How to build a snow shelter that’ll save your life

If caught in a freak snowstorm, you always can build a snow shelter
to stay alive. Be sure to carry a shovel in your vehicle.
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

Burrow to stay
dry, warm during
an emergency

If forced to stay a winter night in the wilds – perhaps you got lost, maybe a mountain blizzard took you by surprise – your survival in large part will depend on finding shelter. You need to get out of the cold and wet because you’ll freeze to death before you do from dehydration. But what can you do if there’s no shelter – even a ramshackle old cabin – nearby?

The answer is build a snow shelter.

Animals' example
Also known as a snow cave, this shelter isn’t perfect, but it’ll certainly keep you warmer and dryer than if you expose yourself to wind and snowfall. Burrowing is, after all, how smaller mammals stay warm in winter.

The first step to building a snow shelter is location. As you need to dig straight into the snow rather than dig down, locate a sloped hillside with deep snow.

Next, dig out an entrance. This just needs to be large enough for you to crawl and should go about two feet deep.

After that, begin excavating upward to create a domed room that is about five feet high and six feet wide.

Once the room is created, use a stick to poke a hole upward through the domed roof. This one- to two-inch diameter hole serves as an air vent and should be located next to the entry hole.

Pine bough mattress
Following that, create a sleeping bench against the back wall. This can be done by taking snow from the half of the room closest to the entry and piling it up about two feet from the floor. Add some pine boughs to it as a mattress to keep you off the ground.

You’ll want to close up the entry to keep out wind, blowing snow, and curious animals. Do that by rolling a snowball that is large enough to cover the entrance; use snow from outside of the dome room.

Finally, should you have a small candle, you may use to provide light and a modicum of warmth. Don’t start a larger fire, though, as it will melt the snow (and cause the shelter to collapse upon it) or will use up much of the oxygen in the shelter.

Stay in the snow shelter until the storm clears or daylight arrives so that you can set back out on foot to your vehicle.

Read more useful day hiking tips in my Hikes with Tykes guidebooks.

What to do if caught in a whiteout during a day hike with children

Always remain aware of the weather so that you don't get caught in a
snowstorm or whiteout conditions. Photo courtesy of Charles Rondeau.

When day hiking in the mountains or in a northern state during winter, you always risk getting caught in a whiteout. Knowing how to walk through it can be vital to your survival.

A whiteout occurs when snow falls so fast that you literally can’t see the ground let alone a few feet in front of you. In this disoriented state, hikers easily can get lost and exhaust themselves trying to find their way.

Remaining aware of the weather and not hiking when snow is forecast always is advised to avoid a whiteout. Still, especially in the mountains with its many microclimates, a snowstorm – and whiteout conditions – can surprise you.

As soon as snow begins to fall, turn back. Continuing to walk when the odds favor more rather than less snow falling only invites disaster.

If a whiteout is rising around you and you’re near a makeshift shelter or your vehicle – “near” meaning you still can see it – immediately get inside and wait to hike when visibility improves.

Should no shelter be in sight, quickly construct one. A hastily dug snow cave or a tree well shelter will help keep you out of the wind and provide you some warmth. Indeed, the best thing to do in a whiteout is to simply stay put in a shelter.

If you must walk, have each member of the party hold hands as you walk toward your destination. Children easily can get lost in the piling snow, so you don’t want longer legged members of your party reaching the shelter only to find someone who is younger still are out there – somewhere.

Also, take careful, measured steps, especially since you can’t see. You don’t want to fall and get snow inside your clothing. The wet and cold will increase the chances of you suffering hypothermia. In addition, you definitely don’t want to suffer an injury from a fall, as you’re already battling the elements. If in a sloped area, as you walk toss a snowball slightly ahead of you as a way of measuring the slope’s angle.

Finally, as walking, protect your face. This means covering your mouth and nose so wind and snow doesn’t strike them.

Find out about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.