-40C

From the time that I first knew that I’d be coming to Fort McMurray, one of the questions that continually raised itself in my mind was, “What the hell can -40C actually feel like?” It was simply inconceivable. And the reality was that given we were only going to be here for 6 weeks, we weren’t going to find out anyway unless there was a visit to be made from the other side of the country during winter.

Well, I think it’s well chronicled that we never actually left Fort Mac and so suffice to say, -40 is not something that I am familiar (if not comfortable) with. In truth the winter here has been milder than I had been led to believe. And that’s not saying that 2 weeks straight where the temperature barely gets above -30 is a fun and enjoyable thing, but from the horror stories that I’d heard, I was expecting the entire two months of January and February to over around the -40 mark. I’m sure as hell glad that they didn’t.

I guess it’s a bit like summer back home with the other end of the scale. We talk about how damn hot it is and the fact that it hits +43C, but the reality is that it’s really only a handful of days through the season that really hit those peaks. And it’s the times when 3 or 4 of them line up that really get you, which is exactly when the weather here can really start to get you down.

Now when I say I had no concept of what -40 would be like, the reality was that I didn’t even have an idea what -20 would be like and that’s cold enough! But when -40 hits the cold is bone-sapping. You sure as hell have to make sure that you’re adequately dressed before you go outside, because if you don’t you feel it instantly. There’s no gradual cooling and realisation, if you don’t have enough layers on, whatever part of you is most exposed will feel it straight away.

The first thing you usually do when you step outside is inadvertently take a nice deep breath of fresh air. And when you do this, the cold air hits your throat and in my experience, the second thing you do is cough. It’s just too bloody cold to take in big lung-fulls of air. So you tend to breathe a little shallower just because its less painful that way. And of course, if you happen to breathe through your nose, it feels like your nostrils suck up instant freeze and that the hairs have crusted over and sealed it off as if you pinched your nose and were unable to release your nostrils.

Exposed skin feels like it ices over and it sure doesn’t take long for it to start going numb. For me personally, the worst is the ears. Just a couple of minutes outside at this temperature and the tips of my ears start to ache. Perhaps ache isn’t quite right because its more of a focused and intense pain than a general ache. Regardless, it’s enough to encourage you to carry a beanie (or toque (pronounced touk)) around to protect yourself. And if you’re walking out into the plant, you wear a full balaclava.

But the thing that surprised me most about this temperature was getting into the car. If it’s been sitting unheated for a while, the steering wheel is so damn cold that you end up trying to drive with the tips of your fingers (or simply wear gloves) and the seat is hard because all the cushioning is of course frozen (and if you don’t have warm enough pants on, you sure as hell feel the cold attacking your nether regions).

And of course beyond the personal physical aspects, there’s the less-considered (well by me at least) problem that the fluids in the engine are all extremely cold. So as you go to turn the wheel you realise that the power steering needs a little more time to warm up as you haul on the steering wheel in an effort to get around the corner, the brakes need some time as you pump away trying to come to that first stop and if you happen to hit any bumps … well the wheels feel a little square until the tyres get there and the suspension needs some time to thaw somewhat too, so you tend to feel them bumps!

Finally, there’s the wind chill. I’ve heard of wind chill before and I’ve even felt its effect somewhat back home on those blowy wintery days, but I never gave it that much credence. Well stamp me converted. When they say that the temperature is going to be -30 with a 15 degree wind chill … they mean it. It takes bugger all of a breeze at these temperatures to become significantly colder and more painful to deal with!

So despite the fact that winter wasn’t as bad as people led me to believe … I can’t wait for the balmy highs of -1C again … great for skiing and entirely survivable. Not to mention when I get to come home in March! Nothing like looking at today’s forecast in Fort McMurray and seeing a current temperature of -23C (with a high of -9C) and then flicking over to good old Adelaide with a forecast high of +39!