PREV
NEXT
The Snow Report
The latest snow, ski, and winter sports stories from Outside.
Cold-weather dwellers love to gripe about the winter. Sure, it’s chilly. Yes, it’s dark. And I know, I know, we’re all counting down the days until the paddling, climbing, and biking season starts up again. But here’s the dirty secret that Alaskans, Minnesotans, and Canadians have been hiding from the tanned masses further south for years: For outdoorsy types, winter kicks ass. When the earth’s surface freezes over, all kinds of possibilities open up: new terrain, new sports, new ways to get an adrenalin kick, and new ways to wind down when the day is through.
If you’ve been hibernating indoors through the winters—or sucking back watered-down pina coladas at an all-inclusive resort somewhere—you’ve been missing out. Consider this your North American winter bucket list, and get started: You’ve got some catching up to do.
- Cycle-Tour an Ice Road
- Spend a Night in an Ice Hotel
- Test Drive the Continent's Best Terrain Parks
- Tackle a Winter Triathlon
- Camp Out in the Cold
- Lace 'Em Up for Some Serious Pond Hockey
- Drive (and Carve) B.C.'s Powder Highway
- Learn to Mush
- Hit the Hot Springs
- Snowshoe Bryce Canyon
- Go Ice Canoeing on the Saint Lawrence
- Have a Cold One
- See the Northern Lights
- Build Your Dream (Snow) Home
- Hunker Down Over a Hole in the Ice
- Ski, Shoot, Repeat
- Glide the Length of the World's Longest Skating Rink
- Get Your Yurt on at Yellowstone
- Learn to Fly
- See Some Serious Ice at Sirmilik National Park
- Watch the World's Toughest Endurance Athletes
- Get Out of the Climbing Gym and Tackle an Ice Wall
- Go Fly a Kite
- Go Winter Water Rafting
- Admire Frozen Masterpieces
- Hike a Frozen River Canyon
- Find a Sweet Retreat
- Slide Like an Olympian
- Make a Winter Ascent of Mt. Rainier
- Cruise the Inside Passage
- Mix Up a Hot Cocktail
- Get Motorized
- Visit the North Pole
- Surf in the Snow
- Visit the Continent's Most Remote National Park
- Splash Out on a Heli-Skiing Adventure
- Run, Bike, or Ski a Winter Ultramarathon
- Imbibe, Outdoors
- Ski Hut-to-Hut on the Wapta Traverse
- Come in From the Cold
