I grew up in Minnesota, where it gets really cold (Yah, sur ja betcha!)! Served in Alaska with the 6th (Arctic) Infantry Division (Light), where it got ever colder (Uff Dah!).

If your feet are cold, put on a hat, you lose 33% of your body core head through the top of your head.

Dress in layers, that includes your socks, inner layer should be absorbent cotton, outer layer wool or thermal that will wick the moisture away from your feet. Change socks every 4 hours, and dry the moist set, in the armpits of your coat. Make sure that your boots are not tight, because of the extra socks you may need to use boots a size larger than normal (mine are two sizes larger because I use a feet insert also). Also do not tie you lace too tight, in cold it better to allow the boots to be slightly loose (to allow circulation). The feet have lousy blood circulation, and in cold weather that is the first place that, circulation will decrease to keep the body core ( and brain) warm.

Use a scarf around your neck to protect your body's thermostat (which is located on the lower part of the rear of your head, where the neck skull meet. Learn to breath through your nostrils (this preheats the cold air, so you do not cause frostbite to your lungs).

Drink lots of water, you will lose precious water every time you exhale(you can exhale 6 quarts/liters of water in a 24 hour period outdoors. You also need more water to keep your body's waste disposal system from getting plugged up (which will cause cold weather injury). Do not become dehydrated, as this will lead to cold weather injury.

Be sure to ventilate your clothing when you are outside and doing strenuous exercise, so your body does not build up moisture inside your clothing, this will become ice when you stop to rest.

Above all else, stay dry, brush all snow or ice off of your clothing.

If your feet get too cold, use the body system, and warm the feet in the armpits of your buddy. Protect your fingers too, gloves do not give your fingers the enough protection, to stay warm, carry a set of mittens with outer wind-proof covering. If the fingers get too cold, to regain warmth, use your armpits to warm the fingers.

I have seen cold weather injuries, when the temperture was 60 degrees F, because the people did not ventalate, and it was raining, and they built up too much moisture inside their raingear. Cold weather injuries can happen at any temperture below 70 degree F. Cold weather and warm weather injuries are the same injuries for tempertures are opposite. Both require proper ventation, taking proper amounts of water to stay hydrated, and to protect the body from getting too cold or too hot (in hot weather, have a wet cloth on the back of your neck to protect your body's thermostat.



[This message has been edited by Steven H. McGarthwaite (edited 29 December 2005).]