Keeping gear working in the cold

What you need

• Lithium batteries, not alkaline
• A wide mouth bottle and an insulated cover
• A butane lighter kept warm, plus matches that do not care
• Spare mitts and a spare hat in a dry bag
• A small brush for snow

How

1. Sleep with the phone, the headlamp batteries, the GPS and a spare lighter inside your bag. Cold flattens a battery that shows full at the trailhead.
2. Fill water bottles hot, cap them tight, and store them upside down so the ice forms at the bottom instead of sealing the lid.
3. Brush every bit of snow off before you come inside a tent or a cabin. Snow that melts on gear is water you carry all night.
4. Keep the stove fuel canister inside your coat until you light it, and set it on wood or a pad, never straight on snow.
5. Dry socks, liners and mitts on your body or over the stove every night. Wet gear freezes into a brick by morning.

Watch for

Notes

Anything you truly need in a bad hour goes inside a layer, not in an outside pocket. Fire, light, and the means to call for help.