Do you love or hate winter? I will concede it can be a chore to summon the will and physically prepare for working any playing outside in the winter. Here in Newfoundland and Labrador if you don’t make the effort to dress well and get out there you will be spending a few long dark months trapped in your house.
In the St John’s John’s area winter has set in and winter activities are in full swing. The ice climbers are climbing, the skiers and skiing and the new “cold plunge” trend has taken hold.
This group, who call them selves the Winter Tribe, have taken to the ponds and ocean for their activity. The most scenic location is George’s Pond on Signal Hill overlooking St John’s.
BE PREPARED
To prepare, personal comfort comes before cameras. Layers is always the magic word. A base layer with perspiration wicking ability, covered by a mid layer of mid weight fleece or thermal and finally a good outer layer of a parka or other with wind resistance features.
Of course this will keep you core warm but as we all know its the hands and feet that are the weakest links. Layers work here too. I use warm wool gloves and carry a pair of water and wind proof gauntlets from Outdoor Research. One key factor here is make sure they are not too tight.
Foot ware is a good waterproof boot. If the famous Dunlop work boots offend you fashion feelings then a solid hiking boot of Goretex and Thinsulate. Get a good heavy lug non-slip rubber sole as well. Toss on a pair of warm sock, Smartwool and Hely-Hansen is amazing,
Layers allow you to adjust to the temperature changes and avoid overheating. As a friend who travels in the arctic a lot says, “if you sweat, you can die”
Always carry some of those packets of hand warmers. They work in your gloves, armpits, inside pockets …where ever you like. Also good for warming batteries and unfreezing camera switches and buttons.
KEEP YOUR CAMERAS WORKING
And speaking of cameras, bring extra batteries. Especially if you are using pocket cameras or mirrorless bodies. They are smaller and lighter but I have not found one yet that has the battery capacity and longevity of a DSLR camera. Keep the batteries in inside pockets to keep them warm. One other thing with regards to cameras. Don’t keep them inside your jacket. Moving them in and out of cold to warm and back again can cause condensation in viewfinders and lenses and on sensors. Let them stay in the cold.
Most of us have forgotten how to be comfortable outdoors let alone spending all day outside. We certainly have the clothing technology today to to be physically comfortable outdoors for all day and even overnight.
So, get out there and embrace winter.
Here is some of the gear I use available through out Amazon.ca Affiliates program.
