Winter camping in New Hampshire

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Some of you might enjoy this book. It's very well written. Glen uses personal experience to make his points which are most interesting. The price is right to. Can't beat 1 cent+ postage.

The gear might be a little updated since he published it but the basic principles are unchanged.
I reviewed mine this am and with all this talk of winter camping, I hope to bring Molly on at least one big adventure this winter. She celebrates her first BD on 10/12. Perfect timing! :cool:

I like the backpacking book he wrote also.
 
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I wouldn't winter camp with a damp load on my belly. I don't take anything damp or wet into the bag with me, including anything I've worn during the day. This was about the only valuable thing I learned about winter camping as a scout. Cold air is dry enough to evaporate moisture if you hang/spread damp clothes elsewhere. Bone dry in bag = warmer sleep.*
I've done it successfully. And yes, it may increase the amount of moisture in your bag. (Your body heat evaporates the water, some of which may condense in the bag.) It also consumes some heat energy. It's a trade-off.

BTW, I am/was referring to drying items such as damp mittens and socks from normal usage, not clothing that has been soaked in a stream or pond.

Cold air is not necessarily dry enough to dry wet clothing--what counts is the relative humidity which is often quite high in winter, particularly at night. (It is only dry when in contact with skin or when breathing because you are much warmer than the ambient air.) In general if you leave a wet/frozen item of clothing out over night, it will be just as wet and frozen in the morning.

A variant on the technique is to carry the wet mittens against your belly during the day. You likely have more excess heat to spend drying gear and none of the moisture ends up in your sleeping bag.

Doug, I'm not sure how your bag, bivy and tent won't handle your breath, but they will dump the moisture of your wet socks and mittens.
The difference is the quantity of water. According to Medicine for Mountaineering, you breath and evaporate (insensible loss*) .5 to 1 liter of water per day in a temperate climate, more in cold and altitude (up to 4 liters per day). Damp mittens contain far less water.

* insensible loss=direct evaporation not including perspiration

Wet gear is something that we often ignore on day or weekend hikes because we can dry it at home. Longer multi-day winter hiking is different--unless you can dry your gear out in the field it will often accumulate moisture day by day. (This is particularly an issue with down sleeping bags--it is important to air and sun them whenever possible to keep them dry. Moisture evaporates constantly from your warm moist skin and some will remain in your insulation and sleeping bag whether you are drying gear or not.)

Doug
 
In both cases, be wary of rainy weather, which can saturate the snow then freeze into solid ice and then your tent isn't moving until spring. :)
One of the uses of an ice axe is to dig one's anchors out of frozen snow... (Just be careful that you don't cut the tent or tie-down loops.)

Doug
 
I have gotten into my bag with damp socks, and on a couple of occasions I did not change into dry base layers...never had a problem with a down or synthetic bag..but I was only out for 3 nights with temperatures between -10 and 0.

All nights were very dry and the bag had quite a bit of frost on the outside in the morning....My clothes were dry when I woke up.
 
I have gotten into my bag with damp socks, and on a couple of occasions I did not change into dry base layers...never had a problem with a down or synthetic bag..but I was only out for 3 nights with temperatures between -10 and 0.

All nights were very dry and the bag had quite a bit of frost on the outside in the morning....My clothes were dry when I woke up.
Sounds pretty normal...

I also generally wear the base layers that I have been wearing all day with no problem. I minimize sweating during the day and they dry out somewhat while making camp and eating dinner so they don't contain much moisture when I hit the sack. (They are also made of fabrics which wick rather than retain moisture.)

However, I have had mixed results with damp socks. They tend to collect more moisture than my base layers and do not dry out as much before hitting the sack. On most nights my feet were warm and my socks were dry by morning, but on one extra cold night my feet were cold--changing to dry socks was a big help. (Cold damp feet for extended periods is how one gets trench foot...)

The difference is, in part, due to physiology: feet are way down at the end of the circulatory system and are the first thing (along with hands) to get cold if your body is at all cool. (The body reduces circulation to the extremities when chilled.) That is why one places items to be dried on one's belly rather than on one's hands and feet.


The primary difference between down and synthetic sleeping bags is that the down loses loft (warmth) as it collects moisture whereas the synthetic is minimally affected. This is generally only a problem on longer trips.

Doug
 
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Others have warned that Lafayette is incredibly noisy in winter, so consider that repeated. They also don't really make an effort to keep the facilities open; I spent a lot of time chipping with an ice axe to clear the accumulated snow and finally gave up on getting the door open. They open *out* apparently.

Hancock's a very pleasant place to spend a night.
 
They also don't really make an effort to keep the facilities open; I spent a lot of time chipping with an ice axe to clear the accumulated snow and finally gave up on getting the door open. They open *out* apparently.
If it opens out and freezes you can get at the offending ice. If it opens in and freezes you cannot clear it.

Doug
 
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