How to Avoid Frostbite

Video Transcript

Frostbite and freezer burn are essentially the same thing. Frostbite occurs when the outer layer of your skin actually freezes. I happened to be guiding at ten below temperatures and I didn't switch my gloves off at noon like I normally do when I can. With the horse, I used to stick my fingers underneath the saddle blanket of the horse to warm them up but my gloves picked up the moisture that the animal was perspiring from under the saddle. So what happened was I froze, I actually frostbit the outer layer of my fingers and I lost two or three layers of skin. And this is ten years later I still cannot pickup finger food like French fries. I've lost that layer of skin so those French fries are too hot for me to pick up. Frostbite is a real subtle feeling, it isn't like getting hit with a hammer. What happens with frostbite is you start feeling warm, my fingers are really cold. It was ten below out, I was doing everything, we was on stand for about two hours. I didn't have all this extra gear because I was packing it with horses and we were planning on leaving a little bit early. But frostbite is a slow penetrating of cold and then all of a sudden your hands will feel warm and that's your danger signal. Cause what happens is it actually burns the ends of your nerve endings off, it freezes the ends of your nerves so you no longer feel the cold. To counteract the effects of frostbite once you feel your hands get warm, I knew I was in trouble so I went and exchanged to a new pair of gloves, ones that were dry and then I warmed up my hands and my armpits so I wouldn't have anymore frostbite damage.

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