How do you handle the COLD wind while sweating?

[Brian3211]

So let say its cold, raining, and really windy, you just hike up a very steep mountain and you are sweating like crazy, then the wind starts blowing on your way down the other side of the mountian. How do you keep warm when you stop for a break or while hiking on a flat surface if your still soaked from sweat even though you have raingear on? Or what if its not raining and its just cold wind after you have been sweating for awhile? Thanks.

[leaftye]

I handle it poorly.

[clowncsc]

Well before you even step off, go to WALMART isle 7 or 10 and look for a can of man as well as a straw to "suck it up"

[Maybe one day]

What I have done is keep a fleece handy to place on immediately when I remove my pack. I have been hiking in some very cold weather and found this to work for me. When ascending a hill, I generate tremendous heat. The fleece helps retain it while I rest.

[swjohnsey]

You shouldn't be sweatin'.You are the thermostat. Open up when workin' hard, close up when not. For me, first thing to go is gloves, then hat, open up shell, remove insulation layer if necessary. Put everything back on immediately when stopping. Don't wait to get cold.

[ChinMusic]

Don't sweat that much to start with.

[BobTheBuilder]

Keep shedding layers as you climb. Until you are down to a t-shirt, there's no excuse to be sweaty. I've been out in a tshirt below freezing and been comfortable if I'm working hard.

[mtnkngxt]

Layering is fundamental. Research moisture transport and the strategies for layering that promote of sweat away from the body and into outer layers where the heat from our body will aid in evaporating it and keeping you warm and drier.

[wornoutboots]

I agree with keeping your sweat to a minimum. I hiked Springer to NOC last January & Erwin to Hot Springs the Winter before & even though it was in the 20's & 30's I hiked in shorts & a a tech tee & a shell monitoring as I go. My Shell both zips & snaps & I snap it so air can get in while hiking & immediately put a tech fleece on & zip the shell when I stop.

[Lyle]

Proper base layers will keep you warm even when damp, as long as the wind is blocked. Wool is my choice, but polypro works as well, or silk. If you still aren't warm, keep moving or add a layer of insulation. I've hiked in Minnesota in rain/sleet/snow/wind with a light wool layer covered by a light polypro and then rain gear. As long as you only stop briefly, it's toasty warm. When you start getting chilled, move on.

[FarmerChef]

Lots of good advice here on layering and start/stop moving. I sweat a lot, a lot a lot. Enough that in the winter I will sometimes go shirtless with just gloves on to keep from sweating. Sweat is the enemy of warmth as it should be and sweating when it's cold enough to matter is a no no, no matter what time of day. I wear a lightweight merino wool long john and top as base layer. In the morning when it's cold, I add on a fleece outer, gloves and a beanie. Once I get going, off comes the fleece outer and the beanie (unless the wind is really blowing). The merino wicks away the sweat as I go while keeping me toasty warm but if I really start to sweat, then off goes my top layer and I switch to a tech tee or shirtless.

Now for the rainy part. My poncho might as well be a greenhouse. So I wear no shirt on underneath since there's a little I can do to avoid sweating profusely. If I'm really hot, I'll even take off the merino bottoms and put on my running shorts. There have been times I was caught with summer gear only and it was rainy/cold. I kept my warm clothes dry for camp and just kept hiking to stay warm. Stops were brief enough to take care of business then back on the trail. If I was caught out in the rain with no rain shell, no pack or equipment and it was cold and windy, I would walk in circles if I had to, provided there was no way to stop, make shelter and fire.

[bigcranky]

I'm in the "sweat like a pig" category, even stripped down to a base layer I'm soaking wet climbing that hill, no matter what the outside temperature. So, like leaftye, I handle it poorly. I do find a single layer UL wind shirt helps a lot to keep me warm when it's cold and windy.

[Dogwood]

You shouldn't be sweatin'.You are the thermostat. Open up when workin' hard, close up when not. For me, first thing to go is gloves, then hat, open up shell, remove insulation layer if necessary. Put everything back on immediately when stopping. Don't wait to get cold.

+1 Ditto. IMHO, this is absolutely correct: "You shouldn't be sweatin. You are the thermostat." I witness a great many hikers not knowing and/or applying this. Then, ignorance by the gear user is OFTEN blamed on gear manufacturers with statements like: "I found that such and such jacket isn't really breathable." IMHO, some, quite possibly the majority of, hikers don't know how to or DO NOT FULLY avail themselves of all their gear or venting options! Use those zippers, velcro closures, snaps, hoods, etc. They weren't just put their by the manufacturer for their looks. You are not a run away freight train. DO NOT hike like one. You have options. Use them. Adjust your pace, adjust your gear, and adjust and readjust your hiking style BEFORE BEFORE you start "sweatin like crazy!" I'm constantly doing these things and as SWJohnsey does I virtually always have hat, gloves, sunglasses, bandana, shell(wind/rain), multiple layers,etc I find, as a few TV Survivalist personalities have rightly detailed, it's a major no no to let yourself get sweaty under such cold conditions! Sets the stage for hypothermia. You can have a difficult time staying completely dry on trail in heavy prolonged rain but the sweating part you DEFINITELY have control over!

[leaftye]

Like bigcranky, I sweat. If it's cold, windy and raining, I'm pumping hard to generate body heat, but stripping down primarily so I don't soak all my clothes in sweat. Even stripped down to the base layers, I'll sweat, even if I'm quite cold.

I've expanded my rain gear to cover more of my skin to prevent direct heat loss from the rain. I have a bunch of things I could try, but I don't get all that many chances to hike in the freezing rain, and I'm not all that enthusiastic about doing gear testing in the freezing rain.

Even if I come up with the perfect system, I'm hard headed, and am more likely to hike myself into hypothermia than to put on enough clothing to stay warm while hiking.

[moldy]

So it's perfect hypothermia conditions. Wind, cold. You hike, you will get wet. The trick is that you can't stop hiking for any reason. If you stop, you will stop generating heat. You have your lunch on the move and keep going until you are done for the day. You are committed to keep going. Either get to a shelter or you quickly set up the tent and dive in, take off the wet things and put on some dry. Then get into the bag and stay there well beyond the point where the shaking stops. Been there...done that.... They don't make any magic clothing out there that makes it even possible to hike up and down mountains in conditions like this and stay dry. There is a reason why this is the chief killer on the trail.

[fiddlehead]

I agree to not stop.
If you are sweating THAT much, keep going and walk yourself dry with your wicking clothes on.
Only change into your dry stuff when you hit camp (or a long lunch break)

[leaftye]

I am tempted to pick up a Klymit inflatable vest. Then my torso sweating won't be a problem. It won't be good when that sweat drips down and soaks my underwear though. Perhaps a sweat band belt?

[Slo-go'en]

Yep, the answer is not to stop. At least not until you can find a sheltered spot out of the wind. Then stop only long enough to catch your breath, grab a couple of bites of something and a sip of water. Then get moving again until you get to where you can camp for the night, get into some dry clothes and cook a hot dinner.

[Stink Bug]

You shouldn't be sweatin'.You are the thermostat. Open up when workin' hard, close up when not. For me, first thing to go is gloves, then hat, open up shell, remove insulation layer if necessary. Put everything back on immediately when stopping. Don't wait to get cold.

This! Take off layers as necessary, when going up and put em back on going down. That being said, I'm comfortable in a merino crew and a wind jacket down to around 20 degrees or so. YMMV!

[Astro]

So it's perfect hypothermia conditions. Wind, cold. You hike, you will get wet. The trick is that you can't stop hiking for any reason. If you stop, you will stop generating heat. You have your lunch on the move and keep going until you are done for the day. You are committed to keep going. Either get to a shelter or you quickly set up the tent and dive in, take off the wet things and put on some dry. Then get into the bag and stay there well beyond the point where the shaking stops. Been there...done that.... They don't make any magic clothing out there that makes it even possible to hike up and down mountains in conditions like this and stay dry. There is a reason why this is the chief killer on the trail.

I went this very process described this past summer. Pouring rain and getttin cold, but just kept going till I made it the shelter and was able to change and get in sleeping bag. Believe me all of the Boy Scout First Aid traning about hypothermia was going through my head.

[mrcoffeect]

I agree with the keep moving crowd. if you can keep warm by exerting yourself, then keep moving toward your goal for the evening. BUT you should always be asking yourself do i have the umbles. mumble stumble fumble. If you cant recite something out loud, walk without stumbling or cant do complex tasks with your hands. ITs time to make camp

[RCBear]

Great thread. VERY useful information guys. Good stuff!

[fredmugs]

I love the typical Dr. Phil responses. Are you sweating? Well stop sweating. Very useful.

Some of us sweat more than others. Some of us enjoy the challenge of a tough climb and are sweating profusely as a result. Better wicking clothing helps a lot. Strippng down BEFORE you start a tough section is the key but it's hard to convince yourself to do it quickly enough.

[mtnkngxt]

I love the typical Dr. Phil responses. Are you sweating? Well stop sweating. Very useful.

Some of us sweat more than others. Some of us enjoy the challenge of a tough climb and are sweating profusely as a result. Better wicking clothing helps a lot. Strippng down BEFORE you start a tough section is the key but it's hard to convince yourself to do it quickly enough.

For those that still sweat, the technique just changes. Rather than choosing layers that help keep one cool enough to not sweat, pick layers that are better at active transport of perspiration once stopped. For example if you sweat profusely I'd stick with synthetic insulation layers so that you don't wet out down and can still retain heat.

It's all trial and error.

[garlic08]

The really experienced folk have already weighed in with excellent advice. I'll reiterate the need to keep moving and generating heat and as already stated, eating on the move. If you're working that hard, you need fuel. Some of those days it's just too hard to drop your pack and root around for something to eat, so keep plenty of snacks in your pocket. And don't forget water--if you're sweating, you need to drink. You may have to fill your water bottle from a stream of rainwater falling off a rock, and forget just this once about purifying it because you're shivering too much. If you really need a break, pitch camp, remove your wet clothing, and get in your sleeping bag.

Also key is keeping your insulation dry. This is easy to say, but sometimes very hard to do, like when it's raining cold in the morning and you're dry in your shelter and you really have to put yesterday's wet clothing back on. If you absolutely don't have the energy or strength to keep going with wet clothing on, stop, pitch camp, get in the bag, and eat, drink and rest for later. Sometimes, it's not just a day or two of those conditions and you have to think long-term.

This was one of my real concerns on a bicycle trip I took through the WA Cascades last year. When you're hiking, you keep moving your legs on the descents, and sometimes you can get out of the wind. On a bicycle, you don't. I applied the hiking lessons, stopped to eat and drink often, and did squats out of the saddle to keep the large thigh muscles working to generate some heat, and kept all my insulation dry for camp.