Snow Den

How I Built It

Yesterday I created a fort out of the piled up snow at the end of the road. I spent most of the time shoveling snow on top of the fort so I would have the space to tunnel my way into the pile. After I had made the fort tall enough, I used the edge of the shovel to carve a man-hole to begin the tunnel. After I had cleared the first part and made a dent, I shoveled through with my hands until I had created enough space for someone to fit inside. This was problematic because the inside roof would collapse at times so I had to pack in the snow before I dug any further throughout the tunnel. I finally had made it deep enough, and the snow was packed enough so that it made it easy to crawl inside and lay down, without any snow falling down on you. 

What It Could Be Used For

When I first crawled inside of the tunnel, the first thing I realized was that I was very claustrophobic, but after I got over that I was extremely surprised at how warm I was. With the close cocoon type shape of the den, you are able to relax comfortably, and stay warm against all of the elements. You could also use some brush to cover up the hole to protect against predators if you were out in the wilderness. The fort also covers your entire body so that none of you is exposed. Also with the chance of the shelter caving in, I cleared off the heavy snow at the top, so if it were to collapse, it would be very easy to get out of the fallen snow. This den worked out better than I hoped, and was far warmer than I thought it would be, so would be perfect for a winter shelter.