Elk Bend Recreation Site
Tonight: low 44 °F, heavy dew.
Nights by month
Night lows from 2016 to 2025: a typical night, and the cold one that comes 1 night in 10.
The mildest nights are in August, typically 54°F. The coldest are in February, when 1 night in 10 drops to 23°F. Frost is common in January, February, March, April, November and December.
- Jan34°F 28°FBag comfortable to 30°F · frost 36% · rain or snow 63% of days
- Feb33°F 23°FBag comfortable to 25°F · frost 44% · rain or snow 63% of days
- Mar34°F 28°FBag comfortable to 30°F · frost 33% · rain or snow 59% of days
- Apr38°F 32°FBag comfortable to 30°F · frost 12% · rain or snow 53% of days
- May43°F 38°FBag comfortable to 40°F · frost 0% · rain or snow 40% of days
- Jun46°F 41°FBag comfortable to 40°F · frost 0% · rain or snow 28% of days
- Jul51°F 47°FBag comfortable to 50°F · frost 0% · rain or snow 8% of days
- Aug54°F 49°FBag comfortable to 50°F · frost 0% · rain or snow 12% of days
- Sep (this month)51°F 46°FBag comfortable to 45°F · frost 0% · rain or snow 28% of days
- Oct45°F 38°FBag comfortable to 40°F · frost 2% · rain or snow 45% of days
- Nov38°F 32°FBag comfortable to 30°F · frost 10% · rain or snow 62% of days
- Dec34°F 27°FBag comfortable to 25°F · frost 31% · rain or snow 63% of days
| = 32°F
History: ERA5 and ERA5-Land reanalysis via Open-Meteo, corrected to the site's elevation. Bag rating: the comfort rating that keeps you warm in a tent on 9 of 10 nights that month.
Tonight
Worth a lookFriday, September 25, 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.
Your setup looks borderline for this night
You may feel chilly from around 4 a.m.
Your spot sits in a hollow where cold air collects at night.
Best change
Move 20 to 50 meters higher, away from the valley floor or creek.
- On clear, calm nights it is often several degrees warmer there.
This is based on typical values for the gear types you picked, so treat it as an estimate.
Your night
- 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.ComfortableAir around you 55 to 47°F, heavy dew.
- 4 a.m. until morningChilly. Add a layerAir around you 41 to 39°F, heavy dew.
Every hour
- 10 p.m.55°Fcomfortable, heavy dew
- 11 p.m.54°Fcomfortable, heavy dew
- midnight53°Fcomfortable
- 1 a.m.51°Fcomfortable
- 2 a.m.50°Fcomfortable
- 3 a.m.47°Fcomfortable, some dew
- 4 a.m.41°Fchilly, heavy dew
- 5 a.m.39°Fchilly, heavy dew
- 6 a.m.40°Fchilly, heavy dew
- 7 a.m.40°Fchilly, heavy dew
This spot sits about 75 m below the land around it. On clear, calm nights cold air pools here, so expect it colder and wetter than the forecast.
Times are local time at your spot (GMT-7).
What works tonight
The gear this night calls for, for someone who sleeps like you.
- Missing
Sleeping bag
Comfort 35°F or colder
Usually sold as a 26° bag. The number in a bag's name is the limit, not the comfort.
- You have this
Underneath you
R1.5 or more
The R-value says how well a pad keeps the cold ground out.
- Worth adding
Also useful
A bag liner
Adds a few degrees to the bag you already own.
Before you sleep
- Put on a warm layer and a hat before about 4 a.m., or go to bed already wearing them.
- Eat a proper meal with some fat before bed. Your body keeps burning it through the night.
- Pee right before you get in your bag. Getting out at 3 a.m. in the cold is worse.
- Sleep in dry clothes, not the ones you wore all day. Damp fabric pulls heat out of you.
- Your spot sits lower than the ground around it. On a clear, calm night cold air drains into spots like this, so expect it colder and wetter than the forecast. If you can, move a little higher up, away from the creek or valley floor.
- Bring shoes, clothes and electronics inside. Anything left out will be wet by morning.
- Open the tent vents and keep the door zip open a bit at the top. Some condensation inside is normal on a night like this, so bring a small towel to wipe it off.
How we estimated this
At the coldest hour (5 a.m.):
- Outside at your spot
- 45°F
- Warmth your shelter holds
- +2 °F
- Clear-sky cooling
- −2 °F
- Low spot
- −7 °F
- Air around you
- 38°F
- Your bag's comfort rating
- 39°F
- Cold ground through what you lie on
- +4 °F
- Your comfort limit
- 43°F
5 °F short, so you will likely be cold.
Assumptions
- Bag categories use typical ratings as sold: summer about 50 °F (10 °C), 3-season about 30 °F (-1 °C), winter about 15 °F (-9 °C). The number in a bag's name is usually its lower limit, so its comfort rating is about 9 °F (5 °C) warmer.
- What you lie on: foam mat about R2, thin air pad about R1.5, insulated pad about R3.5, winter pad R5 and up, van bed about R4, air mattress about R0.5. Colder ground needs a higher R-value.
- Shelters hold a few degrees early in the night and less towards morning. Wind and clear, calm skies take warmth away.
- Weather: Open-Meteo forecast for your spot, on a grid of a few kilometers, corrected to its height.
- These are rules of thumb, not measurements. People and gear vary.
A forecast, not a promise. Mountains, valleys and water make their own weather, so trust what you see and feel on site. Terms and liability
Checked for a double-wall tent, a 3-season bag and a thin air pad. Check your own gear here.
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