Winter Traveling Tips

When I first moved from Texas to Minnesota, I was actually looking forward to the cold.  Houston's heat/humidity will turn asphalt into liquid, and the heat index is unbearable. 

My first fall in Minnesota came, and I naively stood in my driveway wearing cowboy boots and a leather bomber jacket, looking toward the horizon and wishing for snow.  I got it! 

My first year here, it snowed 32 inches on Halloween night, and I was vastly under-prepared.  A leather bomber jacket and armadillo-skin cowboy boots are no match for three feet of snow.  As weeks went by and as the temperature kept dropping, I kept buying bigger and warmer coats, shoes, boots, gloves, and hats -- each time thinking, "This is it, it couldn't possibly get colder than this!"

Winter is coming, but travelers have to be prepared for any kind of weather.  Snowbound citizens of the North who might be traveling to Florida wonder, "Should I even bother with a sweater?  Will I need an umbrella?" And what about the average Southern traveler who gets sent to a Winter Wonderland to work a few days?  What can they do to prepare?  Here are some tips:

Dress for your destination. When I travel from a cold winter climate to a warmer one, I leave my car and my coats at home. With my car tucked safely in a warm garage, I don’t have to worry about the battery or about brushing a ton of snow off of it when I come back. I wear a few layers of light clothing that I can also wear in warmer climates. That’s enough "warmth" to get me to the airport in a cab.  Umbrellas are cheap.  If I need one while I'm there, I'll buy a cheap model and give it away at the airport on the way home.

Wear versatile shoes. There are plenty of warm and supportive shoes out there that easily pass for "Business Casual" wear.  Keen makes a nice one that has a wool liner all around the inside, a heavily lugged sole for walking in snow/ice, and waterproof leather uppers.  This is my winter traveling shoe. It doesn’t make sense to pack boots in your suitcase (too big), but it’s crazy to walk 10 blocks through New York’s wintery slush in good shoes, too.

Don't pack the parka. I never pack a coat.  Ever.  They take up too much room in the suitcase.  If it’s cold enough where I’m going, I’ll wear a coat to the airport and carry it with me on the plane. 

Southerners, get yourselves a good windproof, rain resistant outer shell with generous room, and wear layers underneath it.  There’s no sense in buying a parka for a week’s trip, but a waterproof outer shell is useful almost anywhere, and it breaks down to pack lightly. 

If you must buy a coat, get one with a removable fleece liner.  It’s actually two coats and you might actually wear the individual pieces for Northern AND Southern chilly days.

Think Thinsulate. Thinsulate is your friend.  Hats, gloves, mittens, ear protection, etc, that have "Thinsulate" in them will be plenty warm, I promise.  They’ll also be much lighter, thinner, and easier to pack and travel with.

Sunsccreen isn't just for summer. Sunscreen is more important in the winter, than the summer.  UV rays reflect up off snow and ice, and you’ll be surprised at how quickly you can sunburn when it’s freezing outside.  Lip balm is important, too.  The dry air will crack your lips in no time.  I like Burt’s Bees lip balm.  The stuff works like crazy.

Ultimately, I won the battle against old man winter.  It took me several seasons of acclimation and I field-tested a ton of gear, but I can stay outside and hunt or ice-fish for days at a time now when it's tens of degrees below zero.  Trekking several blocks through city streets through any kind of weather should be "easy-peasy" for any seasoned traveler!

EXTRA:  Please feel free to leave comments on this article! If you have questions for Ken regarding business travel, hotels, airplanes, etc, please send him a "Tweet" on his twitter account.  You can also follow Ken on Twitter @foodbreeze!