Last Saturday, the Cottonwood Institute conducted a winter survival skills course outside of Nederland, CO. As a first time participant, I was unsure of what to expect, but I found the course to be informative and loads of fun. We began by snowshoeing to a base camp location and creating an interactive survival scenario that involved a discussion of survival priorities, tips, strategies, and techniques. Our group then continued with learning and actually building two different winter survival structures, the Quinzhee snow shelter and the emergency snow trench. We were also taught modern fire methods such as the one-match fire and using a petroleum covered cottonball to sustain a flame. Other skills involved winter water procurement, rescue methods and techniques, and finally, how to build our own personal survival kit. I found that whether you are an experienced winter camping guru or a casual snowshoer like myself, the skills that were learned could definitely save your life.