Thinking About Getting into Snowshoeing. Needing some advice.

[Helix]

Oh I almost forgot.  Boots.  find a pair of boots that don't have leather in the toe/midfoot area.  that area will freeze during the night and be like wearing a concrete boot on day 2.  Leather in the upper part is OK as it doesn't need to flex.  Get insulated boots.  If they have a snowshoe bail on the heel all the better.

[MikeWalking]

"Do not get a Down bag"   ??   I've been winter camping since 1972 and have never had a problem keeping one dry.  My current -5 650fill has a Dry-Loft shell that has had heavy condensation rub on it for night after night without soaking through. 

One of my favorite winter camps is to A-Frame a tarp over a pit with an old climbing rope.  Pack a spot and put up the tent. Dig a chest deep pit with steps/slope up to the tent. No crawling in/out.  Use the dug out snow for walls and you have a sheltered spot to cook, change, stand up and stretch.   In some ways I like snow camps better than winter (except for the lack of swimming)  With an A-Framed tarp you can carve out the equal of living room/kitchen under it.  You'd be surprised how much light you get from two candles in that pit too.

[Helix]

My experience with down bags is not as good. Used one one time and won't ever again.  Got cold spots, also got damp.  Maybe if it had been colder and not wet it would have worked better. I like a good poly fill bag It's just more tollerant of our wet snow conditions IMHO.  To each their own I suppose.  Glad you found something you like. 

[MikeWalking]

My experience with down bags is not as good. Used one one time and won't ever again.  Got cold spots, also got damp.  Maybe if it had been colder and not wet it would have worked better. I like a good poly fill bag It's just more tollerant of our wet snow conditions IMHO.  To each their own I suppose.  Glad you found something you like.

I've had more problems with the Synthetic bags I've tried.  Cold spots, clammy...  A lot depends on exactly which model of what you buy and how well you take care of it. How well you pack it.  Both have gotten better, a lot better in my lifetime.  I've got a cheap Kelty (won playing Dime Pull tabs)  that's great for summer jeep camps but the liner wore through in 2 summers.  I also still have the REI Down bag bought for me in 1971 (a little short for me now lol)  but it still fluffs up good.

My current Down bag was bough on a closeout sale for $280 normally $400.   The only Syn bags I've tried were nowhere in that price range.

[Helix]

I also notice the OP mentioned taking a lot of photos.  I ruined a camera on a snow shoe trip.  It was the second morning and I put my olympus (not waterproof) in my jacket pocket.  The camera was freezing cold and got a coating of ice almost instantly from condensing my perspiration.  I took a few shots that day and they all looked like they had snow falling in them even though it was clear, due to ice crystals forming inside the camera.  the auto-focus was ruined.  that camera is now a paper-weight. 

My advice on cameras would be use a waterproof one and don't put it in your jacket when it is cold. 

[MikeWalking]

Had some camera issues first time out too.  Luckily I was between good cameras. I took a few one time use cameras. Most photos came out good.  Some not so good.  Those were the ones from the camera that went in and out of my inner pockets a lot.

[pope]

Watch this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGd1e9S90OU , then take that avalanche course. A good avalanche class should scare the wee wee out of you. A friend of mine got avalanched off Mt. Snoqualmie just a couple of years ago. Everybody in the party took a beating and needed rescue. These guys were very experienced back-country, winter travelers/climbers. For whatever reason, they went out for a ski when the avalanche danger was considerable.

[ICEMAN]

Yeah, we use waterproof cameras. The issue is you warm it in by your body and the air expands, then you pull it out into the cold, the air in the camera shrinks and pulls in moist air. Waterproof sort of helps, but not always. Our digital hard-drive video camera has a feature that if sub zero..., it shuts down to preserve the hard drive, really pisses me off.... 

An igloo is a great survival lesson for everyone. The problem is they take forever to build. I think I would build my snow trench with a branch lid and a tossed snow cover, if I was solo and if I needed the shelter. Problem with most caves is that you get soaked building one. Igloos can be built and you may not get wet, but they are no panacea and require just the right snow pac. You need fir boughs to keep you off the snow in all cases...

Teach them kids young!

[seth30]

That looks like fun!

[Helix]

iceman,  love the shot of you with your revolver sticking out the pocket. For sure Igloos Aint the easiest.  case in point my pic posted witht he roof that fell in and had to be rebuilt.  however I don't want to hijack this thread with all my igloo building skills/pointers. 

If you want to skip tents/bivy sacs and build snow shelteres get a good stamped alum snow saw.  it makes all the diference when builing these things.  it can also be used for cave building and really speeds up the process/cuts down the wet factor if you do it right.   

[ICEMAN]

Helix, I learned to put my 357 holster onto my sled pulling harness when we snowshoe...

We see cat tracks every day it seems, and since my kids were small, they were always shoeing ahead or occasionally draggin a few yards back, so I wanted ole reliable ready for action.

I always call out "cat-check" ... and everyone looks over their shoulders and into the woods each time I say it...   

[Helix]

Nice.  good advice.  Just don't yell Here kitty kitty.  I hear that brings um in like mad.