sucks. Sure you can survive with a wool blanket, but since carrying the extra weight isn’t a problem, add a little extra comfort.

 

[KateMTx]

I think maybe the most important would be to keep dry, and to insulate from the ground. If you can do those things then good wool blankets should do the rest. It will still be cold but hopefully you'll survive.
Of course my advice is not to be in places where it's so cold but in Finland guess you don't have much choice

 

[Brent S]

I guess my view is that by being a prepper I don’t just want to survive, I want to thrive. Go for the thick bag.

 

[Silent Earth]

Nato 58 pattern Sleeping bag* inside plastic survival bag, on an insulation mat, sleeping in Norwegian army zip neck fleece shirt

Or your own nations milspec standard bag.

Once a wool blankets gets wet from the weather or sweat it loses its insulation properties and just gets very heavy. if its a blanket you need then consider TWO fleece blankets. But modern ex military sleeping bags are very good and quite cheap.

 

[Brent S]

I personally like the freshly washed sheets at a holiday in if it’s below 50 degrees outside.

 

[jontte]

just look what "varusteleka" has to offer?

 

[Silent Earth]

I personally like the freshly washed sheets at a holiday in if it’s below 50 degrees outside.

I recently read that the business hotels in the US are currently suffering a massive bed bug infestation across much of the NE US.

 

[lonewolf]

I personally like the freshly washed sheets at a holiday in if it’s below 50 degrees outside.

if its a large bug out you'll be lucky if you get a room. not my idea of a bug out.

 

[jontte]

eeewwwwwh, bed bugs....

 

[Petoski]

Thanks for the tips. Liking the Swedish wool tunic on that site you recommended Jonte https://www.varusteleka.com/en/product/swedish-wool-tunic-surplus/1688 but it won't be going in my bugout kit.

 

[Proud Prepper]

eeewwwwwh, bed bugs....

Use wood ash to keep the bed bugs and other unwanted critters away.

 

[DrHenley]

I had a bed bug infestation at home. It took forever to get rid of them and they drove me nearly insane with the itching up and down my legs. I threw away the mattress and covers and used diatomaceous earth, foggers, insecticide spray, and even fly paper on the sides of my bed, but it wasn't until I found their nest in a crack in the bedframe that I was able to completely eradicate them.

 

[Brent S]

if its a large bug out you'll be lucky if you get a room. not my idea of a bug out.

Just joking here.

 

[Mountain trapper]

While a good sleeping bag would be nice to have in your winter bag, they do take up a lot of space. I've never camped out in really cold weather before, only -65 f in Antarctica, without a sleeping bag. For myself I'd prefer using fire to stay warm in an emergency camp out.

 

[Brent S]

While a good sleeping bag would be nice to have in your winter bag, they do take up a lot of space. I've never camped out in really cold weather before, only -65 f in Antarctica, without a sleeping bag. For myself I'd prefer using fire to stay warm in an emergency camp out.

-65 isn’t really cold?

 

[jontte]

that is cold, coldest I've slept with a blanket and a sleeping pad in a tent was around -23F and we had a stove for heat and coffee.

 

[Mountain trapper]

-65 isn’t really cold?

Just my attempt at humor. I hope to never see temps anywhere near that cold again. Where I live now has pretty mild winters.

 

[Psalm7]

I change the contents of my get home bag each season . My get home bag is a surplus A L I C E pack .

 

[Silent Earth]

My GHB is now much smaller than the BOB, I used to prep to travel very long distances for up to weeks at a time, so i carried a lot of kit, but the needs to get home are much less. It only creaes in size the further I plan to travel from home. So most of the time I get all I need into a Rush 12 plus my kit in the vehicle.

 

[Daniel8]

I keep it simple. I take my bug net out and add some high quality thermos and throw a wool blanket in the back seat. I'm traveling light and fast and hoping to score a vehicle on the way with cash or well TBH what ever I have to do to get home fast. That is if I'm more than 25 miles from home. If i was close I'd just walk fast. But I take trips every week to MA and NH from Mid-Maine and I'd hate to get stuck there in an EMP or whatever.