Winter is almost here, and it brings with it the miserable wet, not quite cold enough for
snow, weather to the valleys of the Northwest. But, it also brings the dry powdery snow to the highlands and eastern portions of the Northwest. I love this time of year for the sporting opportunities it brings, Skiing, Snowboarding, Cross-country skiing and Snow shoeing.
It can also be the best time to go camping, snow camping that is. Two of my favorite reasons to go snow camping are, no bugs and no dirt, but my favorite is the night sky, if you have never been deep in the wilderness on a cold winters night with a clear sky, you are missing out. It is the most brilliant spectacle of 
all the stars you will ever see while on earth. I once snow shoed 4 miles at 3am, with no artificial light, the stars were so bright.
This time of year also brings different challenges to our survival while out in the wilderness. It is exponentially more difficult to start a fire, let alone keep it burning, fuel is a rare commodity where the snow is five feet deep. Finding water where all the lakes and ponds are frozen over and creeks are nearly impossible to safely approach because the snow banks are so deep and the last thing you want to do is get wet.
We need to prepare a little differently, we need to think about things like where will I put
my stove when I’m trying to cook or boil water? Will the fuel I use work at this temperature, or will there be fuel available? How will I stay warm when I can’t build a fire?
Over the next few weeks we will be talking about all these things, stay tuned!
As Always,
Stay Vigilant and Be Prepared
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