Snow Stakes?

“Do you really need to use them? This January is going to be my first winer trip in a long time. so excuse me if I ask dumb questions. I would rather ask them now than suffer on the trip.

So what about tent stakes? do you really need the fancy snow stakes?”

“Just use the empty wine bottles to hold the stakes in. If you drink enough wine, you won't care if the tent collapses on you or not.”

“I just bring small bungee cords, then make "deadmen" using sticks I find. Loop the bungee around the stick and bury it in the snow. Hook the bungee to the stake loop on the tent. Voila! Snow stakes!”

“If there is snow, it's cold enough to backpack in steaks to grill over a fire.”

“Oooo, almost forgot. I also wear 2 stakes on my feet, also known as skis. Here's a photo where you can see one of my skis in action.”

“LtHiker

Camping in the snow, you'll need something other than standard tent stakes to anchor your tent. The advanage of snow stakes is their shape...you set them so that the open arc of the stake is facing in the direction from which the tension comes, making it more difficult to pull towards the tent.

You don't NEED them. What you do need is something that will provide some resistance in the snow. WHen i winter camp, I do use some...but I don't drive them in as regular stakes. I ran a short piece of nylon cord through a couple of the holes in teh stake, and bury them on their side in the snow, making a "deadman" out of it. I then attach my guy lines from the tent to the nylon cord. When I take the tent down, I dig up the deadman (usually need my ice axe because I compress the snow so much that they tend to freeze solid in the snow).

You can make your own deadman from just about anything:

Metal shelf railings (the kind you stick the brackets into). Cut to about 6-8 inches long, thread the nylon cord through the holes.

Scrap lumber (1/2 x 1/2 inch wood, 6-8 inches long), drill a hole through it, thread your cord

moderate sized fallen branches with your guylines around them, buried in the ground

Snow shoes buried (hope you don't want to do a dayhike on snowshoes)

Shovel blade

Skis

ice axe buried on it's side

Bury a plastic grocery sack filled w/ snow, attach to the guy lines (low strenth to this though)

Bury stuff sacks with snow in them

You can also buy snow anchors from MH and a few other manufacturers.

Use "pickets" (2-4 foot oversize aluminum stakes with holes for attaching gear...used for mountaineering)


Lots of options to spend money, or think creatively”

“This January is going to be my first winer trip in a long time.
LtHiker
12:38:02 PM
12/22/03

Stop whining LT, it's unbecoming of a TrailTalker!”

“I figured he was going on a "wine-r" trip...

Wine bottles should make excellent deadmen.”

“Man on tiny slip up and your all over me! Thanks for the suggestions.”

“My what is all over you?


j/k....lol....”

“wow rare form today bit! lol! Why don't you come to the Catskills with us?”

“Already got a trip planned for that weekend annnnnnnd......





.....it's too damn cold in the Catskills in January for a Southern boy like me!”

“Lol wimp! It shouldn't be too cold probably just the single digits at night.”

“Yep that's me, don't like the cold at all, no sirree bob!”