Winter camping

[RWBlue]

Who does winter camping?
Tell me about it.

[M4Fundi]

What kind of winter camping do you want to do?

Car camping, hike in, snowshoe in, ski in?

What type of area? National Parks, National Forest, etc.? Mountains?

Carry your own water or filter form water source or melt it?

[misanthropist]

http://i441.photobucket.com/albums/qq133/misant666/DSC_0001-4.jpg

http://i441.photobucket.com/albums/qq133/misant666/DSC_0036.jpg

I've been known to do a little of that...this is in BC's Cariboo region last year about this time, maybe minus twenty or twenty five. Too dry right there to do much skiing though, especially with the old school speed rig I had with me at the time, old Jarvinen racing stuff.

But all is not lost...here is a more recent setup I bought to cover ground in the winter: Salomon X-Adv gear. It is halfway between downhill and cross-country gear, and it allows me to cover rolling terrain effectively in a variety of snow conditions.

Plus, as you may see, the boots are lugged and great for hiking around when the snow ends or for moving around camp.

http://i441.photobucket.com/albums/qq133/misant666/camping/DSC_0289.jpg

http://i441.photobucket.com/albums/qq133/misant666/camping/DSC_0290.jpg

Why winter camp? Because this is what heaven looks like:

http://i441.photobucket.com/albums/qq133/misant666/camping/DSC_0286.jpg

And because I believe these are the sights that nordic peoples are meant to behold...

http://i441.photobucket.com/albums/qq133/misant666/camping/DSC_0291.jpg

Yeah, I'm Canadian. What would you like to know about winter camping? It is the best time to be out there...

[M4Fundi]

Misanthropist looks great! I agree, I love it out there in the winter. I usually can't get anyone to go with me:(

Do you use a sled?

[misanthropist]

Generally not as I TRY (often fail) to keep my loads as light as possible.

Also, a lot of my gear was purchased a couple of years ago, when I weighed about 240 (I am about 6'2).

Then I decided I had gotten too fat, so I gave up about 10 pounds of muscle, and about 35 pounds of fat. Now I'm just under 200 pounds and much, much fitter (although I can't quite lift the huge stuff I used to on the construction sites) and I have skis for a guy heavier than me.

So I can actually get away with more pack on my skis than if I bought them today.

That said, I do screw it all up on a semi-regular basis and haul in twice as much gear as I need. In those cases, what I do is actually drag it on one of those blue slidey mats. We call them Krazy Karpets, I am not sure if this is a universal term or one from my childhood. But you know the blue roll-up slidey mats for kids?

Well, you punch a couple of holes in them and you can lightly lash down a pack, and haul it behind you. They aren't as effective as actual dedicated pulks - I don't know if that's a Canadian term, the sled, I mean - but what they are great for is light weight, and rolling up and tucking away if you want/need to.

Downsides include: they don't track as well as a pulk with rails formed in; also if you're with others and somebody breaks a leg, pulks are longer and more rigid and make a better base for a stretcher (not that I've ever had it happen, but it's something to think about).

Also the krazy karpets don't have the capacity of a big pulk. But you can put a medium-sized pack on one and do all right. I tie it off to loops on my pack's waist belt with a couple of pieces of parachute cord, crossing the cords to make an X which for some reason seems to work better.

Apparently the ultimate setup is to put a couple of pieces of pvc pipe on the cord and have it in X formation. I have never done this because I like the lightweight, no-bulk paracord approach.

"...but I read about it, in a book." I quote White Goodman. Anyway apparently that's the ideal setup, but I have never tried it.

The stove is one I built myself. It packs down pretty well but means I will either have an expedition pack or a krazy karpet behind my smaller pack.


I'm not an expert on winter camping or anything but I do like to get out there on a semi-regular basis. That vista is looking out on an area just outside my city of 2 million people...and yet there is probably not a single human being anywhere in the area shown. It is silent and beautiful out there.