Winter Camping School (WCS) 2022 session
Expected Covid-19 restrictions. These restrictions could change by the time the school starts.
• All participants (students and instructors) will have to be fully vaccinated without exceptions. Proof of vaccination may be required.
• Every in-person activity (including hiking and camp activities during qualified CMC trips) requires participants to wear face mask covering nose and mouth all the time, except during eating, drinking and when NOT closer than 6-8 feet to others.
• Tent sharing is limited only to people from the same household.
The school wants to provide a safe environment to students, so every student has to abide every additional restrictions imposed by the trip leader or representative instructor. Remember: one unsymptomatic person can infect the entire School with coronavirus.
This is a non-survival school for those who want to enjoy the winter, snow and moonlight in comfort.
The Winter Camping School concentrates on the fundamental understanding, equipment and techniques to keep warm in cold environment on an overnight stay. Skills learned in this school are applicable for anyone who plans to spend time in the winter wilderness including hikers, snowshoers, campers, climbers and skiers. It does not teach high altitude glaciated techniques, but it provides solid foundation that can be expanded to camping over timberline.
The Winter Camping School is open to any member of the CMC regardless of group membership or classification. There are no prerequisites but prior completion of the CMC Wilderness Trekking School and/or some winter hiking experience are recommended.
Topics covered
• Mechanisms of heat loss and staying warm • How cold affects the body, cold weather ailments • Dressing for the cold and snow • Winter camping gear, stove • Nutrition and cooking tips and techniques • Techniques for sleeping warm • Extending the temperature range of the equipment you may already have • Site selection and campsite organization • Tent organization • Winter travel and using sledsIn this school, students have the opportunity to learn winter camping techniques with personal attention and practice such skills in a non-competitive, non-confrontational setting. The Winter Camping School is a great place to make new friends and open up a new season of activity.
To reduce the effect of 3 C’s (closed spaces, crowded places and close contact) the School currently is planned with a mixture of in-person and online activities. There will be in-person and online lectures, QandA online sessions and instructional videos as well as other materials posted online.
In order to graduate, students have to attend all lectures (QandA sessions are optional), watching all video modules and submit all quizzes with satisfactory grading.
Students also has to participate in three qualified CMC trips: one one-day snowshoe trip to learn basic techniques and two overnight field trips. All trips will be on snowshoes, no skis allowed.
In-person and online lectures (required):
February 1, February 8 and February 22, at 6:20 PM
Online QandA sessions (optional):
February 15, March 1 and March 8, at 6:20 PM
In-person lectures will be held in the CMC clubhouse. Online meetings using zoom. Zoom id will be provided.
Qualified Snowshoe Trips will be posted in the CMC schedule on the following dates:
Day Trip: February 19
Overnight Trips: March 5-6 and March 19-20
March 26-27 is kept as a backup date if any qualified trips has to be cancelled. However, this is not a make-up date for missed field trips.
Participation in all qualified CMC trips is required for graduation from school. There are no make-up dates for qualified CMC trips.
Registration for the 2022 session is already closed. Information about the 2023 session will be posted toward the end of the summer, early fall this year.
CMC school cancellation policy.
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