"Make Sure Jack Frost Only Nips At Your Nose!"

Frostbite describes the condition that occurs when skin and underlying body tissues freeze as a result of exposure to cold. When skin and body tissues freeze, the water contained in each involved cell expands. Healthy warm cells are very elastic, but cells that are freezing are rigid. The result? As body tissue fluid freezes and expands, the cells split open, much like an over-filled container placed in the freezer. The cellular damage that results from frostbite can lead to severe disfiguration and even death.

Frostbite can occur anytime the environmental temperature or the wind chill drops below freezing, 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Uncovered areas of the body are most likely to suffer, with the nose, ears, cheeks, chin, fingers and toes most often affected. Frostbite can set in very slowly, or very quickly depending on how long the skin is exposed to the cold and how cold and windy it is. It cannot be emphasised strongly enough that frostbite need not happen even at extremes of altitude, temperature and fatigue: frequently a degree of carelessness is the chief cause.

Frostbite occurs in three stages; frostnip, superficial frostbite, and deep frostbite. The initial stage is called frostnip. The skin turns unusually white and soft and will have a pins and needles feeling. This can easily be treated by blowing warm breath on the frost-nipped area or soaking the area in warm water.

Superficial frostbite occurs when the skin freezes and ice crystals form inside the skin cells, but the tissue underneath remains flexible. The skin turns yellow-grey, painless, numb and leathery or waxy to the touch. Upon warming, the area will turn red and painful as blood flow to the area returns to normal. A few hours after thawing the tissue swells and during the first two days giant blisters form. Try not to break them. These blisters settle during the first week leaving tissue hideously discoloured, and if gangrenous, shrunken and black. This carapace, or shell separates in several weeks. If the frostbite is superficial, pink new skin will appear beneath the carapace: if deep, the end of a toe or finger will gradually separate off - an unsightly but usually painless process.

In deep frostbite the tissue is hard, white and obviously frozen, like a piece of chicken from a freezer. This is the most serious type of frostbite because it affects the blood vessels, muscles, nerves, tendons and even bone. It can lead to permanent damage, blood clots and sometimes gangrene, which is the death and decay of body tissues. In deep frostbite, the affected areas become completely numb to all feeling and remain cool and splotchy or blue after warming. The frost-bitten area will turn black and hard. The skin surrounding the area may swell up and stay swollen for a month or longer. If gangrene develops, amputation of the finger or limb may be necessary.

If you suspect frostbite, seek shelter. Remove wet, constrictive clothing and place the frostbitten area in direct skin-to-skin contact with a warm area on the victim or a buddy. Seek immediate medical attention to prevent infection and possible loss of a limb. Even with deep frostbite, if medical treatment is prompt, most frozen limbs may be saved.

Note: Do not rewarm a frostbite injury if it could refreeze during evacuation.
Do not rewarm frostbitten feet if victim must walk for medical treatment.

Frostbite can usually be prevented by using caution in extreme cold weather. Layer your clothing. Many layers of thin clothing are warmer than one bulky layer. Air spaces trap body warmth close to the skin, insulating the body against the cold. Wear two or three pairs of socks instead of one heavy pair, for example, and wear roomy shoes. Cover all possible body surfaces. Wear a hat, ear muffs, a scarf and mittens. Don't drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes. Alcohol dilates blood vessels, causing the body to lose heat quickly. Smoking slows down blood circulation to the extremities. Keep dry. Wet clothing is 20 times less warm than dry clothing. If you know that you are going to be out in the cold for any length of time, it is always wise to carry extra clothing with you.

Pay attention to the warning signs of frostbite so you can prevent or treat it promptly. Remember the lower the temperature, the greater the risk of injury. Even if it is not very cold outside, high winds can reduce temperatures to dangerously low levels, making frostbite more of a danger. Also, people who have experienced frostbite need to be even more careful because they are more likely to suffer from it again. Other factors that may make a person more likely to get frostbite include being wet, exhausted, intoxicated by alcohol, taking certain medicines or drugs, smoking, diabetes and poor circulation.

Much like your Monday through Friday life, Backwoods Adventures carry risks. By learning about these risks and taking preventive measures, you can minimize your chance for trouble and get maximum pleasure out of your outdoor adventures. Until next time...Maggie B.

"The Windy Day Buck"

It was a Wednesday night, October 24th and I was full of anticipation and excitement. I had taken off the next two days from work and planned to bow hunt for the entire weekend. I had scouted the farm I was hunting for about a month now and from reading the signs, knew of several good locations to use my climbing tree stand and wait for the buck of my dreams to appear. My daypack was loaded with all of my calls, scents, flashlights, water bottle, etc. My bow and arrows were tuned to perfection. My camouflage clothing was laid out, so all I had to do was try and get some sleep, wake up, get dressed and go hunting.

Thursday morning finally arrived; the alarm went off and I practically jumped out of bed and into the shower. I got dressed and went out to my truck to begin the yearly ritual of deer hunting. As I stepped outside my heart sank because a 40-mph wind gust blew the hat right off my head. A cold front was approaching and in front of it were the strongest winds of the year coming out of the west, northwest. Imagine my disappointment. I had waited a whole year, took off work, and had let my imagination build this hunt up in my mind to be the hunt of all hunts. Mother Nature it seems had other ideas and was robbing me of my chances for success on the very first hunt of the season.

Over the years I have hunted white tail deer and been successful in a variety of different weather conditions. Snow, rain, warm weather, and extreme cold have all tried to hamper my hunts and for the most part I have always been able to beat the odds and harvest deer. The one weather condition I have not been able to overcome is wind. You and I both know that on windy days deer don't like to move. Extreme wind robs them of their sense of smell. Trees bending and leaves rustling take away their hearing. All of which makes them vulnerable to danger and predators in their environment. I have sat on a stand many a windy day without seeing a deer.

After retrieving my hat that had been blown off my head, I went back into the house and turned on the weather channel, made a cup of coffee and contemplated my situation. The way I saw it, I had three choices. I could sit on the couch and mope while watching day time television, which is one of my visions of what hell must be like. I could catch up on some household chores, which would make my wife happy, and by the way is another vision of what hell is like. Or, I could go out into the woods and make the best of it. As you might have guessed I chose option number three.

I decided not to take my climbing stand. The thought of being in a tree with 40-mph wind gusts was not very appealing to me. My thought was to take my bow and light fanny pack and walk around two cornfields so I could approach the woods with the wind in my face and do some slow scouting for another stand location. Or, see if I could find more deer sign in parts of the woods that I have not previously scouted. In my mind I had already decided that I was not going to see any deer, but I thought, at least I could salvage the day and do something constructive in the woods in order to be ready to hunt the rest of the weekend after the winds had subsided.

About 11 A.M. I sat down on a tree stump to rest. I was on a fairly open ridge. Below me about 10 yards was a small creek, and on the other side was a ridge going up that had a fair amount of trees and was quite brushy. I did not hear them coming, but right before my eyes topping the ridge in front of me and heading toward the creek were two bucks. A wide racked 10 pointer and smaller 7 pointer were no more than 30 yards away and walking towards me. I immediately dropped my head down so they would not see my face and started fumbling to get an arrow out of my quiver and onto my bow.

Both deer stopped and the 10 pointer sensed something wrong about his current situation, namely me sitting in the open right in front of him. He stopped, turned, and bolted back over the ridge from whence he came. Right then I just knew the game was over when to my amazement the 7 pointer looked at the fleeing 10 pointer, looked at me and then dropped his head and started eating acorns. I stood up and came to full draw. When the buck walked out of the brush he was a mere 25 yards away. I sent my 100 grain muzzy broad head on its way. It was a complete pass through shot a little farther back than I would have liked.

The buck went down, got back up and slowly staggered away. After about one hour I went to the spot I had shot him and was happy to see quite a lot of dark red blood. I followed the blood trail and claimed my deer. The shot had taken out his liver and once again muzzy broad heads had lived up to their slogan, "Bad to the Bone." If you have not shot muzzy broad heads, I highly recommend that you give them a try. The terminal damage done on deer is devastating which makes for a quick humane kill.

The 7 pointer I harvested was not the biggest or prettiest rack in the woods. He will, however, make some fantastic venison sausage and will always be a trophy in my heart and wonderful memory in my mind. After all, I took this deer on a day so windy you could not even hear yourself think. To me he will always be the windy day buck.

I'm Kenny, and I hope I have all of you in my corner.

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