Originally Posted by
JustaJoe
djb and
Tourist in MSN I am prepped for the cold, and have ridden my bike at temps as low as 20*F (rare where I live now). I have 2 pieces for my head which allow for normal helmet fitting - a thin yet warm/windproof balaclava, and a water- and wind-proof skull cap. Have some glasses/goggles that work well. Hands and the rest of my body have not been an issue, the only thing I'm still working on is my feet. Between the various wool socks and hiking boots, I just haven't found the perfect combo yet. And I do have rain gear as well, so that's covered.
I am not looking to tour in 20*F temps. Around here, our winter temps are usually in the 40's, low 50's; with overnights in the 30's. Great biking and sleeping weather!
djb not -20*F, just 20*F. That's kind of my limit since I've 1) aged and 2) been in the US South for almost 25 yrs.
indyfabz and
Tourist in MSN I appreciate you both mentioning guided tours. I've looked into various trips with ACA, REI, others, and found the cost... costly? But it seems it may well be worthwhile to learn, observe what others are doing, etc. A cross-country trip ain't happening (major respect to you for doing that!), but perhaps a 5-7 day tour would be a good experience. I'll consult the CFO and see what she says.
Silly anecdote: We did an exercise on our main battle tanks where the
high temperature got up to -10*F, but was usually around -20*F. You can't really get 50 tons of steel warm in that environment, so we let the engine run continuously and napped on the back deck!
It sounds like you have all bases covered, or know which bases still need to be covered. You are going to be ok.
40s and 50s (F) with nights in the 30s should not be too arduous given your military experience. The Whisperlight stove would work well in the 30s.
You probably already know this, but just in case you don't, phones with a cold Li Ion battery can run down the battery really fast. Leave your phone off unless the phone is warm. When I tour, if the weather is in the 30s or 40s, I warm up my phone inside my clothing for a while before I turn it on, that extends the battery life. I make my call or check the weather forecast or whatever, then shut if off.