Winter camping adventure

Revolverrodger

Revolverrodger

Joined
Jul 23, 2007
Messages
3,821
Hello fellow woodsmen ! I finally had the opportunity to go for a winter camping expedition with a friend. We planned an outing on a small mountain in the province of Quebec Canada. With temperatures around -30oC (-22oF) I had to take out the heavy artillery !
I packed most of my gear in a surplus USMC FILBE main pack. An excellent and robust high volume backpack I find excellent for bushcraft and winter camping. The pack weighed around 20kg (44 pounds)



Since we were hot camping we brought a sled to carry the tent and the stove. I used a synthetic base layer as well as a light fleece shirt and a condor windbreaker. That proved to be a good combination while snowshoeing and pulling that sled LOL.



The tent was quickly set up: we used an American 5 man arctic tent. This tent proved to be excellent for the conditions we were in !



The next priority was to get the stove running fast and hot. The pictures do not convey the bone chilling cold out there.



A lot of time was spent preparing wood for the wood stove inside our 5 man arctic tent using mostly a saw (Sven Saw) but also an axe (Wetterling's) and a large chopping knife (Becker BK-9). My general use camp survival knife for this outing was the Enzo trapper in O1 steel and this knife performed admirably.



We did quite alot of snow melting on the stove and my friend cooked an excellent beef stew ! that was a nice relief from the cold.



Before going to sleep we went for a night trip to the summit of the mountain. Quite cold out there but it was worth it. Back to the tent we used the full MSS sleep system and managed to get a few hours of sleep !



Unfortunately we had to head back to civilisation but I'm already waiting for that next outdoor adventure !

I hope you like the pictures. If you guys have any questions concerning the trip or the gear I used don't hesitate to ask !
 
Great post! How did you find the MSS? Did you have any problems with condensation? What was the temperature inside your tent once the stove was up and running?
 
Wow, looks like you had a great time. Nice gear shot of you and the sled. Excellent pic of the king. What was the temp inside the tent?
 
Inside the tent the temperature reached nearly 20oC (68oF) at one point when the fire was roaring ! We didn't leave it like that long since both the stove and chimney got red hot. Most of the time it was around freezing temperature.
The MSS is an excellent piece of kit and very affordable compared to other bags rated to -40. I used a level I and level II baselayer in the bag well cinched around the face to avoid breathing in the bag. Overall it stayed rather dry.
 
Reminds me of traplining in Northern Saskatchewan with my dad, snowshoes and pulling a sled.

Do you have a link/price for the tent you have, I have 10 acres up north in the caribou and that would be perfect for late fall/ early spring.

Great thread.
 
It's one of those old army arctic tents from the 1970ies we found in an army surplus store for 150$. highly worth it !
 
Revolverrodger said:
It's one of those old army arctic tents from the 1970ies we found in an army surplus store for 150$. highly worth it !
Click to expand...

I had an arctic search and rescue tent when I was younger, wish it was still around :(
 
Excellent post. Its amazing how much more rest you can get hot camping than cold camping. How long would you say it took to set up your tent and can it be done efficiently with one person or does it require two?
Josh
 
My friend has more experience but this time it took us alot more time than usual to set up the tent (around 30 minutes in the cold...)
One person could set it up no problem but you would need to train in warmer conditions to be efficient.
 
Great trip! I have slept in the MSS in 10f with no shelter and was comfortable. The down side to it is that it is both heavy and bulky. It is a good piece of gear and while I am sure there are better lighter options I am quite happy with mine.
 
I never tried the MSS alone without a tent... But I want to try it one of these days but in warmer weather LOL
 
Thanks for the report. I just bought a MSS. I've been looking forward to giving it a go. Nice tent and stove.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top