Questions about visiting the US over winter

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

Love the idea of snow and cold, hate the idea of being snowed in and freezing. I don't know how you can predict it though yeah? So you either have to take your chances or not I guess.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Anne - PrincessinOz has a big trip report that she is writing from her 2007 trip and she went to Boston and Canada. She shared lots of beautiful photos. It should only be a few threads down the aussie section.

 

[Lulu83]

Thanks for all the info, sounds like you had a wonderful trip.

When you were in Canada and the cooler cities, what type of footwear did you wear. Were sneakers sufficient or did you go with a hiking boot type thing? Did you need thermal underwear? Gloves, hats?

My main concern is for warmth for the family, and maneouverability so that we are warm but can still function easily and not get too dragged down with clothing and movement.

I'm so happy to talk about clothes because I spent SO much time on research before we left

The single best purchase we made was waterproof (made of Goretex) shoes! They were more sneaker like than hiking boots (e.g. didn't cover the full ankle or have a super thick tread so they were dual purpose for wearing off road and for normal daily use). I think my pair were from Mountain Designs and DFs were from Kathmandu? Mine were about $120 (half price because the colour was discontinued). We chose neutral colours and wore them everywhere which was great because we didn't have to pack shoes for every occassion. We were in almost knee deep snow at times and our feet didn't get wet and cold at all. We wore them with thick socks and wore "liner socks" in the really cold places for an extra layer of warmth. I would definitely recommend investing in good footwear, I don't think normal sneakers would cut it..

We usually wore one layer of thermals (pants and shirts) under our regular clothes and in really cold places I also wore nylon stockings as well which made a big difference. We generally wore jeans everywhere, but I know jeans are a really bad insulator and you can buy warmer pants from hiking stores but we didn't want to buy heaps of things we'd never wear again! On our top half we'd wear the thermals under a regular shirt, then a jumper layer and a jacket (which came off indoors because everywhere is so well heated). I bought some fleecy tops from Kathmandu, called "100 weight" (on special for about $30 each) for my jumper layer.

My other big investment recommendation is down jackets (duck or goose down - goose is warmer but more expensive). They are super warm and such good insulators! Otherwise you have to wear more layers because other jackets don't insulate as well (e.g. a thin jacket underneath and a thicker "outer shell" jacket on top of that). Considering you take the jackets off indoors the thought of lugging around all those extra layers didn't appeal to me! I got my duck down jacket here for about $250. DF decided to try and toughen it out without one, but ended up needing to buy one in Canada. He got a genuine goose down for only $50. I wanted the reassurance that I already had one before I left though! They look bulky but they squish down to nothing in your suitcase..

We each had a regular beanie, but I also had a thin one to wear for an extra layer in the snowier places. We had two pairs of gloves each as well - a thin pair (I think they were polypropylene or something?) and a thicker outer pair. DF generally only ever needed one pair but my hands get cold easily. I also took scarves with me (just some that I already had) and was really greatful for that because you forget that your face is exposed and the snowy air can get freezing! My jacket also had a hood which I loved.

Wow I could write a book on cold weather clothing hehe

 

[Lulu83]

With how cold it was in Boston did you still manage to see much? How many days would you suggest to spend in Boston?

Once again a time question how long did you spend in Montreal, Toronto, Niagara? Also suggestions on where to stay?

I also have a clothes and shoes question for all the colder regions did you go for snow clothes or just regular clothing over thermals eg jeans and layers on top?
Shoes are the other big thing, regular shoes or special snow shoes? I want to get a decent pair of leather boots, but I am wondering if these are best for the areas where its not snowing heavily, and whether snow boots would be best in the areas where it is

I really felt we didn't get to see the best of Boston, it was just so cold. We spent 2 days/nights there and it was over a particularly cold period, one of the locals told us they were expecting the coldest night on record! We stayed at the Langham Hotel which was just beautiful and actually spent quite a bit of time there (e.g. ate dinner, used the fitness centre, had our one really late sleep in) because we were too cold to explore. It was also towards the end of our trip and I think we were probably a little worn out because of the pace of things and just enjoyed the chance to take it easy..

We had 3 nights in Montreal, 1 in Toronto and 1 in Niagara Falls (did I mention it was a whirlwind trip?!) We felt for us that it was enough time in Montreal, which was the second coldest weather we experienced after Boston, and so didn't want to spend too much time outdoors. We also stayed in a really noisy hotel and didn't have the greatest sleep quality!

We would have liked more time in Toronto because we really only saw it at night as a stopover to Niagara and it looks like a lovely city. We had 2 full days in Niagara Falls and thought this was a good amount of time. Whilst you can't do the Maid of the Mist and a few other things, you can still go behind the falls, cross the rainbow bridge, and it's so beautiful at night (they have a winter lights festival and fireworks). We really didn't like the amusement park section on the hill (can't remember it's name?) and found it quite tacky. Our hotel was Sheraton Fallsview and it was amazing - the closest you can get to the actual falls, and only a very short walk there. I'll try and post some photos later to show you the amazing view from our hotel!

See my post above for my advice on shoes - I can't recommend Gore-tex waterproof shoes highly enough! They are so versatile, you can wear them both like you would normal sneakers, but then also in the snow..

Love the idea of snow and cold, hate the idea of being snowed in and freezing. I don't know how you can predict it though yeah? So you either have to take your chances or not I guess.

I agree! We were really worried about being snowed in but it only happened once to us (Buffalo - our flight was delayed about 3 hours) yet when we arrived on the west coast only a few weeks earlier JFK and most of the east coast airports were all shut due to snow! I have to say the trains are fantastic, they seem to run no matter what and we travelled through some pretty heavy duty snow! We did have one of our trains replaced by a bus from Seattle to Vancouver, but that was due to a mud slide..

 

[Lulu83]

Here is a photo of the amazing view from the gorgeous Sheraton Fallsview hotel Niagara Falls - I couldn't believe it when I looked out the window of our room and saw this! I think I actually squealed in excitement! And we could hear the falls as well.. We splurged on our room here - we were on the top (36th?) storey and had a fireplace and a spa. To be honest it probably wasn't worth it for the fireplace or the spa (it was more like a therapy spa than the romantic spa I had imagined!) but the view made up for it!

So beautiful in winter!

That's the rainbow bridge in the distance (with the USA on the other side)

As much as I love lurking other people's TRs I never really thought about doing a Trip Report for this trip before since there is a very minimal Disney component, but I have tonnes of photos and love to talk (can you tell?) so if anybody is interested I'll start one.

 

[PrincessInOz]

As much as I love lurking other people's TRs I never really thought about doing a Trip Report for this trip before since there is a very minimal Disney component, but I have tonnes of photos and love to talk (can you tell?) so if anybody is interested I'll start one.

You're kidding, right?




Speaking for myself, I LOVE looking, hearing and reading about everyone else's trips.





Afterall, without any trips on the horizon, I need to live vicariously.



Vote 1 for a Trippie!




ps. Love the winter views from Fallsview.

 

[Anne_Aus]

Lulu83 thank you for taking the time to respond, have got some shoes to hunt down and wear in, and some other clothes to look for.

I would also love a trip report from you, that photo looks amazing - so many people have tried to talk me out of niagara because it will be winter but that photo makes me want to go even more.

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

Those photos are amazing. Such a beautiful time of year to see the falls.

Thanks for the info on the clothes and most esp the shoes. Everyone here on the DIS knows about my feet woes and my obsession with comfort for them .

I too would adore you to do a trip report - the more details, the more photos, the better.