Outdoor adventure and gear - 2021 - 2022 Winter Season

As we are all enjoying the view of the first snow of the season and getting terribly excited to get back on the slopes! (Although we know some of you already enjoying the snow and winter activity gear), 

We wanted to go over the gear we have found the most useful for the upcoming season. 

Last year, despite the Covid situation, we took it upon us to try the “winter camping” experience and had a lot to learn! Starting with the environment, we had to check out where the best place for us to camp was, so naturally, we took our inadequate gear and went up the mountain as the light of the day was fading, with no plan.

We found ourselves in the cold night at the top of the mountain with our summer tent, our Mountain Hardware Bozeman sleeping bags and a Trangia stove.

What a night! 

We made all the possible mistakes. We set up the tent as the fog arrived, it was dark, we were tired and cold. The wind was blowing, we didn’t think about the location and ended up too exposed… first mistake. 

We took off our ski gear, but kept our base layers and went straight into our sleeping bags to warm up… second mistake. We basically trapped humidity inside the bag and the tent, this led to a very cold sleepless and damp night. We obviously only had summer mattresses that meant the cold from the ground went straight through (the humidity with if of course) and led to an even worse experience. 

At dawn we were exhausted, had painful backs and didn’t feel very clever. We felt like children again, acting before thinking, we were so excited about skiing back down with the sunrise the next day that we ignored all the basic rules of the outdoors. We made ourselves a cup of tea and packed the gear, managed to warm up our saw bodies and awkwardly put on our frozen ski boots and set off with the sun on our backs. At last, that feeling we had been chasing and fought for the entire night was here. Peacefully and with a wide smile on our faces we skied back down to the village.

Back home, after a hot shower and a well-deserved breakfast, we looked back at the mountain and told each other we would only do this again with the right organization and gear. Because one thing we have learned since is that you can enjoy a good warm and dry night of winter camping.

So, what better way to start the upcoming season with a few of our findings and reviews on some of the gear we found! 

·      First up we’ve got the tents: Both are SlingFin, Cross Bow 2 four- Season, the Body Only is worth 295€ and offers great features.(https://www.slingfin.com/products/copy-of-crossbow-2-four-season-body-only?_pos=2&_sid=5fcf87427&_ss=r)

The second tent is the same make, just a bigger size, for two people. The Crow Bow 2 four- Season – Capacity 2 is worth 650€. The price is a little much but again this tent has great features to it. Section hiker has a fantastic review on it, check it out by clicking the following link: (https://sectionhiker.com/slingfin-crossbow-2-tent-review/)

·      Now we’ve gone over the shelter, we needed a perfect sleeping bag. We had it! The Bozeman OF/-18° is one we bought a couple of months before our trip and we fell in love it with it, so much that we started sleeping with it in bed at home. The shell is a 75D Plain Weave Polyester, 100% Polyester. The insulation is Thermal.Q™ Recycled and the bag fill type is Synthetic. It has an insulated draft collar and tube that runs throughout the zipper inside to keep the cold out.You can pair it with a second sleeping bag and still benefit from all the great features of the single one as all the zippers are though out to maximize warmth but only comfort. It’s perfect to use all throughout the year, and the quality means you’ll be keeping this for a while. The only extra you’ll need is a compression sack (Sea to Summit works very well) as this guy is 2 479G and takes up quite a bit a space. (https://www.mountainhardwear.ca/en/p/bozeman-0f%2F-18c-reg-1892021.html)

·      Even at the top of a mountain in a snowstorm, you want a good comfy night sleep, and this mattress seems to be the way forward. The Ultralight Insulated, Sea to Summit mattress This is a 4-season mattress, featuring a R-Value of 3.1, that will provide you with a sufficient level of insulation to accompany you throughout the year. (https://www.snowleader.co.uk/en/matelas-ultralight-insulated-orange-SEAT00356.html)

We would love to find out if you guys have any recommendations on outdoor gear, we’d love to hear from you in the comments !