Your Techniques for Winter Camping?

[Digger'02]

What are your tricks for making camping fun below freezing and beyond? Yes, the boiling water in a nalgene in a sock, the hand warmer in the boot at night, the warming of the fuel bottle, old grandad,....anything else?

[nox]

Take your insoles out of your boots and put them in the bottom of your sleeping bag. It warms them up for you so putting your frozen boots on in the morning isn't as painful. If you arent sleeping with your water bottles, make sure they are empty with the lid off so you can refill them the next day without having to deal with the lid being frozen on it. Bring a stove that can handle the temperature that you are expecting.

[scope]

Don't let yourself get too cooled down as the temps drop in the late afternoon, early evening. You need body heat to help your bag (or quilt) be more efficient and you likely need all the efficiency you can get. Might mean early to bed, and no sitting around a campfire.

My warming beverage of choice is red wine.

[Tipi Walter]

This is gonna sound like overkill, but it has really improved my winter backpacking and camping life: Get a Feathered Friends Icefall down parka and a pair of WMountaineering down pants!! I even use down booties sometimes.

Some other tricks:
** Get several 3 hour candles and light one for in-tent hand warming when sitting up on your pad reading or writing. It's all about Hands and Feet.

** Have an overkill -15F or -25F down bag and depend on it as your lifeline and in-tent woodstove---it's the main thing keeping you alive.

** Don't scrimp on flimsy or inadequate sleeping pads---get whatever will keep you off the ground and warm with at least an R value of 5. Hint: Exped downmat at 8R. Nice.

** Long nights help with books, radio, keeping a journal, eating. Carry a couple books and burn them thru the trip. Why not? Cheap books can be found almost anywhere. Or copy a bunch of stuff off the interweb and take them out to read and burn, etc.

** When it's -10F you can fill your cooking pot with water from the creek the night before and in the morning get up, fire the stove and melt and boil the water. Water filters are useless in deep cold so you'll be using a bunch more stove fuel---take extra. And stick with the old reliable and hot burning white gas variety stove. It'll work no matter how cold it gets.

** Hot water bottles are nice to have when packing up in the morning as your fingers will be really hurting but before you shove off you can instantly warm them with one of those hot bottles. Uses alot of fuel, though.

** For in-tent overnight water storage I bring in the boots, put a glove over the top of my full water bottle, place bottle in a boot and cover and wrap the entire boot and bottle with my down parka right before going to sleep. You can also place your camera and camera batteries in the parka, too. I never put a full bottle of water inside my sleeping bag with me as anything could leak---disaster. Forget about using water bladders when it's zero or below. Tubes freeze up.

** Be prepared for changing conditions. When you start out at 2,000 feet with 4 inches of snow and climb to 5,000 feet you may certainly hit a ridge line with 2 or more feet of the white stuff. Will you camp up there? Did you bring snowshoes? Did you brng a shovel to dig out a tent site? Or are you gonna fall back down the mountain to easier places?

** If you plan on getting the best Miss Nature has to offer, I recommend you take a full-on four season tent with adequate pegs and numerous guylines. This shelter will allow you to go anywhere and set up in any conditions---open bald blizzards, etc. A bombproof tent will really make life easier at exposed campsites in the dead of winter. Learn to put your Trust In Nylon.

[Digger'02]

i love it.

I also find sunglasses a must and preferably a mask--its uber nice for the cold winds.

tell me more about this "in-tent wood stove" this is something that is new to me. I use candles of course, but a heater stove? Me likey.

[wrongway_08]

Don't over dress! If you are sweaty while hiking, open up or take off a layer. That sweat will cool you down fast when you stop and can freeze - making it hard for your body to warm back up.

[nitewalker]

i love it.

I also find sunglasses a must and preferably a mask--its uber nice for the cold winds.

tell me more about this "in-tent wood stove" this is something that is new to me. I use candles of course, but a heater stove? Me likey.

the overkill sleeping bag is the woodstove!!

[nitewalker]

1. plan proper mileages for winter travel. you would be more apt to run into problems during winter.

2. bring a length of paracord or rope just in case travel becomes icy. depending where you are going to travel the rope could be a sure lifeline.

3. leave your expected route of travel and return times with someone at home.

4.always observe what is above you and around you at all times especially when traversing certain snowfields and lower bowl areas. ice chunks falling and avalanches occuring can hapen at a moments notice.

5. try to get into camp before nitefall. sucks looking for camp at nite during winter, trust me..

6. sleep on the side of the mtn where the sun rises. its nice to get the sun as early as possible for warmth and energy.

these are some of the techniques i like to practice when out during the winter.

[The Solemates]

eat up before going to bed. even snack through the night if needed. being hungry makes you colder.

[Mags]

http://www.pmags.com/beginners-winter-backpack

[Digger'02]

i get it.....a "woodstove"

[humunuku]

6. sleep on the side of the mtn where the sun rises. its nice to get the sun as early as possible for warmth and energy.

totally agree

[Luddite]

Eat spicy food. Bring some hot sauce with you and eat high calorie meals before bed. Bring a good sleeping bag and thick sleeping pad(s). Down booties.

[10-K]

My all time favorite technique regardless of season:

Never step on anything you can step over.

[scope]

forgot... P bottle

[The Cleaner]

Anybody take any type of shovel, to clear or level snow for sleeping pad& other uses?

[couscous]

".. old reliable and hot burning white gas variety stove. It'll work no matter how cold it gets." -- You need to monitor the condition of your o-ring because at sub-zero temps the o-ring can shrink to where you can't pump up pressure to operate the stove. I've used my alcohol stove to carefully thaw out white gas stoves that got too cold to work.

[garlic08]

All excellent tips so far. All I'll add is thinking out guys and supports for your shelter, especially in deep snow. One trick I use is bringing along some short lengths of disposable cord to make deadmen out of sticks--dig a shallow trench perpendicular to your guyline, tie a cord around a stick, put stick in trench, bury and stomp. It will freeze in so you'll never get it out, so you'll have to cut and abandon the cord.

When I'm skiing, I carry a rescue shovel, but have never used it for anything other than digging the car out of snow banks. You can achieve a camping platform by stomping around and waiting half hour for the snow to solidify.

In addition to sweat, you have to be careful of moisture building up from breathing. Be sure to breathe outside of your bag, and try to ventilate your shelter enough so it doesn't freeze over too much. I know a guy who got frozen into his tent and had to wait for the sun to hit the zippers so he could go out and pee.

[Turtle Feet]

".. old reliable and hot burning white gas variety stove. It'll work no matter how cold it gets." -- You need to monitor the condition of your o-ring because at sub-zero temps the o-ring can shrink to where you can't pump up pressure to operate the stove. I've used my alcohol stove to carefully thaw out white gas stoves that got too cold to work.

I haven't had any trouble burning HEET in my alky stove, but only down to the 20's - does anyone know how low it can go?

On the other hand, it's 11 degrees outside at this very moment - I guess I could check it out myself....

tf

[garlic08]

I haven't had any trouble burning HEET in my alky stove, but only down to the 20's - does anyone know how low it can go?

On the other hand, it's 11 degrees outside at this very moment - I guess I could check it out myself....

tf

I've used my alky stove down to about -20F at an elevation of 11,000'. I was very pleased with it for melting snow, because it takes a long time to prime and it's best to start melting snow with a cooler flame. I wouldn't take it for more than an overnighter if you need to melt snow because of the lower energy density of the fuel. If you have to carry more than 10 oz of fuel, you're better off with white gas.