Snow Camping

Over the weekend I went on my first overnight backpacking trip with the Mazamas, a hike/campout for beginners in winter camping. It was meant to be a learning weekend and that it was. Leading up to it I was giddy with excitement but also plagued with fear about the temperatures I would be camping in. Did I have enough clothing? Was my sleeping bag going to be adequate? I was about to find out…

The mess that had to fit inside my pack!

Those participating met Saturday morning at a designated parking area and the hike leader, Regis, went over our gear list with us. Everyone was required to have the proper gear for the safety of ourselves and others. We were the responsibility of the hike leader and he wasn’t about to take someone out there who wasn’t prepared as much as possible. 

We carpooled to the trail head at the Frog Lake Sno-Park near Mt. Hood. It was snowing and obviously there was already a lot of snow on the ground.  We had a two-mile hike to our destination - Lower Twin Lake – which is not that far, however, we were wearing snowshoes and carrying 40-pound packs (or more) on our backs. Regis was carrying extra weight and also pulling a sled with extra camping essentials.  I had practiced in the snowshoes the weekend before and found them very easy to maneuver but I had not thought to practice in them with weight on my back. Small detail, right?  Immediately I had difficulty trying to put on my snowshoes while wearing the backpack so I had to remove it, put the snowshoes on and then try to swing that heavy load back on. I nearly toppled myself over but luckily managed to stay upright. (It would have been horribly embarrassing to start the hike out by falling flat in the parking lot. ha.)  After stomping/stumbling around for a short distance, I was able to get my rhythm and easily adjusted to carrying the weight while wearing the snowshoes.  Lesson: You pack your backpack with the weight in the center – we all know this but test it out before the hike. Mine wasn’t centered. I was constantly fighting the weight leaning off to one side. Regardless, two miles wasn’t anything I was afraid of and I knew I would manage to get to camp without having to readjust the contents of my backpack - trekking poles are very helpful in situations like these.

Regis
Photo Credit: Kurt H.

Regis stopped several times along the route to let us make adjustments to our gear, adjustments to our clothes and to point things out… such as tree wells… and to explain things … such as the very real dangers of tree wells. Some things were known and others not. He treated us like he was supposed to - as beginners (although I think I was the only one that was a true beginner). He provided us with the information we needed for our safety and survival. He also had a lot of interesting stories of his own experiences to share.  :)

Photo credit: Regis K.

Photo credit: Regis K.

After hiking the two miles, we located what looked like a good place to set up camp. Have you ever tried to put up a tent with snowshoes on? There is so much extra “stuff” around your feet. A couple of times I stepped on one snowshoe with the opposite foot causing me to trip and dump myself into the snow. Graceful…  I was not. haha I was unable to remove my snowshoes because every step I took without them, I would sink 2 feet or more into the snow, which left big holes around our tent area. (This part I wasn’t too fond of.)  Lesson:  You need “winter stakes” for your tent and not the 3 season stakes that come with your 4 season tent! (What’s up with that?!)  Good to know but would have been even better to know BEFORE the campout.  As a result, we had to cut tree branches. (I got to use that handy dandy pocket knife on the 10 essentials list of gear that I was required to bring… and thought I would never use!).  The tree branches were used as our tent stakes and we poured water around them to freeze them into the ice we created. We also secured the tent with paracord – another required item. Lesson: Always bring everything on the list because you never know when you’re going to need it.

Twin Lakes Summit
Elevation 4320
Photo Credit: Kurt H.

We dug a “camp kitchen” by creating a table and bench in the snow. (It was pretty darn cool!!)  Shoveling snow was a great way to stay warm too.  We also filled a large bag with snow to use for our water needs.

Photo credit: Regis K.

 

After setting up camp and getting some warm liquid down, we snowshoed to the frozen lake. As during the hike in, Regis would periodically stop to share stories and teach us about our surroundings. We discussed wild animals and how to react and not react if one appeared. Thankfully we didn't have to test our reactions! :)

We returned to camp, sat in our camp kitchen, boiled water, ate dinner and talked. I truly enjoyed our time spent there visiting and getting to know each other.

The sun goes down pretty early at this time of the year and by 8:30 or so we were all in our tents. I was sharing a tent with another hiker in our group who was very organized and in her bag bundled up for the night practically before I even got my boots off. (Another pretty cool thing we learned… dig a trench in front of your tent so when you sit in the entry way, your feet are down in this trench like you’re on a chair. It makes pulling your boots on and off a lot easier.)

For sleeping I was dressed in the following:  Balaclava, stocking hat, gloves with hand warmers inside each; two pair of wool socks; down booties; thermal underwear – top and bottoms; snow pants; and a fleece jacket. I crawled (“squeezed” is more like it) into my zero-degrees sleeping bag and tucked in my sleeping bag liner.

Immediately, I knew I was going to be COLD.

After trying to adjust to the cold with no real result, I put on another fleece top. I would have worn my down jacket to bed but it had gotten wet in the falling snow and was completely useless to me. Lesson: Protect the down jackets that are not waterproof with a shell jacket. Falling snow is still WET snow. Bring multiple jackets.

After adding the extra layer I was still cold - FREEZING COLD.

My sleeping bag was on a pad but it wasn’t enough to protect me from the coldness of the snow we were laying on. Lesson: I needed two pads… two different types of pads made specifically for winter. My pad didn’t have enough (if any) insulation.  Long story short… I could not get warm.  I did not sleep. I worried I was keeping my tent mate awake.  I laid there and shivered like I have never shivered before in my life. I was COLD and I was MISERABLE. During the night I felt emotional and wanted to go home. Honestly, I wanted to cry. (I’m such a baby sometimes.)  I kept looking at my watch and counted the long hours until morning. It was not a good night for me at all.

Once I could see the slightest indication of daylight, I got up, put on my snowshoes and started walking up and down the trail – pacing - always with our camping area in view. I needed to warm up and movement was the only way it was going to happen. When asked by Regis how I slept, I was honest and told him how awful it was. We discussed what went wrong, what gear I had, what I needed, etc. He gave me suggestions and advice.  He asked if I would camp out again in the snow and my response:  Absolutely. BUT I needed to make a lot of adjustments to make it work for me. There was ZERO fun in feeling that flippin cold all night long.

Note: I knew in my mind that had I been so cold and miserable that I was truly scared for my own life, I could have woken Regis up and asked for help. This was never discussed but I knew he was there to help and guide us and would have done so. I wasn’t quite that bad off but freezing to death did cross my mind. (I can be dramatic too. haha)

Lesson:  Try out your gear before you actually need to use it. The sleeping bag “liner” is a “bag” not a “sheet” as I thought. Being inside the liner would have helped. My sleeping bag was much too snug and I felt too confined in it to get comfortable at all. I need a bag with more room to move around – personal preference. I would have known this had I tried it out at home first.

Photo Credit: Kurt H.

After breakfast, coffee and lots of discussion, we took down our tents and packed up our gear. We only had two miles to hike out, which went very quickly because it was all downhill.

Tamara

Sheri

Kurt

Regis

Photo Credit: Kurt H.

I had a fantastic weekend (even with the freezing, sleepless night) and hated for it to be over with. It was a great learning experience. The hiking, snowshoeing, camping and company were GREAT! It was only the sleeping issue for me that was a negative but again, it was a learning weekend. I’m already looking into different gear to help make my next snow camping adventure more enjoyable. 

Regis was a great leader full of knowledge, and I learned a lot from him. I’ll definitely take advantage of his email inbox whenever I need advice about my gear.  J

Thank you Regis (and fellow Mazamas) for a great weekend!