What to carry on a winter day hike in the White Mountains
Build your pack for the coldest, most exposed hour of the day. The essentials, the winter extras, and what changes between a wooded trail and an open summit.
The ten essentials
This is the hikeSafe list from New Hampshire Fish and Game and the White Mountain National Forest. It applies to every hike, in every season.
- Map
- Compass
- Warm clothing: a sweater or fleece, long pants in wool or synthetic, and a wool hat
- Extra food and water
- Flashlight or headlamp, with spare batteries
- Matches or firestarters
- First aid kit and repair kit
- Whistle
- Rain and wind jacket and pants
- Pocket knife
What winter adds
Fish and Game's winter advice puts traction first. Which kind depends on how high you are going.
- Microspikes for packed and icy trail below treeline
- Snowshoes when the snow is deep or unbroken
- Crampons for anything above treeline
- Insulated bottles, so your water does not freeze
- Sunscreen and eye protection: sun off snow burns fast
The same pack on two different days
A list only helps if you know what the day will ask of it. Take the two routes in our trail guides.
Mount Jackson stays in the trees almost to the top. The pack is the ten essentials, microspikes, and snowshoes if the trail has not been broken out. The extra layer comes out once, for the summit.
Mount Washington by Lion Head spends half its length above treeline. Crampons and an ice axe replace microspikes as the main traction. Goggles, a face covering and a shell that seals at the wrists and hood stop being spares and become what you are wearing. Food and water need to be reachable without taking your pack off in the wind.
Same list, different emphasis. Pack for the most exposed hour of the day, not the average one.
Two more things
Do not rely on anything with a battery except your light. Phones die quickly in the cold and coverage in the notches is poor, so the paper map and compass are the ones that count.
Leave your plan with someone: where you are going, which trails, and when you expect to be back.
Before you go
Sources and further reading
- New Hampshire Fish and Game, hikeSafe ten essentials
- Granite Post, Fish and Game's winter packing advice
- Advnture, Fish and Game warning on battery-powered gear
Routes and conditions change. Check current forecasts, trail notices, and maps before you set out.
