One crazy winter day, my wife and I decided we wanted to experiment with camping in cold climates. It was January, we had a fever in the cabin and the sun had risen briefly, so we thought about leaving. We packed up all our gear, put our two dogs in the truck, and drove an hour to Shenandoah National Park. On the way, however, the sky filled with clouds and a light rain began to fall. The temperature was 32 and we began to worry about our adventure. When we got to the park gates, the ranger informed us that the trail was only open for about half a mile because as the elevation increased the temperature dropped. This meant that the rain on the road had turned to ice. He showed us a trail that we could still access from the part of the road that was open and said there was parking. But he also looked at us a little weird and said “you know it’s January and it’s raining right? You’re not going to freeze me up there are you?” We assured him that we had camping equipment for four seasons and that we would be fine. We also had two large dogs. We left.
The first part of the hike was just amazing. Sure enough, about 100 years down the road and the rain had turned into big snowflakes. It was peaceful and beautiful. We walked and enjoyed the surroundings. The dogs played in the forest, which was all ours of course. No one else was crazy enough to be on the mountain in these conditions. When we approached the first suitable campsite, I suggested that we take it. We unpack and begin family rituals to set up our camp. However, there was a noticeable difference, it was already starting to get dark! It was barely 4:30 and the light was beginning to change. We hadn’t counted on this. We sped up our activities and when we sat down with our camp stove for dinner, it was very dark. Worse than that, it was also getting cold rapidly.
This is the real lesson about winter camping. You tend to forget that the light has a completely different schedule. At around 7:30 pm, we were cold and ready to be in our tent. But we were not tired. We talked for a while in the dark and finally went to sleep. We slept a lot that night, but we didn’t sleep well. Our four season team did not turn out as strong as advertised. The cold seemed to seep into my sleeping bag from every little seam. My suggestion for those looking for the adventure of winter camping is DO IT. However, bring three of almost everything. If it’s your first time, maybe consider car camping so you don’t have to worry about the weight of all the extra stuff. It was really exciting to wake up and find an ice igloo in the tent. That first cup of coffee was perhaps the best tasting morning drink of my life. When the morning sun began to melt the ice off the trees, it created a surreal winter scene that I won’t soon forget. However, be smart and bring tons of gear. Start small and make sure you don’t get into real trouble by stretching your camping gear more than it can actually go.
