Five Essentials to Fight Unexpected Cold Weather

Preparedness is a constant struggle. And there's one thing that crushes my cold weather capabilities every time. That thing? 3 days in a row of unseasonably warm weather.

3 days is all it takes. The first day you 're sweating, but you remember how cold it was the previous day. By the third day shorts and Hawaiian shirts are the name of the game (ok, maybe an exaggeration).

When the fourth day in this story inevitably comes, when the temperature dips below freezing and the wind starts to pick up, then I , dear reader, am dead meat. And I discover this fact usually about half-way through a mile or 2-mile walk. The wind is blowing. My "midweight" coat is doing a good job of keeping the middle of my back warm. And its quickly failing everywhere else.

There's nothing left to do but put your head down and push your way through the cold until you get back to headquarters. And hope you don't get actual frostbite.

So here's a short list of some of the most common items you'll wish you had when cold weather comes back with a vengeance.

The Main Considerations

1. Easy to Wear: Can you put this gear on in the middle of things? One of the biggest problems with cold weather comes with being prepared for it ahead of time. Almost all of the items chosen for this list can be carried and packed for later use in the field. You don't have to have them on all the time. When you start to feel your first shiver, its not too late.
2. Lightweight: Each of these pieces need to be light and easy to carry. The longer you walk in a cold environment, the colder you are going to get. But you aren't going to bring big heavy layers on long walks. It's a Catch-22 and lightweight materials avoid that.
3. Low Bulk: None of these pieces should significantly increase the space your body physically occupies, or decreases your overall mobility. You should be able to stuff them into a pocket, or keep them in a small backpack (the kind you might bring with you every day).
4. Price and Availability: Here's where military surplus really shines. Your budget is always finite, surplus by nature is priced to make it easy to hit the yes button. And while individual items come and go with pretty frequent regularity, broad ranges of items are usually instock. You can always get some kind of hat, gloves, etc. that fit your daily mission profile.

Everyone's daily routine is completely different. But consider first that daily average temperatures and wind speeds have very little relation to the maximum/minimum ranges you might experience when you least expect it. Remember back to the last time you had a really cold day you were totally unprepared for. Take that experience and use it to inform your future preparations. Your head, hands, face and body will thank you later.