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Hiking around in the great outdoors is a very common practice during the summer time, but a lot of people hang up their boots and take to other pursuits when the cold weather rears its ugly head. As sad as it is, a lot of people get all gloomy and end up skipping out on the winter, even though it’s one of the most beautiful seasons of the year for taking a long hike.
You can hike during the winter, but only if you know how. There are a lot of different aspects of hiking during the winter time that many summer time hikers never really think about. For one thing, you need to pack more calories into your snack schedule during the winter, because your body has to work harder to keep itself warm. For another thing, making sure your water doesn’t freeze up will be another issue. Speaking of water, obviously you can sweat during the winter time. But do you know how to properly layer your clothes, so that you can moderate how much you sweat as you exert yourself?
There are a lot of different components to winter hiking. Even the gear you use is different for this time of the year. Insulation and fabrics designed to wick away sweat are extremely useful in the cold, and keeping your feet dry is especially useful. Trench foot can cause serious damage at up to sixty degrees, even when you’ve only had wet feet for six hours or so. Before you venture out into the winter wonderland, make sure you know how to make it back from there safely.
