| Winter Camping |
"Snow is a terrific insulator. Snow shelters are much warmer than tents for winter camping because
they retain heat and keep out the cold wind. If you have adequate time for building snow shelters,
you will spend a much more comfortable night sleeping in them than in a tent."
What to Wear
What to Bring
Cold Weather Camping (Excellent Info Here!)
The Basics (from www.inquiry.net)
Snow Shelters
Building a snow shelter by Hal Weiss
"The IceBox" - What a cool tool!
Some personally tested tips from Mr. Gruber:
- Use TWO sleep pads, one that MUST be a close-cell foam pad. (Not inflatable) If you have one foam
pad and the other inflatable, be sure that the foam pad is on the bottom.
- Bring a 2nd, soft, warm winter hat that is long enough to pull down over your eyes and to the tip of
your nose. DO NOT wear this hat during the day – this hat is your sleep hat.
- Bring a clean, dry pair of socks for sleeping. Change your socks just before you get into your
sleeping bag. When you remove your socks that you wore during the day, your feet will be damp.
Wave your feet around a bit to dry them before putting the clean socks on. (burrr…)
- Use your backup warmth layer (a vest, warm sweatshirt, sweater, etc) as an over-layer to your
sleeping bag. Zip up the vest and slip it over the bottom of your sleeping bag (on the outside) to
cover your feet. This adds a second layer for your legs and feet.
- Finally, take your unzipped winter coat and place it over your sleeping bag covering your upper body.
This will add a second layer of insulation over your core body parts.
- Be sure to have good ventilation in your tent. Moisture is your enemy, so you want to be sure to vent
out the moisture created from your breath.
- One last thing… before I go, I throw my sleeping bag in the dryer to fluff up the loft the night before. If
you store your sleeping bag in your compression sack, the filler gets crushed so you lose warmth.
