Two inches of foam under the bag matters more than the bag rating
Late-season storms are still feeding on warm water. Three moves before the next front.
Issue #056 Monday, October 12, 2026 Emergency Skills
A cold floor pulls heat out of your body faster than cold air ever will. The rating on your sleeping bag tag assumes you put something underneath it.
Today’s Skill
Build the stack under you
Heat drains straight down into the floor all night. Build a stack. Cardboard or a closed cell foam pad goes first, then a folded wool blanket, then your bag or bedding on top. Two inches of loft under you beats two more blankets over you. Away from home, a flat tarp folded twice works. Keep your head off the cold surface and stuff a jacket into a pillowcase.
On The Radar
Warm water, cold fronts, same month
Hurricane season does not close until the end of November, and October storms feed on water that is still warm. The same fronts pushing south can spin tornadoes across the Gulf states. Do three things this week. Look up your evacuation zone and write it on the fridge. Refuel at half a tank, not empty. Charge every battery bank and put a paper map in the truck.
The Drill
Sleep on the floor tonight
Tonight, pick the smallest room with a door. Build one sleep stack on the floor using what you already own. Pad or cardboard, blanket, bedding. Lie on it for fifteen minutes with the heat off and the door shut. Note the cold spots. Fix them now, while the hardware store is open and the power is on.
Ready beats lucky.
- Survival Rise
P.S. Tomorrow: the three gallons of fuel most people forget they already have.