As the cold weather sets in, many cabin owners are preparing to leave their summer and fall retreats until next season. A cabin is an investment as well as a home away from home, and you want to do as much as possible to protect it. Many cabin owners are aware of the need to winterize their cabins in order to protect their heating, plumbing systems and so on, but taking the necessary precautions to keep out intruders is just as important. Here are some tips for keeping unwelcome visitors out of your cabin while you are away.

Remove all valuables that you can. Let's face it; a lot of cabin owners consider taking out their televisions and other electronic equipment a bit of a hassle. However, these are valuable and many thieves are aware of the fact that people keep them in their cabins all year long. They make for a tempting reason to break-in! Consider them taking them out until next year, along with all other items of value.

Install an alarm system. The effectiveness of this step is debatable, depending on where your cabin is. People may argue that most cabins are in fairly secluded spots where no one is going to hear an alarm go off, but part of the purpose of an alarm is just the scare factor. Intruders are nervous about loud advertisements of their presence, and are likely to take off even though they are aware the chances of someone coming to investigate are slight (remember, they are operating with a guilty conscience!).

Remove all food sources. Not all intruders are human, and cabins are often in prime wildlife locations. Take all the food out of your cabin so it doesn't attract bears, raccoons, and other animals that love what humans have to offer. Smaller food stuffs may attract wintering insects as well, so make sure that you remove your sugar, flour, and so on.

Seal everything! Putting boards or other barriers over your cabin windows and doors will help to keep out both human and animal intruders. Everyone prefers the path of least resistance and if your cabin resembles a fortress, potential invaders will move on. You should also consider blocking chimneys ? from the inside ? and have a good look around and seal up any cracks to keep out those bugs!

Nothing is more disheartening than going out to the family cabin after a season away and finding it has been invaded by humans or animal intruders. Taking some basic steps when you are winterizing your cabin can really cut down the risk of break-ins!