Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Skiing And Snowboarding

Skiing And Snowboarding


How To Rent Skiing And Snowboarding Gear
By Gray Rollins

So, you’re planning a skiing or snowboarding trip. You have your travel and lodging plans all set up, but have you gotten your equipment yet? While buying your own equipment may be more convenient, it’s also a lot more expensive.

If you have never been skiing before, you may want to consider renting in case you find you don’t like it. You can always buy equipment the next time you go. Renting also makes it affordable for people who can’t spend hundreds of dollars to buy equipment.

Plus, you won’t have to lug all the extra baggage on the plane or in the car. If you have children, you know how quickly kids can grow out of their clothes. When you rent, you don’t have to buy your kids new equipment every year or two when they grow out of the old stuff.

Once you’ve decided to rent equipment, you should make sure to reserve it well before you take your trip. This is especially important if you’re going during peak season. If you wait until you get there, you may have to do a lot of searching to find appropriate sizes and equipment.

You definitely want to make reservations if you’re renting snowboarding equipment. Snowboarding has greatly increased in popularity and many stores haven’t caught up with demand.

You will probably have a choice of renting equipment at the mountain, or from other stores in the area. At certain resorts where there’s not much of a town you should probably rent at the mountain. At other resorts, you may have many other rental options.

The benefit of renting elsewhere is that you’ll probably get a better price. If you’re only renting for one day, the mountain will probably be more convenient because you won’t have to carry equipment as far.

If you decide to rent at the mountain, you should arrive an hour before you plan to ski or snowboard. This will give you time to get your equipment and get fitted. If you rent elsewhere, it’s best to get the equipment the day before you go out.

This way, you’ll be able to find other accommodations if they do not have the appropriate equipment. When you get there, you should be ready ahead of time with everyone’s shoe sizes, heights, and weights.

While some people may want to fudge on their weight, you should be honest. The type of equipment you need depends on your weight. If you give the wrong weight, you may be risking your own safety.

If you have a very large shoe size, you should make sure the shop you rent from has the right size boots. If not, you should buy equipment online before you show up. You should ask the shop before you do this; you may be able to buy boots that fit their equipment.

When you get ready to sign the contract for your equipment, they will offer you insurance on the equipment. SAY YES! While your chance damaging the equipment is probably fairly low, it’s still a great idea. Cost for insurance is generally about a dollar a day.

That’s 3 or 4 dollars per trip. Compare this to the hundreds of dollars you could pay to fix damage to skis or a snowboard. And that’s nothing compared to the cost if you completely ruin the equipment.

You should also remember that it doesn’t take that much to damage equipment. A mountain is covered in snow when you ski on it, but under that snow are rocks and branches. If the snow cover is thin on a mountain, you risk hitting these objects and you generally can’t see them to avoid them.

Hopefully these tips will help you get the right equipment and get you to the mountain. Have a great trip!


Gray Rollins is a featured writer for two ski resort websites. If you're interested in skiing in Aspen or skiing in Breckenridge, then be sure to visit GoSkiAspen.com and GoSkiBreckenridge.com, respectively.

For The Love Of The Outdoors

Robin and Val

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Skiing And Snowboarding

Monday, January 22, 2007

Winter Camping

Winter Camping

Don't Even Think Of Camping In The Winter Before Reading This:
By Sam Jordan

Winter camping is an interesting alternative to ordinary camping. When planning a winter camping trip, it is important to remember that speed reduces considerably in winter. This, with the fact that there are fewer daylight hours, makes your mileage less than half the original mileage.

You will have to include some cold weather camping gear when deciding on what to take camping. Your clothing has to be in layers for provision to adjust clothing to regulate body moisture and temperature. It is always better to have three types of layers when camping in the winter; a liner layer against the skin like long johns, fleece as an insulation layer, and an outer shell for protection from water and wind. There is no use of wearing too many pairs of socks as once blood flow to the feet is constricted, there is no difference on the number of socks you wear. This is why it is not advised to tie bootlaces too tight when in cold weather.

Your camping supply list should have lots of carbohydrates for the necessary fuel for trekking and keeping the body warm. Cook easy food, which at the same time is appetizing, like one-pot meals or check out our info on easy camping recipes for suggestions. As dry wind can dehydrate you without you knowing about it, it is necessary to drink lots of water; even if you are not thirsty. You can tell if you are properly hydrated if your urine is light colored.

When on a winter camping expedition, hiking is one activity you can do. If you intend to go hiking, then it is better to take some winter hiking gear along with you. Add some instep crampons in the list of camping gear; this keeps you from slipping when walking over ice or hard packed snow.

If Skiing is your pleasure, realize that the high altitudes of the mountains will bring you closer to the heat of the sun. It is hard to imagine, but people do suffer from Sunburns, even in the winter! Either wear a face mask or sunscreen to protect your skin.

Despite the fear of exposure to the cold, people who spend some quality time in the fresh outdoor air usually are a LOT healthier than those who are living indoors with their heat on!

Following all these camping tips will provide for a memorable winter camping experience.

To receive a free copy of the 'Ultimate What to Take Camping List', visit Dependable Camping Equipment
Sam Jordan
Sam Jordan is a creative webmaster / content publisher with many interests. He is the webmaster of http://www.dependable-camping-equipment.com/ in addition to many other sites.

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Winter Camping

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Winter Backpacking

Winter Backpacking

Winter Backpacking - Six Lifesaving Tips
By Steven Gillman

Did you check the weather report when you last went winter backpacking? You probably did, but I am sure there are some who are thinking "Weather report? How about cold and snowy - it's winter!" However, cold and snow are not the only aspects of the weather. You may actually be in more danger if there will be a warming trend while you are out in the wilderness.

Getting wet when the temperature is just over freezing is far more likely than when it is far below freezing. Getting wet, and then cold because of it, is one of the primary reasons people die in the wilderness in winter. A down coat might keep you warm down to zero, but it might also become almost worthless in a steady freezing rain. You need to be prepared for the specific weather you are likely to see.

More Winter Hiking Tips

Stay as dry as you can. Getting wet is what kills you in the winter wilds. Proper preparation means more than just bringing a rain jacket, though. You also have to avoid letting too much snow melt into your clothing. Jeans are the worst for this, and should never be worn when backpacking in snow. You also need to monitor your perspiration. It's easy to get wet from sweating during a hard hike. This sweat will chill you fast once you stop moving. Remove those layers as you warm up, to prevent sweating.

Have proper clothing. What should you have with you when hiking? Avoid cotton, for starters. Synthetic underwear, like polypropylene, is a great invention, in all it's newest forms. "Wicking" pants and tops work well. Always have a hat and gloves. Dry socks can prevent frostbitten toes, and are a good idea even for a day hike. Down coats and vests are the best - if you can keep them dry.

Bring enough water. Eating snow is an extremely inefficient way to get water into your system. Bring water and keep it from freezing. This might mean keeping your water bottle inside your coat, or next to you in your sleeping bag at night. One of the primary problems that climbers of Mount Everest have is dehydration, by the way, and it can contribute to hypothermia.

Bring a heat source. Many of us get by backpacking with no stove in the warmer months, eating cold foods only, but in winter a cooking stove is a necessity. It isn't just that you will appreciate having hot food. You will need a way to melt snow and ice for water. Always have enough matches, and a lighter too. A fire can easily be a lifesaver if you fall into a stream of lake and need to get warm and dry.

Learn some basic principles of cold weather survival. Maybe you won't remember that you can turn a light jacket into a winter coat by stuffing it full of cattail fluff from the nearest swamp. However, if you understand how dead air space insulates, it will seem obvious to you that you can use a pile of dry leaves or grass as an emergency blanket. Once, while backpacking along the Manistee River in Michigan, setting up my tent on a pile of dry bracken ferns allowed me to stay warm with no sleeping bag when it was almost freezing.

Think about these things before you are out there. Proper preparation is what will make your winter backpacking trip a safe one.

Copyright Steve Gillman. To get the ebook "Ultralight Backpacking Secrets (And Wilderness Survival Tips)" for FREE, as well as photos, gear recommendations, and a new wilderness survival section, visit: The Ultralight Backpacking Site: http://www.the-ultralight-site.com/

For The Love Of The Outdoors

Robin and Val

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Winter Backpacking

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Camping With kids

Camping With kids

Introducing Your Kids To The Joys Of Camping
By Gabriel J. Adams

Taking your kids camping the first time can be a daunting task, if you're not well prepared. But a well prepared camping trip with your kids can be a great joy for everyone involved. Here are a few considerations and preparations you should make before leaving home.

First of all, choose an easily accessible location. You may want to choose a camping spot that is accessible by vehicle if your kids are relatively young. If you want to hike in to the camping spot, keep the distance pretty short. Also, remember that younger kids may not be able to carry all of their gear and food in, so you'll end up with one very heavy pack if you're not careful.

Here are a few tips for minimizing the amount of stuff you have to take in, if you're hiking to your camping spot.

First, choose a spot with easy access to water. That way you can take in dehydrated foods, and use the water at the camping spot to cook your food with. That will save you a lot of weight.

Also, try taking one or two larger tents to hold everyone, rather than several smaller tents.

A camp fire is another consideration. Campfires and s'mores are a must when you take your kids camping. Be sure you choose a location that allows campfires, and that has a readily available water supply to put the fire out.

When you take your kids camping, be sure that they have the same essentials that you take camping: extra clothing, a coat or rain jacket, food, water, a tent, a sleeping bag, a sleeping pad, etc.

One last thing: before you go camping be sure you give your kids a few basic safety instructions, such as safety with fire, snakes, bears (if applicable), etc. Safety first!

Visit Outdoors And In for your kids camping gear.

For The Love Of The Outdoors

Robin and Val

Please leave a comment to let us know what
you think of this post, or what else you would
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Camping With kids