Something as simple as the heat from long-burning candles will keep the interior of a jeep or a simple shelter above freezing when combined with body heat. But the most important ingredient of any survival gear is the right mental attitude going in. Trail maps and current conditions are available at the Visitor's Information Center on the north edge of town near the Ouray Hot Springs Pool. The information center is one of the most complete in the country. Two levels house mountains of brochures, maps and historical data.
Personnel are very congenial and source of a wealth of knowledge.
It's the perfect end to a day of winter fun. When Gus Bergole and Jack Echols wandered into this narrow valley in 1875, they came with gold fever, never anticipating their finds would spark a mass movement of prospectors, tradesmen, merchants and the like to what was originally named Umcompahgre City. Elk, deer, sheep and small game probably figured prominently in their limited diets, as did trout from the surrounding streams. Elk and deer seasons are closed for the year, and sheep licenses require several years worth of preference points in a lottery system to draw, but trout are still there, even if some of them are well below reservoir ice this time of year. A little cold and 30 inches of ice aren't enough to discourage trout fishermen from enjoying their sport.