Winter

Winter is one of the four seasons of temperate zones. Astronomically, it begins with the winter solstice (around December 21 in the Northern hemisphere and June 21 in the Southern hemisphere), and ends with the spring equinox (around March 21 in the Northern hemisphere and September 23 in the Southern hemisphere). In meteorology, it is by convention counted instead as the whole months of June, July and August in the Southern hemisphere and December, January and February in the Northern hemisphere.

Activities

Snow activities

• Bobsledding - a winter sport in which teams make timed runs down narrow, twisting, banked purpose-built iced tracks in a gravity-powered, steerable sled.
• Skiing - the activity of gliding over snow using what is now fiberglass planks called skis that are strapped to the skiers' feet with ski bindings.
• Sledding - a downhill activity where the user uses a sled to glide down the hill.
• Snowball fight - a physical game in which snowballs are thrown with the intention of hitting somebody else.
• Snowboarding - an increasingly common sport where participants strap a composite board to their feet and slide down a snow-covered mountain.
• Snowshoeing - a means of travel in which one is able to walk on top of the snow by increasing the surface area of their feet.
• Snowman building - creating a man-like model out of snow

Ice activities

• Ice Skating - a means of traveling on ice with skates, narrow (and sometimes parabolic) blade-like devices moulded into special boots (or, more primitively, without boots, tied to regular footwear).
• Ice boating - a means of travel in a specialized boat similar in appearance to a sailboat but fitted with skis or runners (skates) and designed to run over ice instead of (liquid) water.
• Ice fishing - the sport of catching fish with lines and hooks through an opening in the ice on a frozen body of water.
• Ice diving - a type of penetration diving where the dive takes place under ice.
• Ice Sculpture - elaborate sculptures are made out of blocks of ice and sometimes snow.