Staying Warm

Sunnycamper posted in the Camping Forum that she had recently purchased a Marmot Women's Mavericks 15 mummy sleeping bag, thinking it would keep her warm in North Florida. She goes on to say:

"I tent camp with my son's Cubscout Pack, and I just put the bag to the test this past weekend. We estimate the temperature got down to around 30 degrees. There was no rain and no wind. When it was time to hit the hay, I started with two layers of long johns, one silk and one cotton, and quickly had to put on one more layer. I added a set of sweats. I did fall asleep for a short time, but woke up shivering and had to put on my ski jacket. I'm pretty sure my ski jacket has some kind of Thinsulate or equivalent insulation, and I was able to stay warm through the night, more or less. I was wearing a fleece hat and wool socks, and the head part of the mummy bag was totally closed. I was very disappointed in having to put on my jacket, as I thought the investment in this bag would eliminate that need. Thought I was doing all the right things with the layers. The top piece closest to my skin was actually a Patagonia Capilene. My bag was on a Thermarest Z-lite sleeping pad which was in turn on top of an inflatable air mattress. ( I know, the air mattress is probably a no-no, but I'm going to give that up as a last resort.) My Coleman Sundome 10x10 tent was pitched on top of a blue tarp. What else can I do? Put my mummy inside of another bag? I also don't have a lot of "natural" insulation. I'm a slim gal, 5'7 and about 130 lbs. Any advice on layers, etc would be welcome."

Sunnycamper received several good suggestions in reply, but I like Bruce's best. He took a different approach and suggested that she had on way too much clothing. Bruce's reply:

"I'm going to take a different approach here. You had on WAYYYYY too much clothing. Being warm in a sleeping bag (assuming it is rated for the ambient air temp) depends on your being able to warm the sleeping bag. The times I've been cold I've taken off clothing and slept in the buff and had no problems. If I were in your shoes (or bag), I'd just wear a polypro top and running tights. No socks. Next, get yourself a better sleeping pad. Thermarest and some others make really good self-inflating pads. I've used my Thermarest camp rest down to -35F. Wear something on your head. Stocking cap or something like that. Last, and this is really important. Be sure to eat some high energy food before you go to bed. I was a Scout leader for years, and we made sure our boys always had a cracker barrel (cheese, sausage, crackers, baked apples, cocoa) before bed. If you get cold in the night, eat a chocolate bar or some such thing. You got cold partly because you ran out of energy to keep your body warm. This last one is taught by the outdoor leadership schools. For ten years, our troop did winter camping, down to -35F. Following these guidelines, we just didn't have problems."

Read the entire forum post: "Staying Warm"