Soap Creek

Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forest, Colorado

Tonight: low 44 °F, frost likely.

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 July, typically 52°F. The coldest are in January, when 1 night in 10 drops to -3°F. Frost is common in January, February, March, April, May, October, November and December.

Typical nightCold night (1 in 10)
  1. Jan7°F -3°FBag comfortable to -5°F · frost 100% · rain or snow 30% of days
  2. Feb11°F 0°FBag comfortable to 0°F · frost 100% · rain or snow 35% of days
  3. Mar18°F 7°FBag comfortable to 5°F · frost 100% · rain or snow 37% of days
  4. Apr25°F 14°FBag comfortable to 15°F · frost 97% · rain or snow 27% of days
  5. May33°F 25°FBag comfortable to 25°F · frost 47% · rain or snow 25% of days
  6. Jun45°F 38°FBag comfortable to 40°F · frost 1% · rain or snow 18% of days
  7. Jul52°F 47°FBag comfortable to 50°F · frost 0% · rain or snow 24% of days
  8. Aug50°F 46°FBag comfortable to 45°F · frost 0% · rain or snow 23% of days
  9. Sep (this month)43°F 37°FBag comfortable to 40°F · frost 1% · rain or snow 22% of days
  10. Oct33°F 20°FBag comfortable to 20°F · frost 45% · rain or snow 23% of days
  11. Nov21°F 3°FBag comfortable to 5°F · frost 92% · rain or snow 23% of days
  12. Dec10°F -3°FBag comfortable to -5°F · frost 100% · rain or snow 29% 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.

Cold air collects in this hollow

Your setup looks borderline for this night

You may feel chilly from around 3 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.

  • Low outside44°F
  • Moisturefrost, keep your bag covered
  • Windcalm

Your night

  1. 10 p.m. to 3 a.m.ComfortableAir around you 47 to 43°F.
  2. 3 a.m. to 4 a.m.Chilly. Add a layerAir around you 42°F, some dew.
  3. 4 a.m. to 6 a.m.ComfortableAir around you 49 to 48°F.
  4. 6 a.m. until morningChilly. Add a layerAir around you 39 to 38°F, frost from 7 a.m.
Every hour
  • 10 p.m.47°Fcomfortable
  • 11 p.m.45°Fcomfortable
  • midnight44°Fcomfortable
  • 1 a.m.44°Fcomfortable
  • 2 a.m.43°Fcomfortable
  • 3 a.m.42°Fchilly, some dew
  • 4 a.m.49°Fcomfortable
  • 5 a.m.48°Fcomfortable
  • 6 a.m.39°Fchilly, some dew
  • 7 a.m.38°Fchilly, frost

This spot sits about 62 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-6).

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 3 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.
How we estimated this

At the coldest hour (7 a.m.):

Outside at your spot
44°F
Warmth your shelter holds
+2 °F
Clear-sky cooling
−2 °F
Low spot
−7 °F
Air around you
37°F
Your bag's comfort rating
39°F
Cold ground through what you lie on
+4 °F
Your comfort limit
43°F

6 °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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