Why I love being a writer

[rachelmanija]

I just emailed a friend this question in complete seriousness:

How many miles do you think is vaguely plausible for people to think they can walk in a blizzard if they have supernatural resiliency and can also turn into snow leopards?

Comments

[twistedchick]

Re hunkering down, etc. ^^^ what's already been said.

What I haven't seen mentioned is temperature and relative humidity.

It is possible to get to a point where it's too cold to snow -- what comes down is dry and powdery and has little ability to protect you from heat loss if you hunker down into it, unlike the thicker sorts of snow. When it's that cold (we're talking anywhere from -10 to -50, and yes I've been in -50), the air is crisp and generally clear, any wind blows around what's already there and doesn't tend to add to it. You have to keep moving your fingers and toes to avoid frostbite, even inside two layers of wool and the heaviest most insulated boots, and all exposed skin will frost over within minutes, which is not what you want. In those conditions, turn into a snow leopard, wrap that heavily insulated tail (with its fat deposits) around feet and face, find a snowbank behind a rock formation or other shelter, and stay there and endure. As a human, you're dead very fast otherwise.

If the temperature is above 0 F and it's snowing and if the people involved have suitable outdoor clothes for the weather, ones that cover all exposed skin -- snorkel hoods that heat their breath would be a plus -- they could probably walk a couple of miles -- depending on the wind speed and how slippery it is underfoot. You can lean against a wind while walking, but it's tiring; if you slip every time you put a foot down, it's too much work. It would take a lot of effort, regardless; they would be exhausted when they got to where they're going, and would need water first and then food, and somewhere to warm up that wouldn't be too fast (a hot bath on top of frostbite is intensely painful.)

It also matters a lot whether they are walking uphill, downhill, across ice, over rocks, etc.

Hope some of that is useful.