Winter is when the training wheels come off for hikers, climbers, and backcountry skiers. When all of the planning and preparation you did before your trip won’t help you get out of the jam you’re in. When your buddy hits his head on a tree skiing down a backcountry route or …
Read More »Winter Hiking
Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain
If you do a lot of hiking, climbing, snowshoeing or skiing in winter in the mountains and you haven’t had any avalanche training, I suggest you get some. In addition, I highly recommend that you pick up a copy of Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain by Bruce Tremper. This is …
Read More »Vapor Barrier Clothing and Sleeping Bag Liners
If you’ve done any backpacking, you should be familiar with the practice of layering your clothing: you take layers of clothing off when you get too hot and start to sweat and you put them back on again when you start to get cold. Layering lets the sweat you generate …
Read More »How to Size Snowshoes
The size of snowshoe you need depends on your body weight, the weight of your gear, snow type, and whether you snowshoe on broken-out trails or travel cross-country, on fresh powder. But if you are about to buy a new pair of snowshoes, don’t take manufacturer’s size recommendations as gospel. …
Read More »How to Attach an Ice Axe to a Backpack
This is a serious issue because I see a lot of people do this improperly, opening themselves to a potentially serious injury. To remedy that, I’m going to demonstrate how you should do this safely, in a way that prevents the axe pick from puncturing your hip if (when) you …
Read More »Winter Hiking Skills: Crampon Walking Technique
There’s no doubt that Kahtoola Microspikes revolutionized winter traction and opened up winter hiking to a much wider audience. Before microspikes came along, most hikers had to purchase mountaineering boots and crampons if they wanted to hike on icy trails, which required proper training to use safely not to mention …
Read More »Frozen Fingertips: A Case of 1st Degree Frostbite
My fingertips froze on a winter hike last February when I took off my gloves to adjust a pair of ski goggles and my hands came in contact with fresh snow. It was freezing out and the wind was blowing, the snow melted on my fingers and I guess my …
Read More »Winter Conditioning for Hiking and Snowshoeing
Winter day hiking and snowshoeing require a higher degree of physical fitness than hiking during the rest of the year because you need to carry more clothes, gear, emergency supplies, food and all of the water you need in sub-freezing weather. How much more depends on the type of terrain, …
Read More »Boiling Water for Winter Hiking
I used to get up extra early on the days when we’d drive to the mountains for winter hiking, so I could boil water for my water bottles. Since we’d meet in downtown Boston at 5 AM, this meant getting up at 4 AM to get ready. Those days are …
Read More »A Second Headlamp for Winter Hiking
I do a lot of winter day hiking in some pretty remote and mountainous locations, but I’ve only ever carried one head lamp, a Black Diamond Spot, which I’ve owned now for several years. That changed over the weekend when I bought a second one, a Black Diamond Icon, to …
Read More »Winter Hiking Safety Tips
Winter can be a dangerous time to hike or camp in the backcountry, but with planning and proper preparation, a winter hike can be a safe and enjoyable experience. Please keep the following in mind when planning an outing: For safety, never hike alone in winter. The potential consequences are …
Read More »The Problem with Pac Boots for Winter Hiking
Pac boots, like the kind you get from Sorel, Kamik, Cabelas, or LL Bean, are not a good option for serious hiking in winter terrain. While Pac boots were the only inexpensive alternative to buying expensive mountaineering boots about FIVE or TEN years ago, the winter hiking footwear landscape has …
Read More »Information Sources for Winter Weather Forecasting in the White Mountains
There is no single weather forecast that will tell you what the temperature, wind, visibility, snowpack, and trail conditions will be for every location in the White Mountains. As a winter hiker, you will need to piece forecast data from a variety of information sources and make educated guesses about what …
Read More »Winter Weather Forecasting in New Hampshire’s White Mountains: Concepts
If you’re going to do any hiking in the White Mountains in winter, you need to learn about the weather patterns in the region and what forecasting tools are available for planning hikes. While many of these same techniques are useful for planning three season hikes in the area, winter …
Read More »