scouting in winter

As you have probably noticed, I do not explore as much in the winter. This is all because in Saskatchewan we have pretty intense winters. Lots of snow and very cold weather. If I had a better vehicle that was higher off the ground I would probably explore more. None the less, winter is a great time to scout out locations for the summer. It is much easier to tell what is/is not abandoned in the winter. Here are my top tips for: scouting in the winter

1 - Look for footprints in the snow. If there are no footprints at all then it could be abandoned, if there are footprints it should be easy to tell how recent they are.

2. Look at the windows. If the windows are smashed or open in the middle of winter its a good sign of abandonment. As well if the doors are smashed or open, this is another good sign of abandonment.

3. Check for vehicle Tracks. Look for tracks in the snow and trace them. Where did they go? Are there footsteps as well? Did it park? Did people get out of the car? Did they drive in just to turn around?

4. Look at the chimney & check the meter outside. If there is smoke and the meter is running the building is being heated.