Does anyone practice winter bushcraft?

[DuckDogDr]

In the spirit of being prepared when things go wrong or being caught with your pants down, does anyone on here legitimately practice winter survival skills for if it happens when rubber meets the road?

 

[Pony Soldier]

Count me out. 44 years in a tent fulfilled my curiosity.

 

[*zap*]

Sure thing....it can be lotsa fun if you have the right gear but I ain't walking away from civilization with a tarp and 5 #'s of gear when the temps are frigid.

 

[Drenalin]

I backpack and camp in the winter. Not for any preparation though, I just enjoy being out this time of year. We don’t have very harsh winters though; I’m good to the low teens and fine with snow, but any temps lower than that, or continuous rain, and I have better things to do. At a certain point of suck, I need to have a larger goal to stay out.

 

[stanginthe11s]

I hate getting caught with my pants down in the winter, I swear it's the cold. but I did build an igloo when I was a kid, does that count?

 

[Nykki]

Used to but old age ended that foolishness. Went through cold weather survival training in Fairbanks, had so much fun my buddies and I went back out for the weekend. My partner and I used to go for the winter moose hunt in November and December in the interior. Winter camping at well below zero and hours from the road is not really fun but very doable with the right equipment. We didn't have heat in the tent.

 

[robtattoo]

In the words of Sheldon Cooper:

"If the outdoors is so great, why has mankind spent tens of thousands of years trying to perfect indoors? "

 

[Rich M]

Im older, used to play those games years ago - dig snow caves, get up under some jack pines and start fires in wet snow conditions using the little sticks close to the trunk, etc. you don’t lose it.

We used to hunt cold weather a lot. Used to carry a metal coffee can and charcoal briquets to start a warmer and sit with jacket held out over it to keep core warm. It came in real handy if someone fell in while duck hunting - we’d warm em up and dry em off, not go running for home, keep hunting.

Some of those folks who recently froze to death on the roads in NY and elsewhere could have used a little preparation and knowledge. Couple candles or sterno cans and a sleeping bag coulda gone a long way for some of those folks.

 

[JBrown1]

My daughter and I have been out in some pretty sketchy conditions(hunting at -20f, whiteouts, etc.), so last year we took an arctic survival course at the local community college. The course culminated with an overnight campout. The temps were right around 0. We built and slept the night in a snow shelter(snow block A-frame). Others built and slept in dugout shelters(snow caves).

The funny thing was that we almost didn't take the class. When we had been out in severe conditions I always figured that if we ran into trouble, we would either get rescued quickly, or we would die quickly.

But after taking the class I am far more confident that we could survive on our own. The biggest thing for me was learning how to make a shelter(you can learn that from a book) and learning what to look for when you are looking for a place to build(dig) your shelter.

Cold temps and wind will kill you quickly. Even in negative temps, the temp inside an unheated snow shelter is surprisingly warm(+-32 f).

 

[JBrown1]

Some of those folks who recently froze to death on the roads in NY and elsewhere could have used a little preparation and knowledge. Couple candles or sterno cans and a sleeping bag coulda gone a long way for some of those folks.

You hit the nail on the head! It is always a good idea to keep a sleeping bag or blanket in the car during the winter. If you can keep out of the wind you should be able to survive, but you will need something to insulate yourself.

 

[Rich M]

You hit the nail on the head! It is always a good idea to keep a sleeping bag or blanket in the car during the winter. If you can keep out of the wind you should be able to survive, but you will need something to insulate yourself.

used to carry a box of stuff just in case. Shovel, wool blanket, candles, matches, sand/salt, etc.

I remember reading about a guy who survived like 10 days in freezing temps cause he stuck close to his vehicle. Same with a boating accident, you dont abandon the boat either.

 

[mtnrunner260]

We don't do anything significant or to seriously but do play in the snow frequently
Might be a good topic for the next library visit.

 

[dtrkyman]

Camping is a necessary evil when I hunt and sometime for fishing. While some bushcraft skills are sure to be of help at some point it is a hard pass for me camping in the winter!

Of course I have a Mule Deer hunt next week and will be camping!

 

[MallardSX2]

I stopped camping for fun when I took up backcountry hunting. That fulfills my fixation for the entire year. lol

 

[WildBoose]

I love studying the art of and practicing bushcraft, but don't have near the time I use too. I still enjoy testing my gear out in cold temps (Cold for KY anyway) and keeping my bushcraft skills from getting dull. A knife, axe, tarp and metal pot mixed with a snowy woods can make for a really fun day!

 

[Mike Islander]

My favorite time is during what passes for winter here.

17 degrees last Friday. I didn't exactly rough it.

 

[rcb2000]

I used to mess around with that kind of stuff as a kid, traps, snares, shelters. As someone mentioned, I get my fix now through actual backpacking and hunting.

Now I look at these guys on IG doing bushcraft, and it’s all the same crap. Building some shelter, to make some feather sticks, and brew coffee drank out of a wood cup.

It seems more like “Cosplay” than camping,, those kids that do the AT trail or most backcountry hunters do more realistic “survival” training than any of these guys did dicking around with ferro rods and snares.

 

[*zap*]

that stuff is very popular right now as is hot tenting videos. I think everyone should have a very regular dose of self imposed adversity.

 

[BWlongbow]

We spend a lot of time camping in the wintertime here in Georgia. Canvas tent, wood heater and such. Spend most of the camping doing bushcraft stuff. Building a fire with a hand drill, is a lot of fun.

 

[SonnyDay]

I used to be able to start a fire with a bow drill as fast as with a lighter…. A little rusty these days but it comes back pretty quick.