5 Realities of Winter Camping
If you’ve ever wondered what winter camping is really like, this post is for you!
By the end, if you still want to go winter camping, pop your email below and I’ll send you my guide to winter camping!
*If you’re on a mobile device, CLICK HERE to get the Winter Camping Guide.
I’m not going to sugar coat anything here…winter camping is more serious than summer camping! I don’t want you falling in love with the romanticized idea of camping in a hot tent without first understanding the realities.
That being said, I think you can have your cake and eat it too – the dreamy picture in your mind and the reality of it.
My very first-time winter camping was…challenging. My fiancé and I snowmobiled into Saganaga Lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area with our sled packed with gear.
We were supposed to be out for three days and two nights. The first night ended up dipping into the -20°’s and the second night promised wind chills of -40°.
Sometime around noon on the second day, we made the decision to pack up and head back to the cabin due to extreme temps. The DNR came by to, A. check our fishing license and B. warn us of the extreme weather heading our way. Call me a wimp but I didn’t see the fun in a -40° night in a tent several miles from any kind of help. That’s where I draw the line.
Which brings me to my point – before you go into the wilderness, you need to determine where you draw the line. For me, it’s -40° with slushy snow conditions. I’m hoping these “realities” of winter camping can help you determine your own boundaries.
I wholeheartedly believe there’s a level of adventure accessible for everyone out there. Winter camping might be your ideal adventure and it’s OKAY if it’s not!
If the following realities don’t bother you then pack your bags:
1. You will be cold
Yes, at some point during your trip you will be cold. Anyone who tells you that you’ll be nice and warm from all the manual labor and the wood stove inside your hot tent is just trying to ease your fears.
But that’s all it is, a fear – your subconscious trying to protect you. Aside from an emergency situation, the chill you experience is one big mental challenge.
You won’t be able to keep that fire going all night. You won’t get any sleep if you’re up every hour. Waking up to start the fire will be tough because it’ll be cold in your tent.
If you’re not a big burly guy (hi, hello there I’m small), keeping warm will be a task. That being said, it’s a totally achievable task. During the day I was pretty comfortable. It was only during the night that I was a bit chilly. I woke up to a little bit of frost on my sleeping bag.
Be mentally prepared to catch a bit of a chill now and then and do your best to plan your sleep system and wardrobe accordingly. If you can wrap your mind around that then you’ll be just fine!
2. You will run into challenges
I promise you, there will be something that frustrates, exhausts, disheartens, or spooks you.
Winter is much less forgiving than summer. On my first trip, we ventured off the main corridor (no further than the eye could see) to check out a potential campsite. First, we ventured in on foot to check for slush. No slush. We went back to take our snowmobile (without our gear sled) to see if the campsite we had our eyes on was any good.
We checked out the campsite, it was stunning, then went back to grab our gear. Halfway back, wouldn’t you know it, we ran into some waist deep slush on the snowmobile
At one point, I looked behind us and saw a wake of waves! I thought, “oh great…we’re way up on the lake with no way to call for help or easily get warm and we’re about to sink half our machine in the slush.”
I wish I could’ve taken a picture of it for you but in that moment all we were doing was yelling, “GO, GO, GO, GO!” Sometimes the only way out of slush is through it.
We were able to keep moving fast enough that we didn’t get stuck. We were really lucky!
I doubt you’ll run into that specific issue BUT maybe you’ll have a hard time finding dry firewood or something on your tent might break or maybe you forgot a second pair of socks. Maybe your water (which was in insulated packs) will be frozen when you wake up.
My point is, there will probably be something to challenge you during your trip. Winter has a way of testing a person. I’m confident in you though!
3. You will eat a lot
Some people might be just fine with this point! I know I am. The reality is, your body will be burning so much energy between keeping warm, setting up camp, and doing necessary chores like chopping wood.
In order to keep up with demand, you’ll need to intake more calories than you normally would. As long as you plan your menu accordingly, you’ll be just fine.
That being said, whatever food you make will taste like gourmet food from the heavens! Homemade
4. You will work hard
The joys of winter camping are more subtle than the joys of summer camping. During summer, yes, you have to set up camp and cook over a fire or a stove but, during the day, you might kick back with a book or go for a fun hike.
During the winter, you’ll spend your day working. That doesn’t sound like much fun but I promise it has its charms!
You might go ice fishing in hopes of catching dinner. You’ll definitely spend a chunk of time gathering kindling, chopping firewood, drying clothes, and cooking meals.
It’s not all work, especially at night when you’re having dinner or playing cards…
5. You will surprise yourself
Remember all those challenges I said you’d encounter? Let those serve a purpose! After your trip, spend some time reflecting. If you’re new to winter camping, you will probably feel challenged. You will definitely feel alive!
As a result, you will feel more capable and centered. There’s nothing better than unzipping your tent after a challenging cold night to reveal a brilliant sunrise and sense of accomplishment. That’s my favorite thing about being outdoors, it teaches you just how capable you are!
My Tips for Beginners (in a nutshell):
- Go with someone experienced! Someone you trust!
- If possible, go when temps are above zero. You’ll be more comfortable.
- Orchestrate an exit plan. Maybe go winter CAR camping rather than snowmobiling, skiing, or snowshoeing miles in.
- If you’re going to be on frozen lakes, ask around about the snow and ice conditions.
- Give your packing some good thought.
“You’re not making a great case for winter camping! What’s the bright side?”
If you’ve made it this far and you’re still interested in winter camping, kudos to you! I promised you I wouldn’t sugar coat anything, and I didn’t. I gave you the perils, the hardships, and the negatives.
So maybe you’re thinking, “why the heck would anyone subject themselves to that?” I’ll tell you why.
Imagine,
In the morning, instead of waking up to an alarm clock, you wake up with the late winter sun and unzip the tent to discover crisp snow sparkling under a slow sunrise over a blanket of pines. You can feel the first fire of the day warming your face and the smell of bacon delighting your senses.
The shakedown from the fast-paced complexities of society to the slow-motion simplicities of winter begins to take hold and you fall into a rhythm with nature.
Camping in the winter months will offer you many moments like this – moments of stillness and satisfaction you’d be hardpressed to find in modern life.
Couple that timeless quality with the hard work winter camping requires and you’ve got the perfect recipe for serenity and living in the present moment – a break from reality.
So, if you can come to terms with the realities of winter camping, the benefits are yours to claim!
Best wishes,
If you’ve ever wondered what winter camping is really like, this post is for you!
By the end, if you still want to go winter camping, pop your email below and I’ll send you my guide to winter camping!
*If you’re on a mobile device, CLICK HERE to get the Winter Camping Guide.
I’m not going to sugar coat anything here…winter camping is more serious than summer camping! I don’t want you falling in love with the romanticized idea of camping in a hot tent without first understanding the realities.
That being said, I think you can have your cake and eat it too – the dreamy picture in your mind and the reality of it.
My very first-time winter camping was…challenging. My fiancé and I snowmobiled into Saganaga Lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area with our sled packed with gear.
We were supposed to be out for three days and two nights. The first night ended up dipping into the -20°’s and the second night promised wind chills of -40°.
Sometime around noon on the second day, we made the decision to pack up and head back to the cabin due to extreme temps. The DNR came by to, A. check our fishing license and B. warn us of the extreme weather heading our way. Call me a wimp but I didn’t see the fun in a -40° night in a tent several miles from any kind of help. That’s where I draw the line.
Which brings me to my point – before you go into the wilderness, you need to determine where you draw the line. For me, it’s -40° with slushy snow conditions. I’m hoping these “realities” of winter camping can help you determine your own boundaries.
I wholeheartedly believe there’s a level of adventure accessible for everyone out there. Winter camping might be your ideal adventure and it’s OKAY if it’s not!
If the following realities don’t bother you then pack your bags:
1. You will be cold
Yes, at some point during your trip you will be cold. Anyone who tells you that you’ll be nice and warm from all the manual labor and the wood stove inside your hot tent is just trying to ease your fears.
But that’s all it is, a fear – your subconscious trying to protect you. Aside from an emergency situation, the chill you experience is one big mental challenge.
You won’t be able to keep that fire going all night. You won’t get any sleep if you’re up every hour. Waking up to start the fire will be tough because it’ll be cold in your tent.
If you’re not a big burly guy (hi, hello there I’m small), keeping warm will be a task. That being said, it’s a totally achievable task. During the day I was pretty comfortable. It was only during the night that I was a bit chilly. I woke up to a little bit of frost on my sleeping bag.
Be mentally prepared to catch a bit of a chill now and then and do your best to plan your sleep system and wardrobe accordingly. If you can wrap your mind around that then you’ll be just fine!
2. You will run into challenges
I promise you, there will be something that frustrates, exhausts, disheartens, or spooks you.
Winter is much less forgiving than summer. On my first trip, we ventured off the main corridor (no further than the eye could see) to check out a potential campsite. First, we ventured in on foot to check for slush. No slush. We went back to take our snowmobile (without our gear sled) to see if the campsite we had our eyes on was any good.
We checked out the campsite, it was stunning, then went back to grab our gear. Halfway back, wouldn’t you know it, we ran into some waist deep slush on the snowmobile
At one point, I looked behind us and saw a wake of waves! I thought, “oh great…we’re way up on the lake with no way to call for help or easily get warm and we’re about to sink half our machine in the slush.”
I wish I could’ve taken a picture of it for you but in that moment all we were doing was yelling, “GO, GO, GO, GO!” Sometimes the only way out of slush is through it.
We were able to keep moving fast enough that we didn’t get stuck. We were really lucky!
I doubt you’ll run into that specific issue BUT maybe you’ll have a hard time finding dry firewood or something on your tent might break or maybe you forgot a second pair of socks. Maybe your water (which was in insulated packs) will be frozen when you wake up.
My point is, there will probably be something to challenge you during your trip. Winter has a way of testing a person. I’m confident in you though!
3. You will eat a lot
Some people might be just fine with this point! I know I am. The reality is, your body will be burning so much energy between keeping warm, setting up camp, and doing necessary chores like chopping wood.
In order to keep up with demand, you’ll need to intake more calories than you normally would. As long as you plan your menu accordingly, you’ll be just fine.
That being said, whatever food you make will taste like gourmet food from the heavens! Homemade
4. You will work hard
The joys of winter camping are more subtle than the joys of summer camping. During summer, yes, you have to set up camp and cook over a fire or a stove but, during the day, you might kick back with a book or go for a fun hike.
During the winter, you’ll spend your day working. That doesn’t sound like much fun but I promise it has its charms!
You might go ice fishing in hopes of catching dinner. You’ll definitely spend a chunk of time gathering kindling, chopping firewood, drying clothes, and cooking meals.
It’s not all work, especially at night when you’re having dinner or playing cards…
5. You will surprise yourself
Remember all those challenges I said you’d encounter? Let those serve a purpose! After your trip, spend some time reflecting. If you’re new to winter camping, you will probably feel challenged. You will definitely feel alive!
As a result, you will feel more capable and centered. There’s nothing better than unzipping your tent after a challenging cold night to reveal a brilliant sunrise and sense of accomplishment. That’s my favorite thing about being outdoors, it teaches you just how capable you are!
My Tips for Beginners (in a nutshell):
- Go with someone experienced! Someone you trust!
- If possible, go when temps are above zero. You’ll be more comfortable.
- Orchestrate an exit plan. Maybe go winter CAR camping rather than snowmobiling, skiing, or snowshoeing miles in.
- If you’re going to be on frozen lakes, ask around about the snow and ice conditions.
- Give your packing some good thought.
“You’re not making a great case for winter camping! What’s the bright side?”
If you’ve made it this far and you’re still interested in winter camping, kudos to you! I promised you I wouldn’t sugar coat anything, and I didn’t. I gave you the perils, the hardships, and the negatives.
So maybe you’re thinking, “why the heck would anyone subject themselves to that?” I’ll tell you why.
Imagine,
In the morning, instead of waking up to an alarm clock, you wake up with the late winter sun and unzip the tent to discover crisp snow sparkling under a slow sunrise over a blanket of pines. You can feel the first fire of the day warming your face and the smell of bacon delighting your senses.
The shakedown from the fast-paced complexities of society to the slow-motion simplicities of winter begins to take hold and you fall into a rhythm with nature.
Camping in the winter months will offer you many moments like this – moments of stillness and satisfaction you’d be hardpressed to find in modern life.
Couple that timeless quality with the hard work winter camping requires and you’ve got the perfect recipe for serenity and living in the present moment – a break from reality.
So, if you can come to terms with the realities of winter camping, the benefits are yours to claim!
Best wishes,
Want more? I've got you covered ↓
As always your story are always amazing informative, full of great pictures and a true inspiration,
Hi guys:
I will be on the Gunflint Trail next week. Maybe we could have dinner at Trail Center. I really enjoy your blog.
Grant