winter light weight camping

Posted by: Jimshaw

winter light weight camping - 10/13/08 06:45 PM

Hi All,

This is about how to go light in the Winter with heavy weight gear - take less of it. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

The best way to save weight is to try a conservative test, then keep doing it and each time leave something out. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> My own Winter philosophy is always try to be able to travel under any conditions which means really good clothes, <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> to have a bombproof place to spend the night, <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" /> and to be able to make coffee under any circumstances. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> Besides that, finding my way back to my truck is nice and I depend on my GPS for that. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> and its worth carrying spare batteries.

My early winter overnight pack weighs18.5 pounds less what I ski in, the food, water, and fuel. Since I melt snow I rarely carry much water, and since I'm on an overnight food might mean a mr goodbar and a sweet roll with hot coffee - lots of it. So I am concentrating on over night comfort and a bit of cooking. Besides clothes; my list is as follows:
68 oz tent,
46 oz pack
36 oz sleeping bag
27 oz Down Air Mattress
stove, fuel, pan, cup, spoon, fork, spreading knife
towel
pillow
some food hanging cord
toilet paper
head light and photon
canteen
first aid, lighters, tooth brush, trowel,
SOG crosscut mini multi tool

I do have clothes in my pack, but since I am already skiing, the extra ones I carry are:
down coat 25 oz
full zip 200 fleece pants 17 oz
Combi Winter gloves goretex 6 oz
large wool socks 5 oz
poly balaclava 3 oz


Other: I am carrying an Earthling "Fire straw" to test
and sometimes my night vision scope.

I might say - what I am not carrying that could become important depending on conditions and the time I stay:
FOOD
Shovel 23 oz
map - satellite photos
chair 21 oz
spare batteries

What I am wearing skiing- head lamp,
long underwear bottoms and packlite pants, marmot tech tee shirt, 200 full zip fleece jacket, packlite jacket over, light gloves, ski boots, a light fleece hat, and gaiters.

In deep winter I'd change to a warmer sleeping bag, replace the zip fleece pants with goretex down bibs, and throw in my mukluks, and a bit more food and fuel.

Jim <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" /> YMMV
Posted by: TomD

Re: winter light weight camping - 10/13/08 06:51 PM

How much do all of those emoticons weigh?

Didn't you forget to mention that you strap all that to the back of your snowmobile?
Posted by: Jimshaw

Re: winter light weight camping - 10/13/08 08:23 PM

Tom D

emoticons are free and weigh nothing. I was just teasing about my stealth snowmobile, but I sure wish I could afford one. Its the only way to get to trailheads here in the winter. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />
Jim <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />
Posted by: TomD

Re: winter light weight camping - 10/13/08 08:31 PM

Just having some fun with you, Jim. Sounds like they aren't able to plow some of the roads up your way.

Did you take a look at Otto's trip report he posted on Trailspace? It is to the high point in Sweden, which isn't all that high, btw. Some of the hikers fly in by helicopter to a hut, then hike the rest of the way.
Posted by: alanwenker

Re: winter light weight camping - 10/13/08 09:49 PM

What kind of temperatures do you expect to encounter? Mountains? Forest?
Posted by: TomD

Re: winter light weight camping - 10/14/08 04:46 PM

Alan-check the OT. A guy just posted that he has a new Oval Intention.
Posted by: Jimshaw

Re: winter light weight camping - 10/14/08 10:28 PM

alan

we've already had 24 degrees at my house at night and snow. But its warming up again. My thought is that the teens are normal lows up near the base of Mt Bachelor in winter with possible but rare below zero F nights, however this gear was put together for expected temps in the twenties. Its pretty dry in the Cascades despite what some poeple think, at least on the dry east side.

My clothes are very warm so I can travel in really bad weather, so I can wear them in my bag to ad serious warmth and put my down coat over the bag if need be.

That said, there is of course nothing as warm or important pound for pound as your sleeping bag. You may push your bag 20 degrees with warm clothes - even more, but you won't like it a lot. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

I pushed a bag rating by 70 degrees one night! <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> Don't do that. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> BTW I had a blue foam pad and a snowmobile suit, but a 30 degree bag at -40 was a bit of a stretch.
Jim
Posted by: alanwenker

Re: winter light weight camping - 10/15/08 12:17 PM

Given that I absolutely hate getting cold when I sleep I always take a bag rated about 20 degrees colder than what I think I'm going to encounter. 20 degree temps I would take a zero degree bag. Every time I try and go lighter with a bag, this past March for example, I wish I had brought a warmer bag.
Posted by: 300winmag

Re: winter light weight camping - 11/01/08 07:55 PM

Yeah, Interesting report on Norwegian hut skiing. I'd love to be able to afford that trip. Maybe I'll cash in one of my 201K accounts. (Used to be 401K)

Eric