This is the eighth thread to ask this question since COLD MOUNTAIN came out. Just tell your wife “Honey, it was really cold, we were miserable, we had to keep warm in that tent somehow, things got out of control”. You don’t have to pretend it was 150 degrees below or that it was life or death and she’s never going to believe you were in Antarctica.
Or, uh… BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN even.
This should put some perspective on just how cold -129° F is.
According to wikipedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dry_ice
dry ice (frozen carbon dioxide) forms at a temperature of -78°C or -108.4° F
So, that gives you an idea that Antartica can get pretty damned COLD !!! :eek:
damn I spelled ANTARCTICA wrong !!! :smack: :smack:
I always get peeved when I hear meteorologists (or people in general) pronounce it incorrectly. And now I spelled it incorrectly!! :smack: :smack:
:mad:
I was just camping this weekend in -25 temps. That’s pretty cold, but obviously it’s a survivable range. My bag is rated at -30, but with some extra clothes you can sleep pretty well at this range of temps.
Drop it down another 20 or 30 degrees, and you’re at the range where people don’t function very well. A tent can protect you from direct winds (and tents can be pretty bombproof) but at -50 or -60 you cannot function very well. You could probably survive the night sleeping, but then how do you get up and make breakfast? Even getting dressed at those temps is a difficult task. Exposed hands become useless in 30 seconds or so.
How the hell do those penguins do it? 
Ive done a lot of winter camping, most of it self propelled; that is, with what you can carry on your back or in some cases pulling a sled.
I havent dealt with serious cold, but I have spent a few nights around -35 C or so. With the right equipment I imagine you can be comfortable even in much colder conditions. I would think a snow cave would be warm no matter how cold and windy it is outside.
The tools of the trade are a down winter bag, a good thick insulated pad, and possibly a number of other items such as a synthetic overbag, a vapour barrier liner and bivy sack. Wind and moisture are the enemy.
Humans exhale a LOT of moisture during a nights sleep. Tucking your nose inside the sleeping bag will likely result in a wet cold sleeping bag and possibly hypothermia before morning. You can snug up a winter bag so only your nose and mouth are exposed. At -35 C your nose will certainly be cold, Id want some way of keeping it warm below that. Ive never used a mask but that might help.
Tents are quick to set up and good ones can handle the wind and provide a slightly warmer refuge, but in serious weather one would want to either find a well protected spot (in trees for instance), or build a snow shelter.