The fire should be located with the thought of some sort of shelter in mind. A shelter is almost a must on a stormy night. A log at the back is better than nothing. A vertical ledge or rock is better and a small cave is probably the best of all natural shelters. Lacking a natural shelter, a brush lean-to can be made. These are far from perfect shelters, but can be made quite snug if the materials are handy and there is sufficient time for good construction. Fir boughs are the best thatch, but other softwood branches can be used. If fir is scarce, it might be better to use some other material for thatch and save the fir boughs for a bed. Some insulation between the body and the ground is almost a necessity on a cold and damp night.

Before a person retires for the night, the boots should be removed and the socks dried, if such a thing is possible. Usually the feet will be warmer if the boots are left off during the night. The arms should be removed from the coat sleeves and the coat buttoned with the arms and hands inside next to the body. Sleep should be possible as long as the fire continues to burn. Usually the increasing cold will awaken the sleeper before the fire is entirely out and replenishing the fuel will increase the heat enough so that additional sleep will be possible. The night may seem long and uncomfortable, but there is no real danger of any serious results from cold or exposure.

I would not care to minimize the danger of cold and exposure, but this difficulty is often exaggerated by many writers of stories of the out-of-doors. A man's physical condition and the clothes which he is wearing, together with his regular living habits, have a great deal to do with his ability to resist cold and exposure. The city man who works in a heated office and lives in a heated home will experience greater danger when exposed to cold than will the man who works outdoors and who is conditioned to winter weather. I have slept out many times without the benefit of a fire when the temperature was below freezing. On one occasion, I awoke at daybreak to find that I was covered with a four-inch layer of new snow. I suffered no ill effects from this experience.

Many people are afraid to sleep in the snow without a fire for fear of freezing while they are asleep. This fear will sometimes cause a person to continue to travel until he is exhausted and in such a case there is real danger if he should try to sleep or rest in the cold. If a man is in good health, properly dressed and conditioned to cold weather, and camps before he becomes too tired, it is possible for him to resist the effects of low temperature. I was caught out one night in the mountains of Colorado between the cities of Leadville and Grand Junction.

When a hunter has to stay in forest or in woods, he has to minimize the dangers from both wild animals and weather. Take all possible steps you can to make yourself safe and comfortable with the things that are available to you.