Even among the most avid and enthusiastic three-season backpackers, winter backpacking is an intimidating prospect. The long and cold nights, the high consequences of mistakes, and the challenges of travel in snowy terrain – not to mention the specialized equipment often needed – dissuade many people from heading out on overnight trips during the colder months. While winter conditions certainly make backpacking more difficult in several regards, winter also has unique rewards born of its frigid intensity that make overnight trips downright magical. The perfect stillness and white of a snow covered meadow, spellbinding frozen waterfalls, the soft glow of sunrises and sunsets, and the geometric intricacy of frost crystals are just a few of the unparalleled highlights of hiking in winter. Combined with things that you won’t find in winter – bugs, crowds, and wildfire smoke, to name a few – and the season has even more appeal.

Ultralight Winter Travel is a book that covers everything from gear to campsite selection for those interested in lightweight winter backpacking.

Ultralight Winter Travel

For those looking to turn backpacking into a year-round rather than a three-season hobby, the book Ultralight Winter Travel: The Ultimate Guide to Lightweight Winter Camping, Hiking, and Backpacking by Justin Lichter and Shawn Forry is perhaps the best resource available. Among many notable outdoor accomplishments, the duo completed the first winter thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail and have amassed an astounding wealth of knowledge regarding how to successfully backpack in winter using the lightest gear possible. The knowledge is the most crucial part of that equation and the authors note this early on by stating, “Winter conditions are unpredictable. Gear alone will not prevent incidents. The most important things you can carry into the backcountry are your experience and judgment.”

A book, no matter how detailed, is of course no substitute for actual experience, and this book provides the information that can allow your initial experiences to be safe and comfortable. From sleeping bags to skis and shelters, this book provides detailed overviews of the benefits and drawbacks of every piece of gear you would use during an overnight winter excursion in the backcountry. In addition to getting into the granular detail of what makes various pieces of gear more useful in certain conditions than others and what trade-offs you might be making, this book provides a plenty of pieces of practical advice on the more mundane aspects of winter backpacking. These might seem like common sense but are things which a novice winter backpacker might overlook, much to their consternation and discomfort. For example, the idea of pre-warming everything possible (gloves, socks, baselayers, etc.) inside your sleeping bag before changing into it seems intuitive, but is one that I’ve firsthand seen friends not think of when camping in chilly three-season conditions.

Equally as valuable as the assessments and insight into various pieces of equipment, and perhaps even more so, are the many tips on how to stay warm and operate efficiently in winter conditions. Winter backpacking has a steep learning curve and the information provided in Chapter 4, Winter Camping and Travel: Techniques and Tips, provides some great tips that might allow for those new to winter backpacking to smooth out the learning curve a bit. The section on food is particularly helpful, especially a chart breaking down many common snacks into the amount of calories per ounce. The authors should also be commended for dedicating several pages to Leave No Trace ethics and the various aspects that come into play when backpacking in winter and ensuring that you practice LNT.

Winter gear repair and first aid are given substantial ink in this book and the hard-won knowledge shared by the authors in this category alone is nearly worth the price of the book. From tips on field repairs of ski bindings to assembling a winter first aid kit, as well as advice on how to prevent getting injured and avoiding unsafe situations in the first place, this information is essential for anyone planning on winter backpacking via skis, snowshoes, or boots.

Final Thoughts

Overall, this book is an absolutely excellent resource for those wishing to venture out on multi-night winter wilderness trips and for winter considerations in general and is especially valuable for those wishing to do so as lightweight as possible.

Ultralight Winter Travel: The Ultimate Guide to Lightweight Winter Camping, Hiking, and Backpacking retails for about $25 – you can find the book here at Amazon.com.

Editor's Note: This review originally appeared in TrailGroove Magazine Issue 41. You can read the article here.