Published reference
RandallStone.net Financial K6RCS Team Stone Baile ElectStone
TS Team StoneRoads · family · movement · continuity
Team Stone / Winter

Lassen · snow camp · backcountry · judgment

Cold turns small mistakes into immediate opinions.

Cold weather exposes weak batteries, poor clothing choices, bad route assumptions and rushed decisions quickly. Winter planning is therefore less about drama than about margins.

Cold is a ruthless auditor of batteries, clothing and optimistic route plans.

Krista Stone overlooking Pilot Pinnacle after snow camping in Lassen Volcanic National Park
Krista overlooking Pilot Pinnacle from about 8,400 feet near our Lassen campsite, February 2009. We hiked in, camped through the snowstorm, and woke to this—the benefit of first turns.

Winter strips the trip down.

Weather, daylight, shelter, clothing, food, water, route, avalanche awareness, navigation, power, communication, and retreat options become visible in ways that ordinary travel lets people ignore.

Lassen Volcanic National Park

Lassen is a favorite setting for snow camping, backcountry skiing, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing because it combines beauty, distance, changing weather, practical gear, radio, and the need to remain honest about conditions. Cross-country skiing and snowshoeing remain part of the repertoire even when low-snow years reduce the opportunities.

Orange in snow

Orange is the shared Team Stone field color because it is easy to identify from a distance. It belongs on outerwear, radios, bags, markers, and equipment where visibility helps. Randall’s own equipment already follows that pattern, including the orange kayak Three’s Company, an orange dry suit and paddling gear, and black-and-orange InMotion EUCs.

Public and private detail

Trip stories, equipment notes, weather references, photographs, and broad route planning can be public. Live itineraries, family routines, exact caches, private contacts, and sensitive locations stay out of the site.

Krista and Randall Stone in snow country during an earlier winter trip, with Randall wearing bright orange outerwear
Orange works in snow for the same reason it works on water and pavement: it is easy to find.

Shelter and clothing

Layering, dry storage, sleep systems, wind, snow loading, and the ability to change plans.

Route and daylight

Maps, turnaround times, navigation, trail conditions, weather, and retreat options.

Power and signal

Cold batteries, radios, phones, lighting, charging, antennas, and paper references.

People

Fitness, experience, comfort, hydration, food, communication, and the least-resourced member of the group.