December 9, 2011
Winter Camping Destinations
If you’ve studied up on your winter camping tips and feel ready to brave the frigid temperatures, where are some good destinations for winter camping? Thankfully, it’s a big, beautiful world, so you shouldn’t have to struggle to hard to find a great winter camping destination. Here are a few stand-out suggestions:
Big Bend National Park
Big Bend National Park is located just north of the Mexico border in Texas, between San Antonio and El Paso. The park contains the gorgeous Rio Grande river canyon pictured blow.
The nice thing about considering Big Bend National Park as a winter camping destination is that it’s a nice warm-up to more extreme iterations of winter camping. January, the coldest month at Big Bend, still has an average high temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit with an average low of 35. Those temperatures are still extreme and require full winter camping preparation, but it’s quite a bit more pleasant than trying to negotiate a winter camping experience where the high temperature never goes above freezing.
There are four campgrounds in Big Bend, many of them located nearby restaurants and convenience stores. Backpacking and bird-watching are two popular activities in the park.
Mojave Preserve
The Mojave Preserve is a National Park in the southeastern part of California between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. This is one place you wouldn’t want to choose as a summer camping destination; the desert climate is scalding hot with highs regularly above 100. The winter is far more suitable although temperatures can get below freezing at night. One must follow normal winter camping protocol when camping here despite the fact that it is a desert.
Two campgrounds in the park are open year round. The park is known for it’s sand dunes, volcanic cinder cones, mountains, wildflower and Joshua tree fields. Roadside camping is also allowed. A favorite visitor activity is paying a visit to the abandoned mines and military outposts which can be found all over the 1.5 million acre national treasure.
Killarney Provincial Park
For some real winter camping, give Killarney Provincial Park in central Ontario, Canada a try. The park has a designated area for winter campers. They require all campers in winter months to file a trip plan with the park office. Temperatures at night can sometimes get as low as -20 Fahrenheit! The winter camp site includes a hut with a wood stove for frigid campers eager to warm themselves.
A popular activity for winter campers in Killarney Provincial Park is snowshoeing. The park is considered safe for blazing your own trail on foot in the winter since the terrain is fairly flat and relatively shielded from the elements by the dense forestry.
French Creek State Park
French Creek State Park is located in Pennsylvania in close proximity to Philadelphia.
For those appealed by the idea of winter camping with some amenities, French Creek State Park is a great place to look. They have ten cabins available to rent with electricity and heat. You won’t score many points with the hard-core campers, but it’s a good way to wet your beak to what it means to camp in the winter. The park is known for its hiking trails and is popular as a site of cross-country skiing in the winter. Ice fishing and ice skating is also popular.
