Winter Day hiking prep

[not new guy]

That is pretty cool. $30 is steep, though it looks like Burton snowboards makes one that they sell for $43. Looking at some other options just now and $30 is starting to look pretty good somehow.

 

[whacko]

Wife went hiking with a friend up in the Royalston area yesterday. Comes home late and tells me how they got a little disoriented and walked in circles.. Cold made the phone die, and luckily they came across a group of local hikers that showed them the way back.. The never panicked, but did get a little concerned...

I lectured her about being prepared.. leave a plan with someone, bring a backpack with some important shit.. Trying to come up with a list of emergency stuff to keep in the backpack...

knife
small flashlight
phone battery pack
a few bic lighters
granola bars
bottle of water
foil rescue blankets
extra hat/gloves
handwarmers/footwarmers

anything I'm missing?

she doesn't carry.. so maybe pepper/bear spray?

A zippo lighter is better than a bic. You can open it up and pull off a piece of fluid soaked cotton then put the lighter back together and you have a hell of a nice fire starter.

 

[Salyeica]

Try this, it works. Insulate Your Devices From The Cold This Winter | PHOOZY

I got one of those for my GF to keep her phone in when we go skiing. Doesn't work at all, but her iPhone is an older model so the battery might be deteriorating.

 

[SevierDreams]

I got one of those for my GF to keep her phone in when we go skiing. Doesn't work at all, but her iPhone is an older model so the battery might be deteriorating.

The silver one works for the ipad. Haven't tried the iphone. It needs to be warm going into the sleeve before you go outside. If it goes into the sleeve cold its useless.

 

[Snora]

Try this, it works. Insulate Your Devices From The Cold This Winter | PHOOZY

Or put it in an interior pocket.

 

[not new guy]

Or put it in an interior pocket.

I haven't had great luck with that for some reason. Pants pockets right against my leg, no help. Pocket on the inside of a moderately insulated jacket didn't work either. Maybe some sort of phone holding codpiece?

 

[RumRunner]

Tinder for fire starting

I thought they said their phones didn't work, how are they supposed to get on tinder?

 

[Salyeica]

The silver one works for the ipad. Haven't tried the iphone. It needs to be warm going into the sleeve before you go outside. If it goes into the sleeve cold its useless.

Thanks for the tidbit. We have the silver one. At this point it might be more practical for her to keep a power bank in the Phoozy and charge the phone during lunch, since she’s always on the damn thing.

 

[SevierDreams]

Thanks for the tidbit. We have the silver one. At this point it might be more practical for her to keep a power bank in the Phoozy and charge the phone during lunch, since she’s always on the damn thing.

Or better yet, let it go dead and "barter" for your phone

 

[kerryman71]

Lots of great advice. I think a compass with some basic knowledge on how to use it would be good. I recently subscribed to OnX for hunting, but can see where it would come in handy for hiking. She could add a waypoint where she parks, and another one each time she goes in a different direction which could help her backtrack. Of course this all depends on a charged cell phone, which leads me to suggesting one of those small portable charging banks.

 

[HorizontalHunter]

Lots of great advice. I think a compass with some basic knowledge on how to use it would be good. I recently subscribed to OnX for hunting, but can see where it would come in handy for hiking. She could add a waypoint where she parks, and another one each time she goes in a different direction which could help her backtrack. Of course this all depends on a charged cell phone, which leads me to suggesting one of those small portable charging banks.

The Map, Compass, and Survival Hunter Ed course is a great course and it is free. It covers the basics on compass navigation, declination, making a debris shelter, and fire making basics.

Bob


Additional hunter education courses

 

[moojpg2]

A simple stand alone Garmin GPS or backtrack device can be a life saver and I'd consider it an absolute necessity for someone that is not experienced going hiking in winter. It is not good to rely on a cell phone they crap out at the worst times. Compass and map is fine for someone that knows how to use them, but unless you teach her some basic orienteering it's pretty much useless. She should definitely be carrying a small hydration backpack, equipped with some water with electrolytes, a tin cup or something to heat water in/melt snow if it gets frozen, some food, some tinder, something to light the tinder, a headlamp (loaded with lithium batteries) with some spare batteries (lithium batteries), spare batteries for gps if it takes different ones (also lithium), extra dry socks and an extra wool or synthetic base layer she can put on to help stay warm, one of those S.O.L emergency bivvy's, and stainless Mora knife or equivalent, the survival one with the flint striker and sharpening stone on the sheath is pretty cheap and more than sufficient. Fox whistle should be in there, and bear spray would be a good idea, clip it to one of the pack's straps. That would be my absolute minimum for anyone hiking in winter in the northeast, and that's assuming they are dressed appropriately in wool or synthetics, and have enough common sense to not work up a ridiculous sweat and get themselves soaking wet in the middle of winter. Winter hiking and mountaineering is a different animal, you've got to keep the pace down to where your sweating is minimal and it has time to evaporate. If you get stuck and your clothes are all drenched in sweat and your exhausted your chances of making it through a sub zero night without fire and shelter are pretty slim.

I usually also carry a Glock 29 10mm, or a scandium frame SW1911PD .45acp with ammo that is suitable for handgun hunting or defense from 4 legged threats, no lightly constructed self defense ammo for the woods, it won't drive through bone if you gotta stop mama bear or mama moose from charging you. If I'm out west I bump that up to a 4 1/2" Super Blackhawk in .44 mag.

 

[moojpg2]

Your right not a good plan but you can’t get to lost in Mass just not very much big woods like up north

no, that might be true in central/eastern MA, but if ur out in western MA you can definitely get lost enough to not find your way out in a day of walking, or go the wrong dirction and find a path that you can't reasonably navigate on foot, especially if your tired, cold, or injured.

 

[The Edge Lab]

Looks like most here have you covered. My winter hiking pack has a SOL emergency Bivvy and I also have a 0 degree sleeping bag. It collapses down to 1.5 liters... takes up no space. I also carry mittens and a 2nd pair of wool socks. Also wise to carry is a whistle.

 

[mcb]

The White Mountain Day Hike 10 Essentials (as observed on the Franconia Loop)
1. Limmer Custom boots
2. Bespoke axe or tomahawk
3. Cast Iron griddle
4. Foldable saw
5. REI Co-op card
6. Swedish Fire starter (and four other types of fire starters as backup)
7. 8 layer clothing system covering -150 deg to 100+ deg F, hurricane winds and all types of precipitation (weather changes instantly, there is no way to forecast up there)
8. A macbook pro (13” is OK)
9. A disinterested girlfriend
10. 14 day / 4 person medical kit

 

[Stryker]

If you really love her Garmin Inreach... Best survival equipment is satellite communication to call in air extraction...

the higher end Garmin watches have a GPS track back feature that can navigate you back to your start point (or waypoints) if you get lost

 

[kerryman71]

Would a flare gun be out of the question?

 

[mcb]

Would a flare gun be out of the question?

I like it ... with this one piece of gear you can signal, hunt and start fires.

 

[Grendizer138]

Since her pack is going to be like 50 lbs with all this stuff, she won’t make it out of the yard. Problem solved.

 

[MisterHappy]

Practice.

Go into the back yard, and light a campfire, with just the stuff in the back yard.

Repeat when it's windy, rainy and snowy.

Same with all the other preps. Practice, when you don't need them, so you can do them when you do.

 

[kerryman71]

Since her pack is going to be like 50 lbs with all this stuff, she won’t make it out of the yard. Problem solved.

Haha. At one point I was going to offer my old Army rucksack.

 

[SKumar]

Almost forgot the most important: Water

Don't use a camelback! The hose will freeze and then you're f***ed with hydration. Instead, pack multiple nalgene bottles of water with a sprinkle of salt in them, put a wool sock around each one, and put them in your backpack upsidedown (so if they ice up, the unfrozen water will be on the opening end so you can still drink).

 

[moojpg2]

Since her pack is going to be like 50 lbs with all this stuff, she won’t make it out of the yard. Problem solved.

no way the stuff I listed in my post is 5-7lbs max even with water

 

[AHM]

Cold made the phone die, ...

Warm it up again.

How did I ever make it out alive hiking in the Whites and in Maine from the Mahoosucs to Katahdin for decades without a mobile phone?

(Is there cell coverage in the lower altitudes of Baxter State Park?)

Radios were supposedly forbidden not so long ago at Kahtadin.
But I kept looking and looking over time and evidently the rangers gradually
got off their "backcountry experience" high horse and broomed the rule.

(does cold drain newer batteries like they used to drain the old ones?)

Voltage is a function of temperature.
Warm it up and the battery works again.

I've actually heard of people resuscitating marginal car batteries
by pouring boiling water over them.

I've even seen one guy claim that if the battery is in good shape,
you can warm it up enough by running headlights for a while
that you regain more in cranking power than you lose from discharge.
You'd have to be wicked desperate to play that game.

my wife loves her Sunday hikes with the dog, but she (the wife) is a bit directionally challenged. trying to stay on the trail is a bit more challenging in the winter months.. weekend was an eye opener for her..

The rule in the Adirondacks is,
"head downhill - you'll reach a road eventually".
Well, in the Adirondacks you may hit a swamp first,
but let that go.

Descending Watatic after Fourth of July firework viewing
with a head-mounted light so close to my eyes that there was no depth of field from shadows,
I learned to sense whether I was on trail by whether I was walking on
crunchy old leaves that were intact, or leaves that had been ground down to duff
by all the hikers since the previous fall.

Hiking Grand Monadnock via the Pumpelly Trail,
I went off on a deer path by accident for a minute or two
and noticed that while the official trail's rock is kind of slick,
if you're walking on bare rock that's untrodden,
the schist grips like pumice.

Keeping it in a pocket closer to my body didn’t even seem to work.

You have to put it right next to your body (chest?) where you will actually keep it warm -
not in some random pocket partially insulated from your body so that you just wish it was warm.
I'd never keep a phone in a pants pocket hiking - that's how you fall on it.

Someone planning a 2 to 4 mile loop hike might be thinking quick walk in the woods- until a wrong turn puts them 2X deeper rather than back to their destination.

On a big fall group day trip of coworkers to Zealand Hut,
people descended back to the parking lot in dribs and drabs.

One guy walking alone banged a right instead of a left
when he reached the bottom of the Notch,
and we only realized he was missing when we got to the parking lot.
A few guys headed back to look for him before it got dark,
and ran in to him belatedly going in the right direction.

Try this, it works. Insulate Your Devices From The Cold This Winter | PHOOZY

It's so well insulated that the phone's inherent heat
from being in the house/car keeps the battery good,
but it's not so well insulated that your body heat has no effect?

If you just secure the phone in an inner (shirt) pocket,
your body heat actively keeps the phone warm.

the higher end Garmin watches have a GPS track back feature that can navigate you back to your start point (or waypoints) if you get lost

Countless flatlanders have thought that the compass needle
pointed back to the car at the end of the day.

Would a flare gun be out of the question?

I like it ... with this one piece of gear you can signal, hunt and start fires.

Spoiler: Go with a hand phaser

You can use it to make coffee
when the power's out in the galley.

Don't use a camelback! The hose will freeze and then you're f***ed with hydration.

Happened 1½ times biking with an uninsulated hose.
But if your water is hidden in your pack, you're not hydrating, are you?

 

[smokey-seven]

regarding a flare gun

with this one piece of gear you can signal, hunt and start fires.

You will need more shells, thus more than one piece.

 

[vcman]

Almost forgot the most important: Water

Don't use a camelback! The hose will freeze and then you're f***ed with hydration. Instead, pack multiple nalgene bottles of water with a sprinkle of salt in them, put a wool sock around each one, and put them in your backpack upsidedown (so if they ice up, the unfrozen water will be on the opening end so you can still drink).

Why the salt?

 

[EMTDAD]

Why the salt?

lowers the freezing point of the water. Instead of freezing at 32F, might lower it to 25F or lower depending on the solution of salt to water ratio. Might also replenish salts your body sweats off, but I'm speculating on that as I'm not a nutritionist.

 

[SKumar]

Why the salt?

Seasoning bro
J/k. It’s does lower the freezing temp a bit, but also important for sodium replenishing. Hopefully you’re eating sugary salty snacks anyway. I’ve gone through a couple instances where my thighs cramped badly. Lesson learned!

Monitor how much you sweat also. You don’t want to be soaked in freezing temps. Wear synthetic underclothing that wicks moisture.

All this winter hiking talk reminds me how challenging it is compared to summer hiking. It’s fun, but you gotta be prepared.

 

[AHM]

Why the salt?

lowers the freezing point of the water. Instead of freezing at 32F, might lower it to 25F or lower depending on the solution of salt to water ratio. Might also replenish salts your body sweats off, but I'm speculating on that as I'm not a nutritionist.

I just checked the Intarwebs, and an isotonic solution of salt
has its freezing point depressed by a whopping 0.52°C;
that is, it freezes at 31.064°F.
You could of course add more salt to taste.

However, there's no danger of consuming too much salt water
as long as you keep it in upside down bottles
hidden in socks in your backpack (a.k.a. Brine Condition Three),
so that you're never tempted to stop and drink from them.
So you'd have that going for you.
Which is nice.

 

[AHM]

All this winter hiking talk reminds me how challenging it is compared to summer hiking. It’s fun, but you gotta be prepared.

Peak fun: wearing snowshoes in the woods when there's enough snow on the ground -
The planet is your oyster:
you can walk in any direction, and the ground cover has no say in the matter.