@PopularMechanics _ March 2019Is winter
camping
safe?1
2
Do I need to
use different
camping gear?MOST OF THE CAMPING GEAR that you
already own will work during the winter too.
Your backpack, stove, headlamp, and even
some of your clothing should perform well.
That said, there are a few items that you may
need to replace in order to stay warm, dry,
and comfortable at the campsite:THE TENT
During the warmer
months, most campers
get by with a three-sea-
son tent. During the
winter however, you’ll
need to use a four-sea-
son shelter. These tents
sacrifice some ventila-
tion and breathability in
favor of improved warmth
and protection from the
wind. The Marmot Thor
(pictured, $650) and the
Mountain Hardwear EV 2
($70 0) are good choices.THE PAD
Sleeping pads are
essential for staying com-
fortable regardless of the
season, but in the winter
an insulated pad adds an
extra layer of warmth
between you and the
ground, too. And they’re
now smaller, lighter, and
better insulated than ever
before. We suggest the
Therm-a-Rest NeoAir
XTherm ($200).THE BAG
On mild winter nights, a
bag with a 20-degrees-
Fahrenheit rating—such
as The North Face’s Hyper
Cat (top, $240)—should
suffice. But in colder con-
ditions, a zero-degree
bag, like the Nemo Sonic
($4 80), will likely be a
necessity. There are even
warmer sleeping bags
for when temperatures
drop below zero, but you
should avoid camping in
conditions that cold.But...Why?
By Don DeClerck, camp opera-
tions director for Seneca
Waterways, registered New
York State trail guide, certified
Voyageur, and longtime Boy
Scout troop leaderW
INTER OPENS UP
a whole new avenue
of transportation.
You can ski, snow-
shoe. It’s actually
easier than in the
summer. There are no rocks,
no mud. You’re on snowshoes or
micro spikes or crampons. Snow
is a durable surface, too. Just
keep your body temperature reg-
ulated. Sweat is deadly.
You want a sunny, high-pres-
sure day. You can see forever.
The main thing is: You need
a goal. You want something to
accomplish. You want to climb
something. My scouts always
have a goal. I took my troop out
camping once and it got down
to minus 20. Even though they
were absolutely frickin’ miser-
able, they never shut up about
it afterward. Because we had
a goal. Maybe it’s just learning
to survive, or get from A to B in
snowshoes, but when you achieve
that goal, something changes
with the group you’re with. It’s
not an adversity thing. It’s about
mindfulness. Intention.
Speaking of intention: Bring
some hot chocolate. Gives you a
big sugar wake-up, warms the
inside of you. Put a pat of butter
in it for the calories. Manhattans
might be good for some people,
but you can’t take a manhattan
to bed with you in a Nalgene bot-
tle to keep you warm.
—As told to James Lynch
YES. Obviously you need to keep an eye on the
forecast. There are two less obvious safety issues
that you’ll want to prepare for:
A CHANGED LANDSCAPE A once-familiar place
can be transformed by a layer of snow, making
it seem like a completely new destination. Snow
can also cover landmarks that you commonly
use to navigate in the backcountry, too, add-
ing a new challenge to finding your way around.
True, you can follow your own footprints in the
snow when hiking back to your campsite or the
parking lot, but an unexpected storm can fill in
those tracks quickly. Bring a GPS device to map
important waypoints along the trail.DEHYDRATION It’s a common misconception that
you don’t need to drink as much water during
the colder months because you’re not sweat-
ing as much as you would during other times of
the year. But staying hydrated is just as impor-
tant in the w inter as it is in the summer. Hiking
through deep snow can get your heart pumping,
and while your body might not be producing per-
spiration, you can still exhale a lot of water vapor
while breathing heavy. Add in the fact that most
people drink less in cold conditions any way, and
suddenly dehydration starts to become a real
possibility. Stay ahead of the situation by drink-
ing plenty of water at all times.Avoid cotton layers
because they take
forever to dry. Invest
in merino wool. Or an
animal hide.53