Frost Warning

There was a frost warning for parts of the foothills regions of Alberta.  Its late August, so that is quite normal.

How does this impact out door adventuring?

At this time of year the temperature in southern Alberta can swing wildly from below freezing in the early pre-dawn hours to the mid 30s Celcius (80s and 90s F) in the mid afternoon.  It can be a real challenge to deal with that.

The problem with living outdoors this time of year is that you will sweat during the day, and depending on your activity levels you may sweat a lot.  You need to take in enough water to prevent dehydration as well as minerals like salt.  But then overnight the temp drops drastically and you suddenly find that your sweat soaked garments provide little or no insulation and hypothermia can set in.

Sweat and salt - (found with google image search)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/66998152@N00/209177061

The solution is to carry an extra shirt for sleeping in and to try and rinse and dry your daytime shirt.  When I went on military training exercises during this time of year I would change my undershirt at sundown and again at sun up.  Keeping my 'night shirt' clean and dry was almost like a religious activity for me, there is nothing I hate more than being cold, especially at night.  I also always carried my wool sweater with me as well as a jacket. It made my combat webbing pack a bit heavier than the other guys, but I kept warmer at night. (Also, being a mounted recon soldier means you don't walk near as much as infantry and it becomes easier to carry more gear)

For me, I do most of my adventuring in the northern temperate montane ecosystems.  This means that nights are cold and that you can expect rain or snow year round and with little or no warning. As such I always carry rain gear, and light winter gear even in the summer.  I have woken up to an inch of snow on my tent in July. Melted and gone by noon, but its a shock to the system.

As seasons change, you need to change your kit.  My mom always had a saying: "remember to bring a jacket when the month has an 'R' in it" meaning that starting in September, it can get brrrrr cold, and stay that way.

Feel free to add your comments especially if you live and adventure in a different climate or ecosystem than I do.