| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 9:19:14 AM | Ok last time i was in MEC I noticed alot of gear for winter camping and ice fishing.
It was more than just a couple items... there was a good selection.
Like sleeping bags good to -80 and stuff. Shovels and igloo making scoops.
So that makes me wonder...
Any of you do it? Would you?
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 9:22:44 AM | NEVER, is never good enough? Not in a million years (well, maybe for a million dollars, but just for 1 night!) would i go out and camp in winter, or scale a mountain peak in the snow, no thanks....... | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 9:24:18 AM | | winter camping is fun ,... and for the fittest too survive lol .. i wouldnt go outa my way too go winter camping but if it was planned and there .. i probably would go with lots of warmclothes ,,,, and a bed mate too keep me warm LOL | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 9:25:43 AM | what i dont understand is who are these people ?
I mean...who drops a couple grand on the lightest
and thinnest most warm space age technology.
Almost all the gear for winter, cant be used in summer....
so how do you get your money's worth?
How frequently do you keep trying to be frozen alive before you say ...
"Yup, that was fun!" | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 9:26:01 AM | Yeah...I don't think its the kinda thing you load up all your little ones and do.....
Its not for me as a momma bear of three going on four.... | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 9:26:59 AM | Done it and would redo it in a heart beat. Camping in winter is so calm and soothing. The forest is animated but with different noises. The wind in the trees also sounds different. Camp fire is a bit harder to start but not impossible but once you got it going....even the fire behave differently in cold weather, it's either that or i just enjoy the different outlook of camping.
As for who spend the money on the gear? No different then folks who spend 5k on a stupid sound system for a car! it's a hobby! | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 9:36:17 AM | I agree with Senadin..it is absolutely no different, just a different hobby..
Growing up I spent many, many nights on the side of a mountain in a small shelter with my grandmother...We would snowshoe in 3-5 hours, spend the night, take some measurments and water content of snow in different plots on the mountain, and then snowshoe home.
Since then I have been winter camping several times...spent a week winter camping up north a few years ago....fly in...stay a week...get flown out...incredible time!
I plan on spending a few nights on the mountain this year while sledding, but I will have the luxury of an old trappers cabin on this run...lol... | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 9:52:23 AM | Yeah i never imagined anyone would start a fire the same way as in summer.
What about wet wood?
I imagined those heating packs and propane heaters and stuff....
How do you dry the wood...
OMG, i am totally a cityslicker form Toronto...can you tell? | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 9:52:28 AM | nope.. but there`s ALOT of die hards who will HnR.. me.. i would neva be 1!.. i can`t handle when the weather is like this now!.. a nice hotel rm looks awfully nice.. 
ohhhh i wanna make an igloo!!..  | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 10:02:15 AM | well maybe all the effort of making an igloo
is worth what you can do inside one...
(insert evil laugh here)
muhahaha | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 10:27:43 AM | | I used to do it all the time, we didn't sleep in igloos though, Nylon tents, same ones we used in the summer, only difference was we had like 8 of us in a 4 person tent. Actually I started doing it in Girl Guides. Snow shoes and camp fires in the winter different from summer camping but so worth it. Being cushioned by the snow so it feels like you and your group are the only ones on the planet is amazing. Aside from last year there was almost 10 of us that went out boxing day until New years for about 6 years. As long as you know something about winter survival your good. | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 10:29:27 AM | Ummm, no. I'd rather pitch a tent in the basement, lol.
And yesterday I saw a guy riding his bike... crazy!!!! | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 10:55:26 AM | I think it would be fun, but I would only do it up until in got colder than -10. I have never had the opportunity to go camping in the winter as of yet, hopefully I will one day though. It is definitely on my "To Do" list!  | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 10:57:43 AM | | i did it in scouts .. is always a blast with more people .. definately not for little ones ... but it does have its advantages for partners lol .. any excuse too warm up is a good excuse LOL ... so whens this pof event gonna take place .. lol see who is truly crazy and wild in this bunch LOL | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 11:03:25 AM | I remember waking up in a camp made out of canvas and our beers and baby champagne
where frozen... It would have been nice to have some of those -80 sleeping bag but
unfortunatly, I woke up in my underwear with my back frozen to the tarp that made the
bed... To good of a drunk to keep the fire going you see...
I would be up for camping in the winter, why not. | |
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WWCND
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Joined: 3/9/2006
Msg: 16 | |
| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 11:08:08 AM | | I used to winter camp.. not for about 9 years now though. And yeah, it involves a lot of alcohol ehhehe | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 11:18:31 AM | me myself i was a scout leader i went on a couple dozen winter camping trips i loved the ontario camping trips the most the snow is packing snow so you can build your own shelter and you would be suprised how warm it is inside we used to bring out the cross country skies and travel through the camp area or around some beaches
also me and my scouts were camping in -20 weather here in calgary brrrrr mornings,,,,warm nights
a good hint in winter camping is bring eggs and boil them they make good hand warmers
but the only downfall with winter camping is,,,,,is to keep the beer from freezing
OE *** just a note alcohol makes your blood thiner and you will be a lot colder then normal | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 1:51:46 PM | I think winter camping would be a blast! I know people that used to do it all the time. Take the quads or skidoos out into the sticks, set up camp, and have a great time!
Hmmm....although, would DEFINITELY have to take someone cuddly and warm! | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 1:53:07 PM | Maybe "a rough, tough, dirty, blue-collar man" ?
I know where you can find one... | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 1:55:32 PM | | Where? Where? Don't tease like that! I am starting to think they don't exist! *sigh* | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 2:05:45 PM | I LOVE IT!
And i got one word for you to forget that yuppy technology stuff they selling!
WOOL! its the ultimate insulator, you can get it wet and it still holds over 80% of its insulation, it doesn't melt if you get too close to the fire! Its a bit heavier, and some people don't like the weight, but for me, its the only way to fly, and cut a square out of a sweater, and tuck it into the back of your pants, that way you don't have to worry about where you sit, cause your butt wont get wet!
Now if only i was Inuit and could get some sealskin moccasins, the deer ones turn into ice if you get them wet, there no good in the winter! So i guess its Serels for this guy  | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 2:25:09 PM | been there done that, bought the gear. It's great fun! The trails aren't crowded, the scenery is pristine and the beer is colder. There are winter cabins you can hike to with the Alpine Club- if tenting isn't your thing... The scoops are for avalance kits more so than igloo making... digging your way out etc...
Nothing is funner than getting all bundled up and sliding down trails of ice in the winter with someone fun! You don't have to worry about getting cold if you take someone you can cuddle with and your dog- you can also zip your sleeping bags together- and vodka too!
I love it and if I found someone to come with me again - would go over Christmas holidays!
I need a man who knows what gators are and how to use them. | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 2:41:40 PM | I've been winter camping out to Kanaskis area a few times - definately quiet and sureal, but with the proper gear and companion it can be a great time. | |
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fi_ona
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Joined: 3/10/2006
Msg: 24 | |
| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 2:45:10 PM | | winter camping at the mount kidd campground... then you get to camp... but when your nose is froze and your toes is froze and your ears are froze you can go in the lodge and defrost in the hottubs... glorious i tells yah | |
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| WTF... Camping in Winter ?
Posted: 11/28/2006 3:48:27 PM | Kiddo & I went camping in Jasper just a weekend ago (as in not the one we just had, but the one before)!
It was fantastic... only one other couple on the far side of the camground, no one else around... clear skies for the most part, tons of wildlife, and the thrillingly unmistakable sound of avalanche cannons blasting the snow. We watched a couple of the man-made avalanches from the parking lot - VERY cool!
I would recommend it to anyone! If you go in the milder weather, you can get away with your summer tent & gear, just bring extra blankets & a pad for under our sleeping bag. Wood isn't generally wet unless there's been a recent freeze/thaw cycle, in which case it's a bugger. Best way to solve that though? An old film canister with cotton balls coated in Vaseline. Just shred them up under your kindling & watch things go (works for summer fires too )!
I wouldn't suggest going out on the trails overnight though, if you've never winter hiked/camped before. It's one thing to realise you're grossly under-prepared with your car 20 feet away. It's an entirely different (and potentially fatal) story if you're 25kms from the car, it's dark out, your stove won't light, your tent won't stand up & you can't feel your toes anymore.
If anyone wants more info, or some good websites on winter camping, blast me a message. I'd be glad to share (& even introduce you to J. Frost)... and I'd much rather see you well informed & properly kitted out (which doesn't mean $$$$$), than I would read about the SAR folk finding your frozen body in an avalanche chute!   | |
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