Boondock in the sub-arctic

[jazty]

One more thing: battery companies make commercial batteries with calcium (??) which is supposed to be better for cold climates. That's what I have. I don't honestly know much about the calcium additive.. could be snake oil.

 

[Tango-SKO]

I think any Skoolie builder would be wise to consider designing their battery system so that the house batts can be used as back up starting power. Not that complicated and could save a tow or emergency call.

 

[Defjr333]

In those temps I would use AGMs to keep them inside out of the temps. Whatever your "goal" amount of time to be off grid, I would double for emergency. $ vs Life is an easy call.
Doug

 

[Robin97396]

That's a good point about keeping the batteries inside. Do you also keep your gray and black tanks inside to keep them from freezing?

I spent two winters in Alaska in a '80 F-250 Ranger pickup. I believe that was the last year the Ranger was a full size pickup. It was beyond miserable during the couple coldest months. There were a number of occasions I did not expect to wake up because I was so cold while going to sleep. Yeah, good times.

 

[BlackJohn]

Curious as to how one would know what type of road or trail they are heading down before doing so. Will there be parking, turnaround area, snow plowing? Can't even imagine trying to put chains on a bus in those conditions.
You mentioned you have to stay in touch so about being found if no comm.
Pack some marine flairs and or smoke bombs. Pilots will often notice those if any reasonably close. I like the type that are hand held and launch like a rocket. Great altitude and then parachute down with a flare burning brightly. But hag on like hell as you launch and don't flinch, could be nasty in the face.
Thinking you must be the Donald if you have to stay in touch, otherwise everyone is replaceable.
Yes, traps will get buried for sure but most have a marker near the location.
No guarantee though so give a wide berth.
Are there fishers, wolverines and black martins up there besides bears? I think so and they can be formidable opponents. You are not at the top of the food chain up there so keep at all times.

Good to see others chirping in on this topic. Together we should be able to design an excellent cold weather bus on paper at least, lol.
Gotta love the great outdoors!

John

 

[Biscuitsjam]

Sure, I'm replaceable like everyone else in my job, but I'm supposed to be reachable by phone within two hours, and people get pissed after about 20 minutes. I can be out of contact for a weekend if I make arrangements, but I can't ask others to cover down on me too often.

That's not uncommon for Soldiers. There are plenty of others who have similar job requirements (doctors, nurses, tech workers administering certain equipment, and sometimes even building maintenance folks).

On the plus side, who else gets to drive a snow machine out of a helicopter as part of their job?

 

[Kubla]

Satellite phone if contact is that important, but expensive

 

[Biscuitsjam]

That's a good point about keeping the batteries inside. Do you also keep your gray and black tanks inside to keep them from freezing?

I spent two winters in Alaska in a '80 F-250 Ranger pickup. I believe that was the last year the Ranger was a full size pickup. It was beyond miserable during the couple coldest months. There were a number of occasions I did not expect to wake up because I was so cold while going to sleep. Yeah, good times.

Why were you staying in your pickup? Were you at your workplace or somewhere you could keep it plugged in?

What did you use to stay warm besides lots of long underwear?

 

[Biscuitsjam]

Satellite phone if contact is that important, but expensive

There are also devices that will let you send and receive text messages.

As one example, the Delorme In Reach Explorer costs $284 on Amazon. It requires a monthly subscription, but you can start and stop as needed. The cheapest subscription is $12/month plus 50 cents per message.

Amazon link

 

[Biscuitsjam]

I think any Skoolie builder would be wise to consider designing their battery system so that the house batts can be used as back up starting power. Not that complicated and could save a tow or emergency call.

are you talking about just having them close enough to use jumper cables or having something hardwired in the system?

 

[Carytowncat]

Be sure to bring a PSP with Parasite eve 2. That'll take at least a few days to complete fun thread. One thing i have done to keep warm while sleeping is this;

I used to find leather couches in the alley. I would harvest the big sheet pf leather from the back of the couch. Two large leather sheets on top of my matress help keep the cold from coming through.

Now here is the trick i found that is a game changer - a sleeping bag inside of a sleepimg bag inside of a sleeping bag. When it was below 10 this month the water jugs froze solid it was so cold inside the bus at night, however i slept warm and cozy with only two fleece blankets on top of the tripple sleeping bag bed. At above 40 it actually gets too hot ! Lol

Oh and i sleep in a winter coat and hat with a thin cotton blanket over my face.
Feel so accomplished after surviving a cold stretch in the bus.

 

[Biscuitsjam]

Be sure to bring a PSP with Parasite eve 2. That'll take at least a few days to complete fun thread. One thing i have done to keep warm while sleeping is this;

I used to find leather couches in the alley. I would harvest the big sheet pf leather from the back of the couch. Two large leather sheets on top of my matress help keep the cold from coming through.

Now here is the trick i found that is a game changer - a sleeping bag inside of a sleepimg bag inside of a sleeping bag. When it was below 10 this month the water jugs froze solid it was so cold inside the bus at night, however i slept warm and cozy with only two fleece blankets on top of the tripple sleeping bag bed. At above 40 it actually gets too hot ! Lol

Oh and i sleep in a winter coat and hat with a thin cotton blanket over my face.
Feel so accomplished after surviving a cold stretch in the bus.

That's similar to what I do in the Army. Staying comfortable in a bus shouldn't be difficult if you have the right bedding and clothes. I can sleep like a baby on the ground outside in -30 degree weather with what's below:

$145 Army Modular Sleep System (2x mummy bags plus waterproof bivy, rated at -30 fahrenheit)
$18 Microfiber Sleeping Bag
$35 Woobie (in bottom of bag)
$20 Army PT Mat (for insulation and padding)

$16 Silk-weight Top
$15 Silk-weight Bottom
$37 Waffle Top
$28 Waffle Bottom
$5 Fleece Cap (2 of them)
$18 Thick Wool Boot Socks

If I'm still cold, I can add a gaiter neck ($6) or a balaclava ($8) or a "Smoker Jacket" ($14). There are also better civilian-equivalents out there, but the stuff above will keep you toasty.

 

[Robin97396]

Why were you staying in your pickup? Were you at your workplace or somewhere you could keep it plugged in?

What did you use to stay warm besides lots of long underwear?

I first went to Alaska in '81 after getting out of the army. No I didn't have a place to plug in. I had to do it the old fashioned way. I lost my place to live around November when it was already to late to prepare for the freezing weather.

Things like that are interesting to look back on.

 

[majesticmoose]

-40 is a little generous for the Interior. At least in the context of the coldest temps you could possibly encounter there, it can get down to the -70s for short stretches of time in certain areas. Generally it is much warmer, however.

We survived two Anchorage winters in a semi-converted 79 dodge motorhome with a small woodstove. It was essentially a dry cabin and it stayed in one place for that length of time. No plumbing, drinking/utility water in 7 gallon jugs, hot water tank on the woodstove. Compost toilet for solid waste using mostly plant food scraps, ash, sawdust and other organic material. When it snowed, the insulation was superior to anything we could have come up with.

Temps dropped to the -20s on multiple occasions during the coldest months and once we had -30 temps for a few nights in a row. Mostly temps from 0 to 20s/30s for most of the winter months. We are convinced that the woodstove made everything possible. Without it we would have been miserable at the least, dead at the worst.

 

[Biscuitsjam]

Yes, it can get to -70 or colder in parts of the interior, but talking about surviving that turns this into a whole differe t discussion.

Why did you decide to fulltime in Anchorage? Why stop doing it?

 

[majesticmoose]

Part choice, part necessity. At the time when we bought the motorhome, we were in a tight financial situation and decided we would rather spend the money we had to get the vehicle and a woodstove setup. We were very lucky to have a friend who had property to park it on. We ended up having to get it towed there and then our friend, who is a mechanic by trade, worked on the engine for the 2.5 years we were there. We actually were able to drive it for about two weeks and took it on the highway north for a little adventure. It was great! Unfortunately the engine seized and we had to get it towed to a storage facility. Otherwise we would absolutely still be living in it. The plan is to get a mid sized bus and do what we couldn't do last time with the constraints of working with an old motorhome. Bus with a woodstove and a small piece of land is the goal.

As far as choosing to stay in Anchorage, my boyfriend finished his bachelors degree during the time we stayed in the motorhome and we are both able to find work way easier than anywhere outside of Anchorage. We would like to use the bus to get around the highway system and continue our progress towards a more subsistence lifestyle. We already have had a lot of success in downsizing our lives and making our situation more livable through opportunities to fish, forage and, hopefully soon, hunt. We're hoping to spend more time outside of Anchorage than in

 

[Biscuitsjam]

A related question that we've hit on a little bit:

What would you do to increase mobility if you're likely to be somewhere with lots of snow and ice? (Chains, shovel, a bag of kitty litter, etc etc.)

 

[jazty]

A related question that we've hit on a little bit:

What would you do to increase mobility if you're likely to be somewhere with lots of snow and ice? (Chains, shovel, a bag of kitty litter, etc etc.)

If you have a woodstove and are worried about getting stuck then always keep a metal bucket of cold wood ash on hand. It works wonders on ice!

I say cold ash because after the woodstove is cleaned the ash should be given loads of time to let the remaining coals burn out. When cleaning the stove you want as few coals as possible in your ash bucket because starved of oxygen they can smolder for a very long time. Store that bucket outside in a safe location to let it burn out.

There are many house fires every year because people put their ash buckets out on a wooden deck or next to vinyl siding. I just push mine down in the snow away from anything flammable.

Chains are sweet, but you have to remember to put them on _before_ you get stuck.

 

[2martins]

A related question that we've hit on a little bit:

What would you do to increase mobility if you're likely to be somewhere with lots of snow and ice? (Chains, shovel, a bag of kitty litter, etc etc.)

My bus has automatic chains and sanders. I'm hoping they work. Someone told me they are pretty simple and shouldn't be a problem. Knowledgeable local bus guy told me to ALSO carry chains for 2 of my rear drive wheels just in case because the automatic chains can get "kicked out" from under the tires in certain conditions on hills. If you may have to put chains on it's really nice to have a big piece of plastic to lay on while you are doing it.

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