How cold is too cold to sleep no bag or tent or fire.

daveycrockett

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Just asking. If it's 40 ok I guess. I'm in shorts tho long socks thinking of heading north to get West but it's def below freezing that way and not much on that road. Debating staying til Monday for public bus for skirts or north and west just to get out of town.
 
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ali

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You can probably survive outside overnight if it stays above freezing, but if there is any humidity and particularly if it rains and/or you get wet some other way, that sort of temperature is gonna feel a lot worse and potentially put you at risk for hypothermia. Just find some shelter, ask round for someone to kick you down a sleeping bag, 'tis the season.
 

MetalBryan

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Just asking. If it's 40 ok I guess. I'm in shorts tho long socks thinking of heading north to get West but it's def below freezing that way and not much on that road. Debating staying til Monday for public bus for skirts or north and west just to get out of town.

I fear that your goal of "sleeping" outside is more along the lines of "surviving" overnight outside. Think about the quality of sleep you will get if your body is just trying to keep warm by shivering. Probably low to none. If you can't get a bag or a shelter, you could try to find a tarp then wrap yourself up like a burrito using free newspapers as insulation. If you can find a good spot, you can try to sleep a bit during the warmest part of the day too.
 

daveycrockett

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You can probably survive outside overnight if it stays above freezing, but if there is any humidity and particularly if it rains and/or you get wet some other way, that sort of temperature is gonna feel a lot worse and potentially put you at risk for hypothermia.
I fear that your goal of "sleeping" outside is more along the lines of "surviving" overnight outside. Think about the quality of sleep you will get if your body is just trying to keep warm by shivering. Probably low to none. If you can't get a bag or a shelter, you could try to find a tarp then wrap yourself up like a burrito using free newspapers as insulation. If you can find a good spot, you can try to sleep a bit during the warmest part of the day too.

I get it. Just asking when others are traveling does the 40 to 30 difference mean anything to you. I don't think I'll freeze or melt just shooting the shit.
 

ali

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If your question is more about does 0c suck more than 5c, the answer is yes because now you need to worry about keeping your water from freezing too. But fundamentally any lower temperature is going to suck more because it's more energy your body needs to expend to keep warm, which is more calories burned, which means you now need more food too. Personally if i am able to choose where i'm headed, i would say anything under 15c is worth changing direction to avoid, and that's even with basic gear. Life is too short to spend your nights shivering in the fetal position like a cave man. But even cave men had fire and, like, a cave.
 

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