Winter Is Coming

Estonia is not quite at the North Pole like some people seem to think. That being said, it gets cold here. The temperature has been dangling around 0°C since mid-October. We have already gotten snow on multiple occasions.

Even though I do not like to believe it, I am a full-blown city boy. I have spent very little time in the forest and the countryside, especially in the winter. Needless to say, my first experiences in the frozen forest were not the easiest. Fortunately enough, my military company decided that they would dedicate a full day to teaching us to survive in the cold. For me, one of the simplest yet most useful parts of that day was about how to dress.

First of all, we looked at different materials – wool, polyamide, fleece etc. We proceeded to talk about the pros and cons of each and every single one. For example, wool is very good for keeping heat, it does so even when moist, and it does not burn. The cons are that it can be itchy and some people can have allergic reactions to it.

Then we spoke about the general distribution of heat in the body. In cold environments, the body's main focus is keeping the core warm (the core being the torso and head). That means that the extremities like toes and fingers are left on the back burner.

For both toes and fingers, the solution is to put a layer of wool under the main layer. Heat insulation works thanks to layers of air – wool is an "airy" material, it creates space. Based on the same logic, wearing baggy clothes also creates insulation which helps keep the warmth.

For the core of the body, it is important to avoid sweating. Water is about 20 times more efficient in transferring heat than air. Thus the layers have to be very varied based on the activity. If doing higher intensity movements then undressing is a must. On the other hand, if we are static, it is important to have as many baggy layers as possible in order to keep the minimal heat.

I am so grateful that we had this lesson. It really helped to understand better the how’s and the why’s of surviving in the cold. I am already reaping the benefits of the lesson.

This Week's Suggestions:

🎶"Tunnel Vision" by Montee and Lynel:

I do enjoy it when songs surprise me. This is one of those songs. It does things that are unexpected yet in a pleasant manner. It has intensity but not too much, it has enough depth and most of all the melody is on point.

That’s it for this dark Monday morning.