Wisconsin in the Winter

[T.Orso]

Good advice here. I will second the recommendation for MEC, as that is my shop of choice for quality and value in this type of gear. You will find online bargains there as the winter winds down.

What clothing you need depends on what you are doing outside, but it is great to start with the warmest thing ever so you have it when you really need it.

I find a down vest is a really useful piece of my winter wardrobe, along with all the other stuff.

 

[Badgerstate36]

We are moving to Madison this July. I’ve lived in Georgia for just about my whole life, so the winters are going to be an adventure!

I’m hoping to buy a bunch of cold weather gear at the end of this winter, trying to cash in on deep discounts.

What do I need? I am guessing I need a good parka, good winter boots, and good base layers. I’d love yalls input!

I live in Wisconsin for 30 years and grew up about 50 miles south of Madison. You definetly want a good heavy jacket, some bibs, gloves, wool socks and snow boots.
When I lived in Wisconsin, I had a regular Carhartt jacket that was my everyday coat and then I had a Carhartt arctic coat and bibs that I wore when I was working outside. The Arctic stuff is quilted and just built heavier than the regular Carhartt stuff.
You also want to invest in some base layers (because layering is the key to staying warm) and lots of sweaters or flannel shirts.
Winter in Wisconsin is no joke.

 

[ColtRevolver]

X2 on Carhartt Arctic coats and bibs. I have both.

 

[Phil1-6]

Vehicle wise make sure you have good all-weather radials. You might consider investing in undercoating your frame. Depending on the vehicle it might rust out before it wears out. Lastly, front-wheel, all-wheel or four-wheel drive. I have never gotten used to rear-wheel drive so I have always had four-wheel drive. Change your driving habits. Jack rabbit starts/stops don't work in snow. Nothing works in ice...stay home.

 

[FarmerTan]

"Moonlight in Vermont"

 

[Jbird45]

Welcome to the great badger state! I have lived here for 30 years in March! (Which is my whole life)

You will definitely want some heavier clothes in winter, but one key to staying warm is staying dry. Carhartt makes good work gear depending on what you do. Bibs, jackets, etc. Boots are a must. Preferably waterproof as when the snow turns to slush wet feet are a problem.

Also, layers are your friend. If you put on too much gear for a high energy activity you will overheat and sweat, and sweat turns to cold, and vice versa, if you are stationary, such as ice fishing, you need heavy clothes.

Eventually you start to adapt to the cold though. I see people walking around in shorts in the winter. No joke

There are lots of great things to do and explore in our state. Spotted Cow beer, cheese curds, fishing, hiking trails, etc.

Make sure to invest in a snowblower too. Or at least a good shovel.

 

[ouchyfoot]

I live in Canada. As far as insulation in coats and vests go, I’ve switched back to down from fibrefill.

 

[Just Another Dave]

Welcome to Wisconsin.

Born and raised here and seen almost 50 winters. Lots of great advice given already but I'll add my 2 cents. For your vehicle I'll suggest 2 things - a long handled window scraper with a brush and a remote starter (if you don't have one already). The long handle will give you the reach to clear off your windshield without having to lean on your car and get road salt on your clothing and the brush will help clear the vehicle of snow. The remote starter is a great thing in both the winter and in the summer. Being from Georgia maybe the heat won't be an issue for you but it sure is nice being able to slide into a comfortable vehicle temperature-wise. In southern Wisconsin, summer days can get into the 80s and 90s and occasionally triple digits. Winter days are typically in the 20s and 30s but arctic and Canadian air will come through from time to time and drop the temp an additional 10-20 degrees, sometimes more and that's before factoring in the wind chill factor.

For winter clothing, layering is definitely key. I'll typically wear just a North Face zip up fleece and long sleeve shirt when it's in the 20s and 30s. But if it's snowing or if the temp dips into the teens or lower, I'll throw on a parka I got from Lands' End on top of that. I believe there's a Lands End store in Madison. Also I'm a fan of the Merino wool socks sold by Bombas.

You're smart to consider looking for winter clothing over the next few months. I got a really warm Fjallraven hat and gloves for a great deal last spring.

 

[timetofly]

Make sure you purchase enough brandy for the drink that made Wisconsin famous - Brandy Old Fashioned.

 

[Jbird45]

There are a few words and phrases you will want to familiarize yourself with as well.

"Ope"- If you are about to run into someone or something, you say "ope" as both an alert and to let them know crisis is averted. This can also be used in case of an accident. Example- "Ope, shoot, I spilled my old fashioned."

" 'Scuse me"- Midwestern way of saying excuse me.

"Eh"- basically a verbal question mark. Example "Getting a little chilly, eh?"

Ya (pronounced yaw)- usually at the the beginning of a sentence. Can be used in place of eh sometimes. Example
"Ya, how bout dem Packers, eh?" "Pick up some cheese curds at the store, ya?

"Will ya" (Will yuh)- Commonly used phrase by an aggravated Midwesterner. Example: "I'm trying to watch the Packers game, quit talking, will ya?"

You Betcha- acceptable as yes or sure when answering a question, usually excitedly. Example: Someone asks "Are you going ice fishing this weekend?" You would reply "You betcha!"

Sometimes combinations of these words are acceptable. Such as if you need to scoot by someone in the store who's looking for something on the shelf. You would say "Ope, scuse me. Just going to sneak past ya, eh?"

There are also shortened words. For example:

Der'- There
Da- the
Dem- Them
Bout- about
Dis- This
Ya (pronounced yuh)- You
Deese- these
Gonna- going to

Some common Wisconsin sentences:

"What time is da fish fry dis Friday?"
" Have ya been fishing lately"
"Check out dis new deer rifle I got"
"Deese cheese curds are da best, eh?"
"Da snow is gonna start falling any day now, ya?"

 

[Captain Pre-Capsize]

You Betcha- acceptable as yes or sure when answering a question, usually excitedly. Example: Someone asks "Are you going ice fishing this weekend?" You would reply "You betcha!"

So interesting. Grew up next door in Iowa and you would never hear, "You betcha!" Instead, it is a simple, "You bet" as a way of indicating agreement. True story: Years ago I was in Texas and heard a guy in a store say, "You bet." I asked him, "Where are you from in Iowa?" He said, "Oh about a half hour south of Des Moines."

More generally, in the midwest it is common to drop the "g" when pronouncing a word. So it is not "going" it is "goin' "




All of you have left out the most important article of clothing. If you want to fit in you need to embrace it:

 

[lxzndr]

You actually won't hear many of those phrases in the Madison area. maybe if you head further north by the Yoopers, (Michigan Upper Penninsula - U.P.)
I recommend getting a set of steel wheels with Snow Tires mounted. There aren't many all-season that can compete with true snow tires. and having them mounted makes the swap equivalent to a tire rotation.
In addition to Costco and REI, for winter (or summer) wear, head 20min west of Madison to Duluth Trading, or Gemplers in Mt Horeb.

 

[Tanuki]

Pro tip from Portland, OR (former midwesterner with plenty of Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota winter experience):

Check out Next Adventure, get on their daily special email list. They do closeouts as well as straight brick-and-mortar retail. Most of my inner layers (and a lot of ski gear) came from them. Even with shipping you can find some excellent deals.

Also there are Columbia Factory Stores in Baraboo and Johnson Creek, WI. Columbia is an Oregon legend, only slightly behind Nike. If the deals that come up in Wisconsin match Portland deals, you might find some really effective cold weather inner and outer clothing for not too much moola. All my ski parkas and pants/bibs are from Columbia/Mountain Hardware.

You should check out Baraboo, Devils Lake, and the ferry across Lake Wisconsin in any case. You might even survive a trip to the Dells. The actual Dells (not the tourist traps) are quite lovely.

 

[Tanuki]

There are a few words and phrases you will want to familiarize yourself with as well.

"Ope"- If you are about to run into someone or something, you say "ope" as both an alert and to let them know crisis is averted. This can also be used in case of an accident. Example- "Ope, shoot, I spilled my old fashioned."

" 'Scuse me"- Midwestern way of saying excuse me.

"Eh"- basically a verbal question mark. Example "Getting a little chilly, eh?"

Ya (pronounced yaw)- usually at the the beginning of a sentence. Can be used in place of eh sometimes. Example
"Ya, how bout dem Packers, eh?" "Pick up some cheese curds at the store, ya?

"Will ya" (Will yuh)- Commonly used phrase by an aggravated Midwesterner. Example: "I'm trying to watch the Packers game, quit talking, will ya?"

You Betcha- acceptable as yes or sure when answering a question, usually excitedly. Example: Someone asks "Are you going ice fishing this weekend?" You would reply "You betcha!"

Sometimes combinations of these words are acceptable. Such as if you need to scoot by someone in the store who's looking for something on the shelf. You would say "Ope, scuse me. Just going to sneak past ya, eh?"

There are also shortened words. For example:

Der'- There
Da- the
Dem- Them
Bout- about
Dis- This
Ya (pronounced yuh)- You
Deese- these
Gonna- going to

Some common Wisconsin sentences:

"What time is da fish fry dis Friday?"
" Have ya been fishing lately"
"Check out dis new deer rifle I got"
"Deese cheese curds are da best, eh?"
"Da snow is gonna start falling any day now, ya?"

I'm goin' with 'oop', not 'ope'.

Fish fries are awesome! If ya catch yer own, pike and walleyes are dang tasty.

I am not sure that these eye dialect spellings are useful (mainly the Ds are softer in speech than they look on the page), but you will hear the accent(s) and experience the idioms immediately. So, scuse me, that's bout all I got to say. I'm gettin' goin' now.

 

[garyg]

You actually won't hear many of those phrases in the Madison area. maybe if you head further north by the Yoopers, (Michigan Upper Penninsula - U.P.)
I recommend getting a set of steel wheels with Snow Tires mounted. There aren't many all-season that can compete with true snow tires. and having them mounted makes the swap equivalent to a tire rotation.
In addition to Costco and REI, for winter (or summer) wear, head 20min west of Madison to Duluth Trading, or Gemplers in Mt Horeb.

Ya readin' dem I was thinkin' sounded more like da UP ..

 

[Jbird45]

I'm goin' with 'oop', not 'ope'.

Fish fries are awesome! If ya catch yer own, pike and walleyes are dang tasty.

I am not sure that these eye dialect spellings are useful (mainly the Ds are softer in speech than they look on the page), but you will hear the accent(s) and experience the idioms immediately. So, scuse me, that's bout all I got to say. I'm gettin' goin' now.

I have heard both oop or ope. I would consider both acceptable

 

[Jbird45]

You actually won't hear many of those phrases in the Madison area. maybe if you head further north by the Yoopers, (Michigan Upper Penninsula - U.P.)
I recommend getting a set of steel wheels with Snow Tires mounted. There aren't many all-season that can compete with true snow tires. and having them mounted makes the swap equivalent to a tire rotation.
In addition to Costco and REI, for winter (or summer) wear, head 20min west of Madison to Duluth Trading, or Gemplers in Mt Horeb.

Well I haven't spent much time in Madison, and da UP is closer to me than Madison, so I guess that explains it