How 7 People Who Live in the Coldest Parts of the Country Stay Warm
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For those who live in the coldest parts of the United States — think rural North Dakota, coastal Alaska, and Buffalo Bills–fan territory — layering up, in most cases, means leaving your good looks at the door. There’s often some long underwear, a turtleneck, a fleece, and then, of course, the puffer on top, which, when added together, won’t leave much skin up for the elements. So I asked a range of people who live in the coldest parts of the U.S. — from large-animal veterinarians in North Dakota and birders in Alaska to dog owners in Boston and bed-and-breakfast owners in Wisconsin — how, exactly, do they stay warm on the coldest days of the year? For most, the answer is, “Layers, layers, layers,” but others recommend just throwing on a knee-length coat. Below, a breakdown of each and every layer they use to stay warm on single-digit days.
Updated on January 13, 2026
These extreme-weather coat favorites have been updated with the latest stock and availability.
A’Moris Bodrick, associate veterinarian at Cooperstown Veterinary Clinic in North Dakota
Though it’s been only two years since veterinarian A’Moris Bodrick made the move from Alabama to North Dakota, he knows exactly what he needs to wear to stay warm while checking on cattle in negative temperatures: somelong underwear from 32 Degrees, a long-sleeved tee, a sweatshirt,a Carhartt vest, and this Carhartt jacket. “Normally we don’t work if it’s colder than negative 30 with the wind chill just because, you know, frostbite is real,” he says — but up until then, it’s fair game. He switches out the Carhartt only when he’s called to pregnancy check a cow. Then, it’s time fora Pella palpating jacketthat unzips down one arm enough that a vet can stick their arm in the cow without surrendering the rest of their upper body to the cold.
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Dana Szymkowiak, lifelong Buffalo Bills fan
“I have been a Bills fan pretty much since I came out of the womb,” says Buffalo, New York, native Dana Szymkowiak, who grew up tailgating with her family outside Highmark Stadium. Now that she’s a season-ticket holder herself, she estimates she’s made it to almost every home game over the past six years — even those notorious January games when the stadium is full of snow and the temperature is below freezing. Through trial and error, she’s learned “the longer the coat, the better” and keeps at least one knee-length puffer jacket in eitherthe Bills’ signature royal blue or red in rotation. Underneath, she layersColdPruf long underwear, a sweatsuit, and a snow bib for particularly wet games. “That’s the only way you’re gonna stay dry and stay warm,” she adds. And whenever she wears her beloved Roaman’s coats, those bottom layers never get wet no matter how snowy her seat is.
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Andrew Drummond, New Hampshire–based outdoorsman and owner ofWhite Mountain Ski Co.
Andrew Drummond, the owner of White Mountain Ski Co. who recentlyset the recordfor summiting all 48 of New Hampshire’s 4,000-foot mountains in a single hike unsupported, says that his layers often make it more comfortable to hike in the winter than the summer. His setup — which includes some combination of asynthetic T-shirt,tight-fitting hoodie,Terrex shell, andthis down jacket from Norrøna[Editor’s note: Drummond is an ambassador for the Norrøna]— has kept him warm during one of the coldest days on record at Mount Washington: minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit. “I wanted to see what it was like,” he says. “And I started going up, up the mountain, and I got sweaty.” But a word of warning: Don’t let the gear convince you not to fear the cold. With this gear, he says, “You can survive in probably the worst conditions that Mother Nature is going to throw at you. But is that the smartest idea or the safest idea? Probably not.”
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Alyssa Dyksterhouse, Wendella Boats tour guide in Chicago and host of the podcastOh, Malort
While Chicago is known for its architecture river tours, Wendella Boats is one of the few tour companies that actually runs year-round and its guide Alyssa Dyksterhouse tours rain or shine. “The coldest day that I can remember working was a ‘feels like four,’” she says. “I also remember that day because I worked one time when it said ‘feels like 104,’ and I’m just like,What am I doing with my life?” On those single-digit days, though, she has learned it’s best to wear as many thin layers as possible to limit how much she sweats during her commute on the el train. When she gets on the boat, her knee-length Eddie Bauer coat,32 Degrees long underwear, long-sleeved T-shirt from Gap,cotton-cashmere turtleneck from L.L.Bean, and hand-knit hood keep her warm enough to lead up to five tours a day. The coldest days call for her “last resort layer,” too,a wool cardigan from L.L.Bean. “There comes a point where if you want to be warm, you have to give up any attachment to being stylish,” she says.
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Julia Moriggi, Boston-based dog mom of influencerWally
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Boston native Julia Moriggi hates being cold, but her golden retriever, Wally, doesn’t mind at all. “The last thing I want when I’m out there walking him is to want to end the walk early just because I’m cold. Because, obviously, he’s not cold,” she says. So, she relies on this puffer, a Skims long-sleeved tee, and whatever fleece jacket is closest to fend off the cold on those winter days when afternoon walks seem most daunting. A few years in, the jacket has certainly collected its fair share of dog slobber and melting-salt residue, but it’s warm enough to make her sweat, even during long, 45-minute walks. At a healthy thigh length, the jacket is also long enough to keep her bottom half covered but short enough that she can walk with ease. (And a word to the wise: She recommends checking out Marshalls, T.J.Maxx, and Saks Off Fifth to find it for a lower price.)
@wally.meets.world Sweating before we even leave the house 🥵#goldenretriever#dogs#winterfashion
♬ original sound - alesia.merenkova
Claudia Cavazos,High Lonesome Bird Toursguide who leads tours in Alaska
While searching for auklets and eiders in Gambell, Alaska, High Lonesome Bird Tours leader Claudia Cavazos lives by the words “cotton kills.” “I’ve done a lot of hiking in my life before I was a bird-watcher and before I was a tour guide,” she says, “so I always knew that you always wanted to wear synthetic materials, and you always wanted to wear some kind of wool, down situation.” And so, underneath her Arc’teryx and Rab down jackets, she wears a cashmere sweater from Patagonia, a thrifted merino-wool turtleneck sweater, anda Patagonia windbreaker. (There’s also a special appearance from aSkhoop snow skirtduring the up to four hours that the group is sitting down while sea watching.) “When you’re out there, it’s basically — it sounds kind of silly — but it’s, it’s survival. I’m not there to look cute,” she told me.
[Editor’s note: Arc’teryx’s Thorium Hoody has since been discontinued but is still available in limited colorways and sizes.]
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Karen Fulbright-Anderson, co-owner of Wisconsin-basedYe Olde Manor House Bed & Breakfast
“Because there’s such a range of temperatures here from the 30s down to below zero, I’ve found it useful to have different coats [for different temperatures],” says Ye Olde Manor House co-owner Karen Fulbright-Anderson. Unlike her favorite coat — that would bethe Norma Kamali sleeping-bag coatshe bought at a vintage shop in Boston — this one, which is ankle length, is the only thing that’ll keep her warm when temperatures in Wisconsin drop below ten degrees. Underneath, she’ll typically throw on a turtleneck and a sweater, but the coat does the rest whether she’s visitingthe local ice castleor winter fairs she recommends to her guests.
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