As a kid, I loved winter.
I grew up in Michigan, so winter was a FULL season. Snow fell in early December and stuck around through late April. Whenever my mom had a day off work, she would take me, my brother and my sister to our local sledding hill — the steep, sloping face of our high school football field — where we would glide downhill on our green plastic sleds, and then clamber back up to do it again.
As I got older, I fell out of love with spending winter days playing outside. Snow days turned to car problems, slushy commutes and inflated heating bills. The magic of winter started to wear off during high school when my varsity coat and Vans failed to keep me warm during walks across the student parking lot, and then evaporated completely in college, when my fake Uggs and college logo-branded Columbia fleeces completely soaked through during cross-campus strolls.
My apathy toward winter followed me around during my time in Chicago and Ukraine, where cold became just one more obstacle between me and life.
I just had to pick one of the three Peace Corps countries that even has a winter, didn’t I?
But then… something magical totally expected happened.
I moved to northern California — the Sierra Nevada foothills, to be exact — last winter for work, and fell back in love with playing outside.
You kind of have to be an outdoors person to work for Forest Service, and you definitely have to be an outdoors person to make any friends in any kind of town that centers itself around recreating. I realized pretty quickly that if I wanted to have ANY fun at all during my time in northern California, I had to do the things that people there did.
Which… was going outside.
I also didn’t want to miss out on any of the beautiful Sierra Nevada landscape! It just so happened to be covered in snow during my tenure on the Tahoe, and I didn’t want to let that keep me from taking full advantage of a cool temporary opportunity.
While I spent most of my first winter here in Flagstaff sitting by my little faux-fireplace space heater while reading books, baking cookies and hiding from COVID, my second winter here has been going a lot better now that I have friends and have learned to love the outdoors when it’s below 30 and covered in snow.
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Dress in layers and wear the right materials.
Look, I don’t care how ridiculous gaiters look. Cold, wet socks feel WAY worse than gaiters look. (And if you truly hate the way they look, wear them over your base layer and under your outer layer.) It’s easier to stay warm than it is to get warm!
It’ll take you a while to figure out what kind of layering system works for you, but a good place to start is base layer + mid layer + outer layer (ex: an under shirt, a fleece or down pull-over or jacket, and hard outer shell) on top, and a base layer + outer layer (ex: leggings and water resistant hiking pants/ shell pants) on the bottom.
Make sure everything is made out of the right materials, too.
Your outer layer should be waterproof and windproof, but breathable. Gore-Tex is the gold standard. My winter hiking boots and shell are Gore-Tex products.
Your middle layer should keep you warm! I like both fleece and down — I rely a lot on my Patagonia Synchillas and puffer jackets.
Your inner layers should wick away sweat to keep you warm and dry. I’m a huge fan of merino wool, but I also like synthetics. Silk is OK, but avoid cotton!
Don’t forget the accessories: Socks, gaiters (the kind for your feet), a neck gaiter, gloves (consider layering these with mittens/ glove “shells” if it’s cold enough!), sunglasses and/or snow goggles, headbands, hats and balaclavas.
Bring a day pack so you can remove layers and add them as your activity level changes.
Think of cold weather when you pack your gear.
I ditch my water bladders in the winter and use an insulated water bottle like a Hydro Flask to keep my water from freezing. I also pack snacks that don’t freeze as easily, like granola bites, Nature Valley bars and nuts. If I can, I’ll store snacks with a higher moisture content (like dried fruit and Rx bars) inside my midlayer to keep them from freezing.
I’ll also store eye drops/ contact solution and my water filter if I’m using it close to my body to keep everything temperature-regulated.
Take care of your skin!
It’s so easy to end up with sunburn and wind burn. Before I go outside, I apply a fresh layer of moisturizer — my favorite is Belif’s The True Cream Moisture Bomb. Tip: Avoid anything with hyaluronic acid in it during low-humidity winter days, it’ll only dry your skin out more. I top that with a layer of SPF followed by a thin layer of either Aquaphor or a facial oil. This prevents my face from drying out. (Some facial oil options are squalane, argan or rosehip.)
I also wear sunglasses (typically Goodr) and always carry ChapStick with SPF. I also bring regular lotion in my car (Aveeno is my favorite) to slather on any exposed skin when it starts feeling tight and dry.
Pack a reprieve from the cold.
I typically keep a spare pair of hand warmers in my pack. You can buy rechargeable ones as well!
I also love to pack my backpacking stove, fuel, kettle and mug with me on outdoor adventures — even if they’re shorter adventures. You can warm up on the trail with hot chocolate, tea or coffee, or you can even bring soup or ramen for lunch.
Finally – know your limits and always put safety first!
Winter can obviously be a lot more dangerous than summer due to exposure. If I’m driving anywhere, I make sure I have a car emergency kit full of food, extra layers, a shovel and water. I also always try to keep my gas tank as full as possible.
I try to bring friends along on adventures if I can — the buddy system is always safer — but if I venture out by myself, I’m extra diligent about telling friends/ Ryan where I’m heading and when I plan on being back.
Know the signs of frostbite and hypothermia. Don’t venture further away from your vehicle or cell service than you’re comfortable with.
And, finally, if I’m not comfortable with something, I have zero qualms about pulling the plug and saying no. If visibility is limited, if roads are bad, if snowfall is heavy and wind speeds are high, I’ll simply cancel and rescheduled. I’m not an experienced mountaineer by any means and I have zero search and rescue training, so if I’m not comfortable with any kind of scheduled activity and it seems like too much of a risk, I’ll take the L and stay home with a book and hot cocoa instead!
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So, there’s a little bit about how I learned to love going outside in the winter. Crazy how something as simple as wearing the right clothing makes 30 degrees feel a lot more tolerable!
Happy winter adventuring!
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