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sist on loading the various types under consideration one by one and walking around the store for a minimum of five minutes with each type on your back for comparison. If you are going to be skiing, try to simulate your skiing movements, negotiate some tight turns around display counters. If it doesn’t feel right or you think there is too much sway, ask the salesperson to adjust it and make sure you understand what he or she is doing. Do not walk out of the store and ultimately into the wilderness with a pack you are going to regret most painfully in the middle of George Washington National Forest.
As Bill Riviere points out in his book, “The L.L. Bean Guide to the Outdoors” (Random House, 1981), it is of critical importance to know the seasonal weather pattern of the area you are entering. So many Northern Virginia residents are relatively newly arrived from elsewhere, that this is hardly idle advice here.
If you are heading into the George Washington National Forest, call U.S. Forest Service office in Harrisonburg (703-433-2491) for a rundown on winter weather norms. If you are planning a trip in some other part of the country or Canada, make a similar inquiry of forest or park offices in the region you have selected. And immediately before hitting the trail, make a call to the nearest National Weather Service office and get a reliable forecast.
Sure, half the point of winter camping is getting away from the noise and confusion of civilization, but take a transistor radio with you and listen to weather updates, while bearing in mind that the location of the station may be subject to a different weather pattern than you are. You may also want to invest in a pocket barometer.
But you can learn a lot by studying the sky and being alert to wind shifts. Wind from the west brings the driest conditions. If it shifts to the northwest, expect things to get cold and blustery real soon. Even with two good hours of daylight ahead of you, it might not be a bad idea to begin looking for a campsite, preferably with a thick stand of trees or a ridge between you and the wind. If it swings around to the northeast and stays there for more than a gust, be prepared for sustained wet weather. You might want to cut your trip short.
Don’t let a change in the weather sneak up on you. The kind of winter camping we are touting is not a survival exercise.
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