Winter Camping Basics

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Why camp in the winter? Because winter strips life down to a state of raw intensity. Because it turns even a modest local park into place of undiscovered, magic wilderness. Because 16-hour nights let you catch up on your sleep. Because there are no bugs, no rattlesnakes, no crowds. Because there may be no peace like that of a winter forest.

There is a vast difference between being out in the cold and being cold. A cold hiker is a miserable hiker indeed. Fortunately, with a combination of thorough preparation, the right gear, and the right skills, a winter hiker can be comfortably cozy even in the kinds of deep-freeze temperatures that usually send those survey-addicted newscasters into apoplexy.

First things first. A winter hike requires an attitude adjustment on the part of the hiker. A winter trip isn't about mileage, or getting somewhere fast. It's about time: spending time, taking time, letting time slow to a crawl.

Nothing happens quickly on a winter hike.

It takes longer to get from here to there because you've got snow underfoot and a pack on your back.
Making camp takes more time, because you've got to tamp down a campsite and dig out a kitchen.
Lighting a stove takes more time because you've got to deal with three layers of gloves and cold metal parts.
More than anything, a winter hike is a series of tasks and adjustments, a process of adapting to an ever changing environment.

Thinking winter means thinking safety.

The extreme conditions aren't dangerous in and of themselves if you have the equipment to keep you warm and the sense to stay out of trouble. But with slippery ice underfoot and threatening clouds overhead, there's more that can go wrong on a winter hike, if you let down your guard.

Pay attention to the weather, don't be afraid to change your plans, and try - especially in ultra-cold, high-mountain, or predictably rough-weather conditions - to go out with a group of at least four people so that even if you encounter an emergency situation and have to go for help, no one is ever alone.
Don't hesitate to hunker down and wait out a storm: The best way to solve problems is to avoid them.
Pay attention to details like keeping snow out of your boots and making sure you're adequately hydrated.