Warm Up to Winter

Backpacking is so many things. It’s a leisure pursuit, a way to connect with nature, an athletic feat, a means of forging bonds with your friends and family, a problem-solving game, an escape, a subculture . . . Realistically, it’s something unique to every hiker. Because, above all, it’s a pull from within to get out there, and that’s a very individual thing.

- By Shannon Davis

A backpacker’s attitude toward winter is personal, too. Do you embrace the fourth season? Change sports? Or do you hibernate during the dark months?

Here’s some advice I learned from one of my other favorites pulls—rock climbing. There’s a saying in climbing that reads almost like a zen koan: “The more you can climb, the more you can climb.” Unpacked a little, it means that as you get stronger and more experienced you can climb harder routes. And if you can climb harder routes, you have more routes at your disposal. With more routes at your disposal, well, the more you can climb.