"Didn't Expect This"

I think it's safe to say that the cold winter months are behind (at least in the midwest). This past winter was a great experience. I did much more camping and learning this winter than ever before. Winter camping can be a challenge, but a fun challenge. From keeping a fire lit, to hauling extra gear, to keeping warm at night. More thought has to be put into winter camping along with the extra gear required. Each year, when I winter camp, I run into unexpected problems and have to learn how to overcome them. Since this year I had more camping in, I thought I would share some of the things you may not expect on a winter camp.

Winter camping requires exprience to detemine what gear you need. When I first started winter camping, I would take my entire gear closet. Now I take the minimum amount needed. However, there is still extra weight and what seems to add the most weight is the sleep system. The sleep system is the most important piece of gear for your winter camp. We found that not having your sleep system well put together will make for a miserable night. It's important to, before the winter comes, find out what exactly you need to keep warm. I found that the particular sleep system I used works best if I put my coat inside and around my feet. I have a problem with my feet getting cold and that was one thing I had to learn to compensate for. While in our hammocks, my camping partner had troubles keeping his butt warm and had to find how to compensate for that. So before you go on a full blown winter camp, you should find what works best for you to keep warm. If you camp all year long, late fall is a good time to get out and discover what you need to improve on.

If you are starting out with winter camping, it's easy to over pack for the trip which adds unnecessary weight to your pack or pulk. That's why it's good to find out ahead of time what exactly you need for the winter camp so you aren't over packing. Some things, though, are good to have an excess of. it's good to have some extra fuel. I found that the cold weather, especially sub-zero, significantly decreases the pressure in fuel cans, limiting how much you can use. An extra stove is also a good idea in case one decides to quit.

Since there was only two of us camping, we narrowed it down to two stoves. Our first trip this winter, we started with three. With multiple people in your party, it's much easier to have each person cooking a different part of the meal. In our case, I was browning the meat as he cooked the noodles, then mixed the two into both pots. After dinner, we used one stove to heat water for hot chocolate while the other was used to heat water for our Nalgene bottles.

Our first camping trip this winter, we had a hard time keeping a fire going. In the sub-zero weather, or even around zero, the fire seems to go out quicker. With that being said, it's important to have enough fire wood for the night. I cut enough wood to overfill my pulk and that seemed to be enough for one night. If the fire goes out, it can be difficult to restart. I found that the fires started easier by using LOTS of little twigs and a fire starter. For a fire starter, we used cotton balls soaked in petroleum jelly. This works exceptionally well. As you collect wood, be aware that if it is frozen and has even minimal snow on it, you will have a hard time starting it. I found that the best wood to use is branches cut from dead trees. They seemed drier and started easier. You can also precut and store wood, then haul it in your pulk.

Fire is an essential tool for keeping warm in the winter, though proper dressing will provide adequate warmth. However, it's difficult to keep a fire going overnight without monitoring it. To keep warm in the sleeping bag, it helps to stuff your clothes in with you. This not only helps to provide insulation, but keeps your clothes warm for morning. We also boiled water over the stove and filled our Nalgene bottles. By putting the bottles in your sleeping bag about an hour before going to bed, you will have a very warm sleeping bag. We also boiled the water right before bed to keep them warm. We crawled in our sleeping bags around 10:00 and my Nalgene bottles stayed warm until about 5:00 AM. I used two Nalgene bottles, but I think this winter, I will use three or four. The one downside to this method is when the bottles cool down, they can actually make you colder than you would be otherwise.

In addition to the bottles, I found that placing a large space blanket between the hammock and underquilt helped to keep the hammock warm. I had enough blanket to also pull it over me to trap the heat. The downside is that space blankets are not breathable and can accumulate condensation. Condensation can be a problem with hammock camping. I found that in the morning, my sleeping bag and hammock was covered in frost. One way to combat this is to make a frost shield. This can be done by taking an old t-shirt and cut out the neck hole and a large square from the front. The neck hole can be placed around the neck and the end of the square can be tied to the ridgeline. This way, any condensation will accumulate on this and not the sleeping bag. 

This year, I also started bivy camping. Bivy camping is an experience if you have never tried it. I will post on bivy camping later, but what I do want to convey is that bivies trap heat really well. I did an open bivy camp this winter and found the bivy adds significant warmth.

When you camp in the cold, remember that your body burns more calories to keep warm. Therefore, it's important to eat at least one good meal a day. Eat something with high calories and protein. Throughout the day, it's a good idea to also snack on high calorie and protein snacks such as nuts or ClifBars.

Lastly, I want to cover hauling gear. I started out with my usual Teton pack. I pack my bag the same every time and found it convenient to pack it the same as I do in the summer, then pack all of my winter specific gear (sleeping bag, extra fuel, wood, etc.) in the pulk. It didn't take long for me to realize this gets very heavy. I eventually refined my gear list to just the essentials and used only the pulk. A pulk is so much easier to haul gear than a pack in the winter. In all reality, I don't take as much for winter as I do summer.

Even though these tips are intended more for winter, I decided to post them now and primarily for two reasons. One: because they are still fresh in my mind. Two: because they can also be used in summer months. Some summer months can get cold at night and for those living in colder regions, these tips will still apply. Remember that the best way to improve on your camping skills and learn these little tricks is to get out there and camp often.

Packing the Pulk

There's just something about winter camping. Sleeping in the cold air, the element of survival, and opportunity to use skills you wouldn't use otherwise. I thoroughly enjoy winter camping. One unavoidable area, though, is the excess in gear. Extra blankets, thicker (and heavier) sleeping bag, extra fuel, dry wood, etc. Unfortunately, that means your pack won't quite cut it. Fortunately, you can use a pulk!

This post is strictly how to pack and use a pulk and not so much on building one. Though, I may throw in some things I added to mine to improve the function of it.

The first step is to make sure the pulk will work for you depending on your need. There are different sizes and the length of the poles depend on whether you are skiing or snowshoeing. If you are skiing, the poles may need to be longer. Also, if you are a heavier person and need bigger snowshoes, be sure they will clear the poles. Make sure to find a harness or belt that will work well with your pulk then go out and test it to make sure it will be suitable. The poles should be secured on the sides of the harness for added stability. If you will do a lot of turning and maneuvering, you can hook the poles to the middle of your back. Just be sure to have the poles crossed and in an x-shape. This will help stabilize the pulk, keep it from tipping, and makes it easier to control it. 

As you test out your pulk, there are some things to consider. Something I didn't take into account when I first used mine is the fact that it can be top heavy and can tip over easily. Sometimes it's dependent on how you walk or ski, but this problem can be mostly solved by placing a metal ring or carabiner to hold the 2 poles together (where the poles cross). I noticed that it will often tip over when the poles separate. You will see what I mean when you first go out. 

Now on to packing! Packing a pulk is very similar to packing a backpack or panniers. Balance is key! As you pack, try to keep heavier items in the center and balance everything out from there. If there's too much weight in the front, the front will dig into the snow. If too much weight is in the back, it will feel like dead weight. It's essential to get a good balance. 

As I mentioned earlier, the pulk can become top heavy fast which makes it easier to tip over. So you want put heavy stuff in first and as close to the bottom as possible. When you have few items, you can be more flexible. As you see in the picture below, I put the heavier sleep system toward to back and everything else in front to balance it out. If you have a lot to pack, put heavier items on the bottom and the lightest on top. 

Try not to overload the pulk. First of all, if it's overloaded, it may get too heavy for the poles. Second, the pulk will begin to feel like dead weight going up hills and will try to push you down hills. If it is an extended trip and you will be hauling a lot, balance the load between a pack and the pulk. 

If you hike all year long and have your gear list and pack perfected, you can do nice little trick I learned. I have some winter specific gear. If my pack is set up perfect for year round hiking, I will put my winter specific gear in the pulk and leave everything else in the pack. My bigger sleeping bag, shovel, extra blanket, dry wood, extra fuel, etc. You can strategically pack winter specific gear in the pulk. However, if you're an ultralight hiker like me and going for an overnight trip, you may be better off taking the pulk only. 

So, you have your gear in your pulk. Now what? You want to try to waterproof your gear because there's a good chance that your gear will get snow on in. I built my own pulk and I riveted a medium tarp to the inside. With this, I can fold the front and back in, then the sides and secure it. This works very well to keep gear dry. If your pulk doesn't have a built in tarp, you can set a tarp on the pulk floor and wrap your gear to keep it dry. I also have paracord running along the pulk and it pulls up on 4 points along the sides and one point in the front. I can secure the cord with 2 carabiners on top and cinch it tight to keep my gear compressed. You want keep your gear compressed as tightly to the pulk bottom as you can. This will not only keep your gear lower and the center of gravity lower, it will keep gear from shifting which could cause the pulk to tip over. 

Something else that the pulk is good for is storage. I love hammock camping and something you always run into is storing your gear overnight. I used to place my pack on one side of my ground cloth and fold the other end over to keep the pack dry. If I use a rainfly that goes all the way to the ground, I can just set my gear on the ground cloth. But with a pulk, you can wrap up your gear in the pulk and not have to worry about where to put your pack (if you take a pack). Otherwise, all of your gear is already in the pulk and you don't have to worry about organizing camp. For my last camp, I used a bivy and it worked really well to have the pulk. Since I didn't have a shelter per se, all my gear was stored in the pulk. I also, generally put my boots in my sleeping bag to keep them warm. But with the pulk, I just stored them in the pulk and used hand warmers in the morning to warm them up. 

Overall, I think pulks are an awesome investment of time and money. They are easy to use (for the most part) and make hauling heavier gear a breeze. I think pulks are probably the best way to haul gear in winter. Hopefully this has helped in your venture into pulk-pullin'.