You sweat . . . you die. It’s as simple as that. Never allow
yourself to sweat in a survival situation.stroud’s Tip
Layering is vital in every type of climate. Even deserts are notorious for
cooling at night; you don’t have to be in a cold climate or season to become
hypothermic. In fact, many cases of hypothermia occur every year in the fall
and spring, when people are fooled by a nice day followed by a cold night.
Wearing enough layers can make the difference in a survival circumstance.
Traditional or HighTech Gear?
INMYADVENTURING, THE QUESTION OFTEN is whether I should wear high
tech or more traditional gear. Hightech clothing is usually light and warm,
brightly colored, and easily packed and transported. However, should the
worst happen and you find yourself in a survival situation (like a canoe
dumped in rapids in the middle of northern Canada), such clothing rarely
stands up to a few days spent in a bush shelter or sleeping beside a fire.
Take GoreTex as a perfect example of the conflict between rugged
and hightech. GoreTex is a fantastic material. It will keep you fairly dry
in damp conditions because it sheds the rain and still breathes. But try
sleeping beside a fire in it: one spark, one touch of an ember, and GoreTex
melts. So hightech clothing may be great for outdoor adventuring, but it’s
less than ideal in survival situations.
Not so with wool, cotton, or canvaslike materials, which are tough
and can handle the rigors when you’re pushing through dense forest to
get firewood or food. With these materials, an ember will burn a hole only
in the spot where it lands, and often not before you can flick it off. On the
other hand, cotton is horrible if it gets wet because it takes so long to dry.
Wool is very heavy, especially when it gets wet, yet it retains 80 percent of
its insulating value.
In the end, the best option in a survival situation is to have a combi
nation of lightweight, hightech clothing for your underlayers and some
Clothing (^) | 291