Has anyone made a Snow Cave and slept overnight in it?

Daniel Koster

Daniel Koster

www.kosterknives.com
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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I did when I was a kid. I now have a dozen Boy Scouts wanting to make some and sleep in them...but, um...we barely get and inch or two of snow and it melts within a couple days here in Arkansas.

I'm wondering how far North I'm going to have to travel from here to find snow deep enough....*shrug*


Anyway - I'd love to hear your experiences if you've done it!

Dan
 
Never done it. Sounds like fun though. Here on Long Island we usually get a snowfall or two that's deep enough. How would you go about it? Do you just dig into the snow or do you build up above the surface? I might give it a shot this year.
 
We did both. We made mounds and then hollowed them out and we also found drifts by small cliffs/bluffs and dug in there as well. Have also done the igloo thing and that is a TON of work!
 
well if they did some fund raising to afford a $300 round trip ticket to portland, Or. its about 45 min drive to mt hood with boat loads of wet snow.
 
That would be awesome, of course....:D...hoping for something closer.
 
Yes, I have personally - I grew up around heavy snowfalls. But I've never slept in one...just built them for fun.

That's a great link - thanks for sharing it!

I think if you have enough snow to build a couple large snowmen, you probably have enough to make a shelter.


We just got snowfall yesterday ironically....but it *might* be an inch and it'll be gone in a day or two. LOL

Dan
 
Yes I have built them, igloos, Quinzees, and dugouts, and slept in them. The sleeping is the easy part! Just make sure you are on a raised platform inside the shelter, so all the meltwater does not collect under you, also higher = warmer. It will always be about 35 to 55 degree F inside a well made shelter, regardless of the outside temps. They really work, snow is an excellent insulator. Be sure you have a warm pad under you. Have a great time!
 
Yep, and it was surprisingly warm given the overnight low of 0F! geargeek is right, it will hover around 40 degreed in there as long as the snow walls are thick enough and your cold wells and drainages are setup properly. Unfortunately, I did it at about 11,000 ft about 90 minutes west of Denver, so it's not much farther north...but it's pretty far west :)

Also, if your sleeping bag is filled with down, make sure you have a water resistant & breathable cover...definitely learned that the hard way.
 
I once did a dugout in the side of a short ravine where there was a sizeable drift built up on the leeside. I didn't get to try it out as some other boys caved it in unintentionally.


I'd like to hear more about drainage patterns - what works, what doesn't...what to prepare for. Also, what do you use for a raised platform? Is an air mattress sufficient?

Great info here, guys - thanks!

Dan
 
closed cell foam is much warmer than an open air air matress in winter camping.
 
Daniel Koster said:
I once did a dugout in the side of a short ravine where there was a sizeable drift built up on the leeside. I didn't get to try it out as some other boys caved it in unintentionally.


I'd like to hear more about drainage patterns - what works, what doesn't...what to prepare for. Also, what do you use for a raised platform? Is an air mattress sufficient?

Great info here, guys - thanks!

Dan
Click to expand...
Make a large flat snow shelf at least a foot high off the floor for your sleeping platform, and put your pad on top of it. Use a closed cell foam pad, or an air mattress w/ insulation inside of it, such as a thermarest. A simple uninsulated air mattress will not be warm enough unless you put a closed cell pad on top of it. Don't worry too much about drainage, most of the meltwater will soak into the snow floor. If it gets too soggy just dump more snow on it! The first night most moisture will just soak into the snow walls, but if you use the same shelter for several nights it will start to drip a bit inside. In this case it is good to have a bivy sack over your sleeping bag.
If you don't have enough snow to make a platform (ie if you are on the ground, w/ barely enough snow scraped together to make a shelter) then I would just put my pad on the ground, on the highest part of the floor, or else use pine tree branches or leaves if possible to make a raised bed under the pad.
 
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great advice - thanks!

I need these to be large enough to fit 2 scouts at a time. How tall should we aim for to have enough structure to fit them inside?

Dan
 
Friends and I used to sleep in them when I was in junior HS in my back yard. Parents would make me come in when they went to bed, though.
 
If you just have the bare basics and want to survive dig a tunnel and block the opening. Put something water proof underneath you or something that keeps you off the ground, plastic anything, snowmobile cover, snowmobile seat, backpack, etc. If you have a Coleman stove great but even a candle will make a difference. We only make them big enough to get into so you would only be talking a couple of feet in height because the smaller they are the easier they are to heat and less energy is expended in the construction process. We also enter feet first which makes it easier to get in and out and is better defensively against predators. Acquaintance of mine recently spent several days surviving like this in -40 after his snowmobile broke down and one of those days was near blizzard conditions so I thought he was a goner but he kept his wits and survived.
 
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