{"id":148,"date":"2023-03-15T03:06:17","date_gmt":"2023-03-15T03:06:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/?p=148"},"modified":"2023-03-15T03:06:17","modified_gmt":"2023-03-15T03:06:17","slug":"snow-shelter-epictactical","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/?p=148","title":{"rendered":"SNOW SHELTER \u2013 EpicTactical"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

By Christopher Nyerges<\/b><\/p>\n

[Nyerges has led wilderness survival classes and field trips since 1974, and is the author of many books, including \u201cHow to Survive Anywhere,\u201d \u201cEnter the Forest,\u201d \u201cGuide to Wild Foods,\u201d and more. He can be contacted at www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com<\/a> or Box 41834, Eagle Rock, CA 90041.]<\/i><\/p>\n

If you ever get lost or stranded in the snow, the knowledge of how to properly construct a shelter from the snow could save your life.<\/p>\n

A snow shelter can be a simple cave dug into a bank of snow.\u00a0 When you dig, remember that heat rises, so you should dig slightly up, and then create a flat area for sleeping.\u00a0 Obviously, you need snow that is thick enough to create such a shelter.\u00a0 You could dig such a hole from your skis, a hubcap, a piece of bark, or ideally from a shovel.\u00a0 You don\u2019t want to dig with your hands because you\u2019ll get frostbit, so only do that if you have waterproof gloves.<\/p>\n

A snow shelter is simple to make, but make sure it\u2019s big enough to lay down for as many people who will be using the shelter.\u00a0 It needed be big enough to stand up in, however.\u00a0 It really needs to be just big enough to sit.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

A finished igloo; only the entry tunnel has to be finished.<\/p>\n

You will need to lay something down on the snow of your snow shelter, like a tarp, or many layers of pine needles or soft leaves.\u00a0 If you try to sleep directly on the snow, you\u2019ll lose body heat.\u00a0 Try to get something \u2013 anything \u2013 between you and the snow.<\/p>\n

You might think that it would still be cold inside a snow shelter, and you\u2019d be right. But, in general, it\u2019s warmer inside such a shelter than outside.\u00a0 You\u2019ll have no wind, and some ability to trap heat.\u00a0 A small candle inside such a shelter is usually sufficient for some warmth.<\/p>\n

What about the igloo?\u00a0 Are they easy to make? Can you just throw one together?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Students carrying cut snow blocks for an igloo.<\/p>\n

Once, all homes in the Arctic Circle were snow houses \u2013 igloos.\u00a0 But it\u2019s a lost art today.\u00a0 I had the good fortune to learn igloo-making from Rick Maschek, who \u2013 by our best estimates \u2013 has made more igloos than anyone living today, Inuit or otherwise.<\/p>\n

After two and a half hours of carefully cutting and stacking blocks of snow, our igloo was finished.\u00a0 Our group of seven students were working under the tutelage of Rick Maschek, who was a training officer of the Barstow, California Desert Rescue Squad.\u00a0 He also taught at a middle school and worked at an outdoor sporting goods store.<\/p>\n

Once our foot diameter dome of snow was finished, we dug a tunnel into it and all seven of us (and two dogs) crawled into the igloo to inspect our handiwork. At first, our reaction was awed silence as we each entered into the subdued light and quietude of the igloo, and then we all began to spontaneously laugh at the remarkably unique experience of being inside an igloo for the first time. There was no wind, sound was muffled, and it was comfortably warm.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Rick Maschek, instructor in the art of igloo-making.<\/p>\n

Maschek told us that he\u2019d built his first igloo in a snow survival class many years earlier, and that hooked him. Now he said that he doesn\u2019t carry a tent anymore when backpacking in the winter. \u201cI carry a 12 ounce snow saw,\u201d he told us, showing us a nearly foot long wooden-handled aluminum tool.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cEven the most expensive tents don\u2019t hold up well in a heavy storm,\u201d explained Maschek. \u201cThey\u2019re shaky, noisy, and will sag from the weight of the snow.\u00a0 But an igloo is quiet and will hold up to the most severe of storms.\u00a0 In fact, the igloo gets stronger and thicker form the new layers of snow.\u201d\u00a0 In a heavy winter storm, one needs to shovel constantly to keep the snow off a tent to prevent it from collapsing.\u00a0 Maschek advises his students not to waste their time with the shoveling, and to simply build an igloo.<\/p>\n

During another expedition to Mount McKinley, Maschek and his team built four igloos and a snow cave, one at each successive camp as they made their ascent.\u00a0 As he came back down, he discovered that every one of the previous igloos were occupied by climbers who followed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I leave my igloo behind,\u201d says Maschek with a broad smile, \u201cI leave behind an emergency winter shelter for others to use.\u201d<\/p>\n

BUILDING THE IGLOO<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

A finished igloo; only the entry tunnel has to be finished.<\/p>\n

When building an igloo, you first need to select a relatively flat site with at least two feet of snow on the ground.\u00a0 You then begin by drawing a circle in the snow, which will be the igloo\u2019s inner diameter. Using the snow saw (it should have a blade at least a foot long), blocks are cut from the snow.\u00a0 If you are lost and don\u2019t have a snow saw, there are many other possible substitutes, such as a ski, or a flat piece of wood.<\/p>\n

The size of the block will vary depending on the condition of the snow.\u00a0 When I made my first igloo with Maschek, we were just a few miles west of Wrightwood in the Angeles National Forest.\u00a0 The blocks we made were about two feet wide, a foot tall, and about eight inches deep.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Steps to making an igloo, from Nyerges\u2019 book, \u201cHow to Survive Anywhere.\u201d\u00a0 Notes based on Rick Maschek\u2019s field notes, which were in turn based upon the Boy Scout Manual.<\/p>\n

As each block is placed around the circle that had been drawn in the snow, the workers (us) trim each block so that the outer edge of the block just placed points directly to the middle of the circle. You could put a post or stick in the middle as a reference.\u00a0 That is, each block is\u00a0 actually trapezoid in shape in order to fit snug and form a circle.<\/p>\n

Once the first layer is in place, a diagonal cut is made across three blocks, and their top portions removed.\u00a0 This then forms a diagonal ramp, which then enables the subsequent blocks to be stacked spirally all the way to top. That\u2019s right \u2013 an igloo isn\u2019t made of layer after layer of blocks, but rather of one spiral to the top.<\/p>\n

As each block is put into place,\u00a0 it should be chinked into place with snow by workers both inside and outside. Thus, it is considerably more difficult to build an igloo by oneself.<\/p>\n

To make the dome, snow blocks are stacked at steeper and steeper angles.\u00a0 \u201cBeginners usually think that the blocks will fall,\u201d says Maschek, \u201cbut snow has an incredible cohesion quality which enables you to form the igloo\u2019s rounded dome.\u201d<\/p>\n

A trench is then dug into the igloo, so that you walk or crawl up into the igloo. Once the trench is covered, the igloo is complete.<\/p>\n

For the first day in the igloo, Maschek says that holes are not needed since snow is mostly air. \u201cAnd the holes are not necessary for ventilation but to allow excess heat to vent, and prevent snow melting.\u201d Holes should be poked on the sides of the igloo dome, but not directly on top.\u00a0 If it gets too warm inside the igloo, such as 80 degrees f. and hotter, the igloo will melt.<\/p>\n

SNOW CAVE<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

A cross section of a simple snow cave, taken from Nyerges\u2019 book, \u201cHow to Survive Anywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

Remember, in an emergency, you could simply burrow a cave into a thick drift of snow. This will insulate you as well as an igloo.\u00a0 A snow cave should always be dug into the side of a hill, so that you tunnel in horizontally, and then burrow out the cave up from the tunnel.\u00a0 This allows your body heat to rise and keep the cave warm.\u00a0 A simple hole burrowed down into the ground is not ideal because cold settles, and such a burrow would be like sleeping in a refrigerator.<\/p>\n

The main advantages of an igloo over a simple cave is that you can build a much larger and stronger structure even if there is only a few feet of snow on the ground. But you can\u2019t build an adequate snow cave if there are only two or three feet of snow on the ground.<\/p>\n

Whether igloo or snow cave, you\u2019ll need to insulate the floor with something so your body is not directly touching the snow.\u00a0 A blanket, sheet of plastic, or a thick layer of pine needles, would do.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Christopher Nyerges [Nyerges has led wilderness survival classes and field trips since 1974, and is the author of many books, including \u201cHow to Survive Anywhere,\u201d \u201cEnter the Forest,\u201d \u201cGuide to Wild Foods,\u201d and more. He can be contacted at www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com or Box 41834, Eagle Rock, CA 90041.] If you ever get lost or stranded […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":149,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-148","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=148"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":150,"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148\/revisions\/150"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/149"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=148"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=148"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/knifevoyager.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=148"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}