Hi - planning my first overnight in the BWCA (I've been car camping and making day trips). I plan on going mid May and once I get to my campsite - I will basecamp and fish from there. My question is - how does everyone stay warm at night? I'm allergic to down and limited to my gear size (I use a pack canoe). Last May it got down to the upper 30's at night and I was fine in my van with my coat and blankets. Suggestions please. How do you stay warm at night

Thank you - Merry Christmas - come on Spring.

An insulated pad. A 10 or 20 degree bag. I do a trip every May. The insulated pad is key.

^^^ What plander said. ^^^ My first suggestion is to not go in May. :)

Bummer that you're allergic to down because there is no better sleeping bag than one filled with down. With that said, there are warm fiber-filled sleeping bags and you'll want one that fits you comfortably. By the sound of things, you'll be looking to buy a new bag? If so, go to a store where you can actually crawl in them, lay on a pad and decide what fits you best. REI is good for that, but I'm sure there are others in your area.

After you've chosen your bag, make sure you wear layers in the bag just like you would outside of the tent. Put on, or take off, the layers as you need to be comfortable. And don't forget a stocking hat. It makes a huge difference in body warmth because we lose so much heat from our heads.

Everyone sleeps differently. What's comfortable to you could be freezing to someone else (or vice versa). However, one thing is for certain - the preparation you do on the front end will pay dividends in comfort when you're out in the wilderness.

A few thoughts:

You need to be prepared for the lowest temperature you might experience. I go to weather.com and look up monthly for May and click on the days I will be there to find the record low, which in your case may be close to 20 degrees.

You can find a lot of information on sleeping bag and pad ratings and the protocol at

Section Hiker by searching bag and pad ratings.

In short bags have three ratings. The name of the bag is usually the lowest, but you'll want to look at the middle (comfort) rating. These ratings are based on (1) using a pad with at least an r-value of 5 and wearing a base layer, including beanie and socks.

You will want a bag comfort rated to at least as low as 20 degrees, a pad rated at an r-value of at least 5, and will want a warm, dry base layer, socks, and beanie dedicated to sleeping. Many of us pack these in a Sea-to-Summit e-Vent compression stuff sack as additional protection against wet.

I'll note that sleeping pad r-values are cumulative.

You might look into canned heat the type of sugar cane based fuel ok for in doors used by truckers in case of an emergency or used under buffet warming trays. They make a tent safe canned heat camping heater which you can find on line or in store. Just be sure to put it in a safe place in your vehicle on top of a piece of plywood or tin and crack a window open slightly if it gets too warm inside your vehicle. Lots of Loggers and Woodlands Bush Workers carry canned heat in the winter incase of an emergency and stay put with the equipment if it fails and they can stay warm while they call for help.

Hot Rocks! Literally.

Some people will boil water and put it in a nalgene. We have a different method. We will place fist size rocks next to a fire. When they get nice and toasty, we put them in old socks. Those go in the sleeping bag with us. I usually place them near my feet. My problem is that I usually have to get out at least once in the night. Then getting back in and warm again with the rocks only medium warm at best can be tricky. But then again, I don't usually go in May.

Michwall2: "Hot Rocks! Literally.

Some people will boil water and put it in a Nalgene. We have a different method. We will place fist size rocks next to a fire. When they get nice and toasty, we put them in old socks. Those go in the sleeping bag with us. I usually place them near my feet. My problem is that I usually have to get out at least once in the night. Then getting back in and warm again with the rocks only medium warm at best can be tricky. But then again, I don't usually go in May.

I've seen the cowboys build a fire and cover it with dirt then sleep on top of it things could get pretty warm maybe even catch the bed roll on fire. I've only seen it in the old cowboy movies though like... My Name is Nobody, Trinity??

All good suggestions, good insulated pad, a base layer or longies to sleep in, synthetic, a hat. I would also suggest throwing in an inexpensive space blanket in case you get hit with lower than expected temps. I can think of one time when I was very happy that I had one on Isle Royale.

I also agree with those who suggest not going in mid-May if you are gear limited. A good tarp or two is essential. Freezing wind and precipitation blowing in without a wind block top and windward is miserable. Tools for lots of wood processing.

I would add a thick balaclava to the kit. First half of the night is the easy part. Add head coverings later in the night and finish zipping up the bag as needed. Keep a jacket nearby to pull over late in the night.

I've been looking at adding something like this to my sleep system. It's a 1/8" foam pad with a .5 R-value. Just another layer between me and the ground, depending on how it feels I was considering putting it on top of my Exped inflatable pad so I have the air for support and foam for softness. The pad can then be folded in half or thirds to line the pack while traveling.

I like the idea of being able to add layers to my sleeping pad for additional warmth and comfort, as well as having back up options in case the pad fails. The same could be said about the bag if you added a liner or extra blanket on top.

This is what I do for my May trips to keep warm.
sleep pad -- I no longer use an inflatable pad but use 2 Ridgerest foam pads. no leaks, no slipping off pad, decent R value, kind of bulky but light and waterproof so I strap them outside of my pack. A reflective pad is also a consideration.
I use an over size bag because I'm a restless side sleeper but a mummy style bag is said to be warmer. Something to keep your head and face warm, I use a hoody or if it's really cold a beany.
The hot water bottle is a great hack. (can't believe I used the term "hack", the internet is polluting my brain)
DRY sleeping clothes!! Designated sleeping clothes not for anything else aired out whenever possible. ( damp clothes make for a miserable night) I use a light weight Morino wool- blend longs, wool sox and the hoody. Thinking of adding down booties rather then sox, you could maybe use the liners from pac boots.
Go to bed warm with a full belly. Start out cold and it takes a long time to get your body temp up without an outside heat source, your bag only insulates your own body temperature it doesn't generate heat.
Chemical body warmers. Same principle as the hand warmers but larger with an adhesive backing. One up front and one in back lasts for hours.
Last but most important, absolutely critical, life saving!!!!!!! PEE BOTTLE! Gross but much better then putting shoes on and going outside the tent and finding a volunteer tree.

I'd be very careful in mid May as the water may only have become ice free by mere days. Even the May Long Weekend is often very cold with fatalities happening due to people falling in the water and getting hypothermia regularly every year it seems. I had a Oru Lake Light weight compact foldable kayak which I flipped the very first time out close to town and soon after sold it. Oru Lake Solo 9ft long, 32 inches width & 16lbs in weight as compared to Wenonah Pack Canoe Wee Lassie @ 10 ft long, 27 inches width, & 16lbs in weight. I haven't taken a Pack Canoe for a paddle before but the narrower width would probably mean that it would be even more tippy. I would want to be very familiar and comfortable with a canoe that early in the season. I've used inflatable boats with oars total weight 5lbs many times to fish stocked lakes as soon as the ice is out for specks they are a solid fishing platform cheap and easy to carry in for miles and inflate/deflate at the lake. If the Pack canoe has not been tested I'd take it out for an hour close to town before the big trip to see how it handles.

Empty your bladder.
Take a hike with the headlamp or exercise before bed to warm up. It takes 18 minutes of hiking for my body to be ready for cold weather sleep.
Go to bed warm......stay warm.
Go to bed cold......stay cold.
A hot water bottle is nice. So is a hat.

Cold weather camping is more about how you set up your body to do it more than it is the gear to do it. Anyone can read a bag rating. Not everyone can make a routine to make sure their body is ready first.

Ordered by importance for shoulder season camping, in my experience:
- properly rated sleeping pad (may be even a spare foam pad for emergency);
- sleeping bag, rated at least 20F, with a hoodie;
- warm (wool) socks;
- beanie;
- thermal bag liner;
- warm underwear;
- compact tent with limited mesh panels (i.e. more solid fabric) on the inner tent.

If it's going to be cold bring the Exped Downmat9. That and a decent 20 degree bag will take you far. If still cold adding a sweater or fleece on wadded on your chest near the collar of the bag can make a big difference.

Most useful knowledge I've gleaned over the years is to not be cold when you retire to your sleeping bag if you're worried about being cold. Find the nearest hill and hike up it so that you start warm. Makes a massive difference imho!

These are all great suggestions for insulating your body and keeping its heat from dissipating. I would add that it’s also very important to stoke the “furnace” before going to bed so your body has plenty of calories to burn throughout the night. I do a lot of cold weather (including winter) camping here in Alaska and I can’t understate the value of consuming extra calories, especially fat.
All that being said I would also add a word of caution in that you can over do it with wearing too many clothes to bed. Just be careful not to sweat when you’re first getting into bed and if you do vent some excess heat and sweat away. That little bit of moisture can haunt you later. I often go to sleep with my bag open a little and then close it later, trusting my body to slowly burn calories through the night like a well tended wood stove.

I usually use hip waders in the early spring when as I am able to do some get in and out without getting wet and get out and cast. I like lots of beam in a canoe my old aluminum canoes bumping them out to 35 inches too get a little extra. Nothing like this though.. Slipstream Water Craft Sacandaya 14 ft canoe with 39 inches of width and 12 inches of depth you could probably stand and jig Lakers. sipstreamwatercraft.com Mighty safe canoe by the looks of it...

In shoulder season, we add a scrap piece of Reflectix bubble wrap (kept leftover pieces from a construction project) under our sleeping pads.

Those chemical hand warmers come in handy in the sleeping bag.
I've been using them for many years during the shoulder seasons and winter camping.
Cheap warmth insurance for when you're testing your sleeping bags rating limit.
Not too heavy and they don't take up much room.
One or two usually does the trick.
Usually still warm in the morning, so I put them my jacket pockets to start the day.
Just make sure they are not past the expiration date, duds are no fun when you are expecting instant warmth in the middle of the night.

+1 , i'll bring a bath towel with just for this , but a larger rock(stays warmer longer) ,,, pull away from fire , let it cool down to handle, then wrap , in the tent it goes ;)

I stopped being cold at night when I started sleeping in a hammock. Good top quilt, good bottom quilt, socks and a hat.

Rocks vs. Water Bottles - research which holds heat longer. The answer seems counter-intuitive, but can’t argue the physics of it.

Exo: "I stopped being cold at night when I started sleeping in a hammock. Good top quilt, good bottom quilt, socks and a hat.

Rocks vs. Water Bottles - research which holds heat longer. The answer seems counter-intuitive, but can’t argue the physics of it."

I'll second. I stay warmer and more comfortable since switching to hammock camping. I still use an insulated pad in the hammock when camping around the shoulder seasons.

Everybody's said it, but it's really quite simple. 20 degree or less synthetic mummy bag and a sleep mat.

A few other tips from many cold nights. I wear a stocking cap to bed and throw all my clothes down around my feet. I sleep in a solo tent, so they stay down there.

My bag is a 15 degree down bag and I a have a self inflating thermorest mat. I've had many nights below zero and have always been plenty warm and comfortable.

Thank you all for the good ideas!