snow=cold

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Lauralie0230
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snow=cold

Post by Lauralie0230 »

My husband and I are going to GNP (this will be our first time there) in a few weeks. I keep looing at all of these beautiful pictures people are posting but it is making me a little nervous. There is snow EVERYWHERE.... are we going to freeze? I was planning on bringing long pants and shorts for the trails along with a few sweatshirts and jackets but do I need to bring warmer clothes? Any help would be appreciated.... Thanks!
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Re: snow=cold

Post by Hockey Ref »

Lauralie0230 wrote:My husband and I are going to GNP (this will be our first time there) in a few weeks. I keep looing at all of these beautiful pictures people are posting but it is making me a little nervous. There is snow EVERYWHERE.... are we going to freeze? I was planning on bringing long pants and shorts for the trails along with a few sweatshirts and jackets but do I need to bring warmer clothes? Any help would be appreciated.... Thanks!
You should be prepared for all types of weather anytime you are in Glacier. It's doubtful you'll need heavy winter clothing, but long pants, rain gear, light jackets/fleeces are all good to bring along. The evenings, especially, can get cool.

Glacier had a record amount of snow over the winter and a very cool spring, so it's taking a long time to melt out. You could very well be hiking in 70+-degree weather and still have several feet of melting snow under your boots (which I'd very much recommend over sneakers, which could get very wet in melting snow; boots will provide better traction as well).

Since you are going to Glacier for the first time, I'd recommend checking these FAQs for more information: http://glacier.nationalparkschat.com/ph ... ?f=1&t=580
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Re: snow=cold

Post by missguinness »

I would throw in some thin gloves and a hat for nighttime. Enjoy your trip!
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Re: snow=cold

Post by Lauralie0230 »

I have some good boots to wear and we bought some nice pants that can unzip and become shorts along with some good rain gear... so I'm trying to be prepared.... but this is all pretty new for me..... my husband has hiked and camped all over the place... .so I guess I'm the worryer :)... I just want to double check and make sure we're ready.
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Re: snow=cold

Post by Pocketlint »

Hi!
Hockeyref is right on.
This past weekend was nice at ManyGlacier.
Wind blowing across the snow made it cooler when I was up where the snow cover was heavy.
Temps in a few weeks wil likely be very nice, but as Hockeyref pointed out:
"Be prepared"
A decent "shell" for windy/rainy is a good idea.
And while I saw lots of people this past friday in "tennis shoes" at Iceberg lake, including a ranger who told me he went up there in "tennis shoes" last Wednesday.....personally, I'd bring good hiking shoes/boots.
Hiking with wet feet can give you blisters as well as being very uncomfortable...and your feet will get wet if the trails are still snowcovered and slushy when you get here(wearing tennis shoes). I wear sturdy waterproof boots and I still carry extra pair of socks.

pocketlint :wink:
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Re: snow=cold

Post by Jay w »

When I'm hiking fast, I can hike in shorts and a t-shirt in cold weather45-50F..even in a light rain. Once I stop, then I freeze, particularly at night. I bring along a winter jacket, hat, gloves, (sometimes) long underwear, and full-zip warm up pants (used for xc skiing) to go over my jeans. Sometimes I'm cold (sitting around drinking a beer 7-9 pm) even with all that on. Then I borrow a thick sweatshirt from my wife. So it all depends on you. BTW, I'm from MN, so I'm supposed to be used to this stuff. I'd say, bring warmer stuff than you'll think you'll need.

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Re: snow=cold

Post by Pocketlint »

Jay:

You're killing me LOL.
I thought I got cold easy being born and raised in Florida.
People are so different in their cold tolerence.
The advice about having "layers" available to wear is good advice.
I like the lightweight synthetic stuff in layers for hiking in the current coolish weather. Longsleeve white layer next to skin and shortsleeve over that. Then I carry my rain shell in my pack along with another lightweight synthetic layer if I expect I may need it.

Also, I don't like cotten for a short sleeve top(or anything really when hiking). I sweat a lot and cotten gets soaked. Then when the wind gets up, or temps drop, or I stop...I get chilled. In general, imo, cotten is a bad idea imo for hiking in places like GNP, but HYOH right? :)

Regarding footwear.... the following is why I think footwear is important...at least for me.

Gal I work with was hiking this week in the park. Avalanche Lake was closed because it was apparently(according to her) "flooded". She said the trail was "mud".

And this will be the case on other trails as well. The late snow is gonna be melting in earnest(imo) if the current forecast holds. This is going to make some of these trails really nasty. They may close portions of some trails to prevent damage, e.g. Avalanche. Or they might restrict stock traffic on some trails. Horses can really do a number on a soft, wet trail.

My point is: If you like hiking on wet, sloppy, muddy, soupy trails in "lightweight, non waterproof "shoes"...be my guest. I'm a libertarian :) HYOH hike your own hike kind of guy at the end of the day. :mrgreen:

Me? I like to keep my feet as dry as possible, partly do to health(Type II diabetes) concerns but mostly 'cause I like the comfort of dry feet if at all possible :)

pocketlint :wink:
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Re: snow=cold

Post by Hockey Ref »

Agree that cotton sucks for hiking. Clothing made of "wicking" material is much better. And layering is a must if it's chilly.
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Re: snow=cold

Post by scott-atl »

in the backcountry 'cotton is rotton'.
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