One of the best parts of
being a writer is interviewing people and getting to know them.
While working on the
Winter Camping assignment for Local
Flavor, such was the case with Ash Campbell. Right away I knew he was a
kindred spirit. Like me, from the rock ribbed hills of New Hampshire, Ash is an
outdoor enthusiast and mountaineer, and his work experiences are wide and
varied. And it turns out, he knows a lot about building snow shelters… a skill
set you just don’t run into every day.
From my childhood, I recall
every winter a neighbor would invite all the kids in the area for a day of
building an igloo in his yard. It must have been pandemonium with all the
excited young’uns running around, but we always accomplished the task. The big
treat was crowding into the snug dome at the end of the day and having hot
chocolate. So, when I learn Ash hosts snow shelter building events in the
nearby Sangre de Cristo Mountains, I am itching to participate.
The plan is to meet Ash
in town on Wednesday at 7:30 in the morning, which means getting up at 5:00,
ugh, a tall order in itself. One other fellow, Eric, shows up. Three is Ash’s minimum
crew. Thank you Eric for being there. It is shaping up to be a beautiful, mild
and calm day, so we pile into Ash’s 4WD and head for the mountains. On the way,
we three discuss winter mountaineering topics, snow as a building material,
etc., and Ash speaks with great enthusiasm about the snow saws he has. With
this, I know he and I are on the same wavelength. Having designed and built
furniture in one of my past chapters, I know the importance of having the right
tool for the job, and the pleasure in using a good one. We are on the trail at
8:40 and have the place to ourselves. It’s nice to get an early start.
About a half hour’s hike
in, we are on the perimeter of an alpine meadow, where days before, Ash created
a quarry. This is a place where he has tamped down the snow with snowshoes
causing it to harden into a solid, albeit as we will learn, a fragile one. From
this quarry Ash will cut blocks with one of the saws. After scoping out the
type and size of shelter we will build, we easily fall into a pattern of work.
Ash cuts blocks, I lug them to the shelter site, and Eric places them in a
circle. The construction bears resemblance to brick laying, except it is more
organic and the materials list is 100% snow. Eric calls it, “the ultimate green
construction.” Some of the blocks are cut into wedges for the gaps in the
circular courses. Loose snow is then brushed by hand - we’re all wearing
waterproof mittens - into the remaining chinks between blocks and wedges.
Eventually all the snow will bind, giving the dome considerable strength.
Course by course, the blocks are inset a few inches and up they go. Eric is
working from the inside of the structure and before we know it only his head
and shoulders are visible. He comments it feels as though he’s inside a
birthday cake, if only he could jump out, “Surprise!”
I cut an opening for the
entrance and we build something of a portico over it. We then trim protruding
edges from the blocks here and there to even up the shape of the structure and
for the first time in the day, I go inside to trim interior edges. Sunlight
shining on the outside gives the interior a diffuse white glow and it is
remarkably snug and quiet. Ash comments outside temps can hover near zero
(Fahrenheit) and inside, stay around thirty above. Indeed, snug. Snugger than
any tent, and stronger. These domes are able to withstand loads from snowfall
that would collapse a tent.
When like souls gather
to share a task, a special camaraderie forms. The three of us are happy in our
work, and we have thoughtful conversation on a broad range of subjects. Ash
says, “As a species we’ve been around for what, three million years. And we men
have been building shelters. What we’re doing here goes very deep.” The level
of satisfaction we express as we stand back and admire our work supports this.
Ash, Eric and I had never met before this experience and from it we feel a bond
of friendship, itself a great thing. The shelter, in it’s protected spot off in
the woods, will likely stand for months and it is there for all to use and
enjoy.
Gordon Bunker
For information on
YangFang snow saws, go to: http://snowsaw.com/index.html
For a free Winter
Camping Field Guide covering snow shelter building, etc., by Ash, et al, go to:
http://lamountaineers.org/zDWNLOAD.html
