SESKStuff Everyone Should Know
SESK: Stuff Everyone Should Know · sesk.info/scout-cotton-kills

Why do outdoor folks say 'cotton kills' about cold or wet trips?

Wet cotton stays wet and stops keeping you warm.

  1. Cotton attracts bears
  2. Cotton is too heavy to pack
  3. Wet cotton stops insulating and dries slowly ✔

Why: Cotton jeans and sweatshirts soak up water and sweat and dry slowly, so they pull heat from your body. Wool and synthetic fabrics stay warmer when damp and dry faster.

Huh, didn't know that: Scout Life notes wool holds in heat even if it gets wet.

The dad joke
Why did the cotton shirt stay home from the hike? It didn't want to get soaked in the details.
Like this card?
Play the game

Sources

  1. Scout Life (Scouting America): Cold School https://scoutlife.org/features/146421/cold-school/

Test yourself in the game

Outdoors & CampingIn a layering system, what is the main job of the innermost layer?Outdoors & CampingYou're lost on a hiking trail. What do you do?Outdoors & CampingA thunderstorm chases you away from the campfire. When is it safe to go back out?

That's stuff everyone should know.