more durable than a tent, providing better insulation from the harsh winter elements. Here's a guide to building an Inuit snow house.

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Some advice

It will probably take you five or six hours to build an igloo that sleeps two adults comfortably.

All you need is a saw, a shovel and a strong back. Any shovel will do, but you'll have an easier time if you use a small, sturdy snow shovel, like the kind found at outdoor and camping supply stores.

Step 1: Pack the snow

To replicate the dense, wind-packed snow of Inuit country, shovel it into a 2-foot high, 10-foot-square sheet cake and stomp it down. Use snowshoes to stomp, if you have them. Wait a few hours, allowing the ice crystals to interlock and strengthen.

Step 2: Slice the blocks

Using a carpenter's saw or snow saw, cut blocks roughly 2 feet long, 1 foot wide, and 1.5 feet high. Think of them as big, cold Legos.

Step 3: Build the dome

Mark out a ring 6 feet across and begin stacking blocks in an ascending spiral. Use larger blocks at the bottom and smaller blocks at the top. Shave a slope into the top surface of each block so the wall curves inward as it rises.

Once the dome is underway, lower the floor of your igloo to give you more headroom, then level it out.

Place the last few blocks on top with the help of somebody standing inside.

Step 4: Finish it up

Smooth out the blocks inside and out. Push the excess snow into the joints between blocks, sealing any holes or cracks.

Cut a doorway. Additionally, you can help protect yourself from the wind by digging down into the snow to make an entrance, so that you duck down to enter, then stand up inside.

Poke a hole in the dome for air. To brighten up the joint, replace one block with pure ice -— voilà a picture window!

Originally submitted by Wired contributor Bob Parks

This page was last modified 19:58, 3 December 2010 by howto_admin.

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