2nd Etobicoke Venturers Scrapbook Page
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January 2001
Winter Shelter Camp
We had a beautiful winter day to work and play in. The temperature was around -7 C. Liam, Andrew (above) and Philip (below) came out and had a great winter camping experience.
Our main focus this weekend was making snow shelters. Due to its shape, this snow shelter is called a "Snow Coffin". We prefer this type of snow shelter because it can be made quickly, without crawling around getting wet and overheated, can be made by one person and is a safe structure.
It's made by piling up packed snow and cutting out a 2-foot square by 8-foot long rectangle. The walls should be about 2-feet thick to provide adequate insulation and to provide support for the roof. The walls should be high enough so that you can roll over in your sleeping bag without difficulty. As with most shelters, size is important. Larger shelters are harder to keep warm.
Placing branches, which act as support beams, across the top of the shelter, starts the roof. A criss-crossing pattern is ideal to minimize any holes in the roof where snow could fall through.
A door is dug out closest to the ground on the lowest end. This creates a heat-trap which keeps any warm air inside the shelter. The door opening should be just big enough to crawl through into the shelter.
Finally, cover the structure with about 2-feet of snow. The first layer should be put on carefully so snow does not fall through into the shelter. The snow will settle and be supported by the branches you laid across it earlier. With the roof done, crawl inside and remove any snow that happened to fall through.
To make a door, we filled garbage bags with snow. They worked very well because we were able to mould them into the shape of the door. We used 2 bags per shelter and filled in any gaps with snow. In a real survival situation, you would use a snowball or your pack to block the door.
The last step was to put one or more ventilation shafts into the shelter at the head end. Each shelter occupant had a stick inside with them so they could clear the shaft or make more ventilation shafts if the humidity got too high and the inside of the shelter became too warm. These shafts should begin at the roof line and go toward the sky at a 45 degree angle.
Also, in a real survival situation, you would line the bottom of the shelter with anything that would insulate you from the snow. For example, evergreen boughs, strips of bark or logs would help to create an insulating layer. This is very important because 75% of a person's body heat is lost downward.
Here, the guys are preparing their supper.
Then it came time to see how well they worked. After laying down a thermarest or foam sleeping pad, each of the guys crawled in and slipped into their sleeping bag for a peaceful night's rest. Here is Philip, ...
...and Liam, ...
... and Andrew.
Here is our campsite.
The principal of a snow shelter is to keep the temperature at just below the freezing point so that the shelter doesn't start melting around you. You still rely on the clothes and gear you have with you to stay warm. By staying warm and dry, this shelter can provide a very peaceful sleeping experience.
Another type of snow shelter, called a Quinzhee, is often portrayed as an easy shelter to make. We found that the snow coffin was much easier and safer to make because we didn't have to crawl around in the snow or get wet from overheating while digging it out. Also, we didn't have to wait for 2-3 hours for the snow pile to settle before digging it out. Instead, everyone was able to complete their shelters in about 3 hours. And, since the roof is supported, there is less chance that it will collapse.
We had a great weekend playing in the snow!
We discovered that snow shelters can retain heat, are quiet and wind proof.
