Snow Camping with 2 yrd old

[super doody]

I'm thinking about camping with our friends at Kirkwood but I'm a little concerned as we have 2 yr little girl. Looks like night time lows are in the 20s. The coldest we have camped is in the 40s. We have been camping with her from April to Sept.

We have a furnace, I'm planning to install the thermal pack. I'll also planning on installing reflectix around the outside of the vinyl and in the windows.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Jim

 

[enelson]

20F should be fine with the thermal pack with the top up and sleeping in the cabover bed. In our Hallmark, we are fine in the cabover bed until around 10F. If it's big enough one parent could sleep in the dinette bed with the 2 yr old or just the kid in the dinette. The lower bed will stay warmer since cold air is not directly below. You will get some condensation overnight but should be able to get it mostly dry in the morning with the furnace and open overhead vent. We use a hypervent brand mesh pad under the mattress to reduce the condensation that builds up there. You may end up with the mattress frozen to the camper overnight!

 

[northshorehenry]

You will be fine. Your camper will be as warm as the amount of propane and battery bank you are willing to throw at it. If you have shore power, even better. I just got back in similar conditions without the thermal pack and I was incredibly comfortable in the camper. Ate supper outside by the fire and retired to a cozy bed at night.

 

[LookyLou]

We were camped in the teens over Christmas and New Years and below freezing every night. If you're worried about her not staying covered have her sleep in a snowsuit. That's what we did when my son was that age; he's 7 now. We set the thermostat at 50 which is as low as it would go. The furnace kicked on 3 to 5 times curing the night depending on how low the outside temp was. A 10 lb bottle of propane lasted 11 nights.

Keep the thermal pack up year round. It's a good insulator in hot weather too.

 

[Ace!]

I think you'll be fine. A two-year old can be a handful, obviously and you'll be in tight quarters.

One thing to keep in mind is a child's metabolism does not regulate body temperature as well as an adult. It is easier for them to lose body heat or not generate the heat that your body will.

What does that mean? You'll want to be mindful that they may be cold (to the point of being uncomfortable) when you might consider it a slight chill. Not that it would go this far, but children are likely to get hypothermic long before an adult will. Make sure she has a good base layer on all the time and it will probably serve to keep her more comfortable when you might not notice the chill in the air.

 

[97grandby]

We have been camping many times with temps in the teens in our campers and kept it plenty warm inside. camping with kids is great, just make sure you have toys and ways to keep them busy inside when it's to cold outside. I went on Amazon and picked up a rail gaurd for a twin bed that is designed to keep kids rolling off their bed at home. I use this on the cab over part of the camper and makes a great loft/ built in playpen. Also, grab a box of zip lock bags large enough to put the diapers on once used. That will save you a bit of the smell when you pack them back out. Have fun!


1990 Ford F-250
1997 fwc grandby

 

[super doody]

Thanks all for the confirmation. Because she rolls around a lot so blankets don't stay on her, she always sleeps in a north face bunting with thermals underneath when we camp. We may just have to have to put a down jacket on top of bunting.

 

[Jon&Sue_DeArman]

Drive to your nearest REI and buy a Childrens Mummy Sleeping Bag. She should get good use out of it till she is 6-8 years old. Then cover her head with a snap-on warm hat and throw a hand-warmer in if you feel worried. We winter snow camped in the Cascades in Tents with children from 6 months - 2 years (when they became too heavy to carry & too small to walk) Just equip them right.

 

[PAU in Montana]

Over the New Year my Daughter and I went on a camping skiing adventure. Our temp when we arrived to set up camp were -4, when we woke up it was -10. We stayed warm without any additional insulation such as an artic pack. We did put our Therma-rest over the glass windows. As stated above, it come down to power, battery of shore. I say go for it and have fun!!

 

[Ace!]

We used to have REI children mummy bag for both my kids. In the words of Tony the Tiger, "THEY'RE GREAT ! ! !"