Batten down the hatches and vents.

Tape down a plastic cover over the fiberglass cracks around the forward hatch.

Double check the mooring lines for wear and tension.

Clean and wipe on anti-mildew stuff everywhere in the cabin.

Make sure the rain suit, boots, gloves, towels, and an umbrella are handy near the companionway.

Stock up the galley.

Here in the UK winters are generaly mild compared to many parts of the USA.
Preps are still prudent however because the generaly mild conditions mean that neither TPTB nor most individualls prepare at all.
"shock, horror, 4 inches of snow, we never thought that would happen"

Purchased long underwear, from the USA as the 100% cotton type is not readily available here.
Extra blankets, ALL WOOL, avoid fake materials.
Tinned food
Kerosene
Wellington boots.
Cash to hand for taxi fares as a few inches of snow closes public transport.
Cat food in bulk, pet food often seems short in bad weather.
Oversized overalls, big enough to wear over warm clothing are still on the to do list.

> I would miss the variety, the changes that are tangible in all of my senses.

I lived for maybe 20 years in the Philadelphia area, and we had 4 seasons there. Don't miss 'em at all. :->

I lived at Minot AFB, ND, for 4 years, and we had 2 seasons. Don't miss them, either.

We live in an urban environment in Southern Ontario and winter is on the way! We took our fall camping trip this past weekend and it's always a good reminder to everyone about the nasty bone-chilling cold and wet weather we need to prepare for!

After a rainy cold weekend in the bush, all the camping gear has all been checked, tested and repaired. Winter clothes have been checked for size and repair - bigger boots and gear for the little kid again this year, and mom managed to lose a couple sizes so I need new outerwear too. Also, our college kid is living at home now so the BOBs and GHBs have been adjusted to include her.

The driveway has been sealed and the backyard is squared away -outside water off, lawn furniture stored and garden put to bed. Fixing a leaky eves that's causing a leak in the basement is underway. Refilling the BBQ propane tanks is happening this week.

Vehicles are in the midst of winter maintenance. Put a new engine in the truck and new exhaust on the car last week. Wipers, fluids and plugs have been changed and tires are next. Scrapers, shovels, sand and salt are ready to be added too.

Still have to winterize all BOBs and GHBs, to make sure outerwear has been upgraded from fall to winter and all supplies are in tip top shape. Winter coats and snowpants need to go in, and I want to add a pair of those ice-gripper-tread-thingies for the bottom of everyone's boots.

Need to restock the pantry. We're making it a habit to live out of the pantry, rotating and restocking to keep everything fresh. We've fallen a bit behind on restocking what we've used so it's time to catch up. The chest freezer is full and we're good on dry goods but we need to refill canned goods. We didn't do any canning this year so we need to make up those rations. We also used a bunch of our stored water on the weekend so have to replace that too.

We'll change the furnace filter, along with the batteries in all the smoke, CO2 detectors and flashlights in the house when the time changes. Before then we'll need to pick up some more candles and lamp oil for lighting on those dark winter nights.

Heat is always my biggest concern over the winter. Winter storms and power failures are the most likely bug-in scenarios for us. We don't have a wood stove or generator, and our gas furnance needs hydro to work. We've set-up the basement for a potential bug-in situation. We ost power about a month ago and it got pretty chilly. We've got propane heaters, stoves, etc. but ventilation is a major concern so we basically resigned to wool blankets, sweaters and winter wear for warmth. We'd like to invest in a wood or pellet stove but money is tight so that's not likely to happen this year.

Thanks for the reminder Harmless. We need to rotate the garage so the winter gear is easily accessible and the bikes and swim stuff goes back in the rafters.

I thought of an item that I SHOULD have thought of about 2 decades ago..... oh well.

RV antifreeze.

If the house heat goes out for a long time, I know to drain the water supply plumbing but had forgotten about the water in the sink drain traps.

Some RV antifreeze down the drains and the toilets (after flushing and draining) should save that plumbing from freeze damage.

Bought some this weekend.

I checked to see where my snow shovel is.

When my sister lived here, I was looking for it after a foot of snow fell, and she said she had put it in the garage, so I asked her to get it. She was back in about one minute.

"I need a snow shovel to dig out the garage door so I can get the other snow shovel out."

Now, it usually stays in the side of the garage where the man-door opens inward.

Sue