Winter Clothing/Gear Questions

[Spider]

I guess you could say I'm fairly rookie. I've been on a few backpacking trips so far (usually just around 3 days), but next week I will be taking my first winter backpacking trip. I was wondering what people suggested as for how many/what layers to bring. I've got a nice north face jacket that's got a liner so that'll be my shell. I've also got an underarmor-like shirt which will be my wicking layer; I was wondering if you suggest bringing another layer for insulation or if the liner to my jacket will be enough.
As for bottoms, I was planning on wearing jeans and a underarmor-material pair of tights that I have (got them for running and they work great). I also was thinking of bringing a pair of pajama bottoms for even more insulation, but not really sure.
One last thing, I'm a hammock hanger and remember reading something about using a space blanket for further insulation and was wondering if anyone knows where that should be placed for the best effectiveness.

It's going to be around 38 degrees during the day, and getting down to like 20 at night so you know what to base your answer on. I'm going to Shenandoah.

Thanks!
Spider

[Toolshed]

What would be your protection if you got wet. The jeans will be useless. Od you have a nylon shell pant you can wear over your underarmors? You will likely need another fleece pant to wear when you get to camp, unless you plan on crawling right into your bag. I find in winter, right after I stop for the night, I need to put on a highly thermal set of clothes. Iwould keep my base layer on and over that a 200 wt fleece pant and then my shell pant (in winterit can be as simple as nylon running pants.

For my upper, Again, I leave the base layer on and over that goes a 200 wt fleece pullover or jacket and then depending on temps, either my softshell jacket, my down jacket or my synthetic Primlaft Belay parka.
I also don dry socks, and my OR down booties, my hat and my gloves.

[Spider]

I was thinking about getting a pair of nylon pants to replace my jeans. Thanks for the input, now I'll go ahead and make the purchase.

[bigcranky]

(Reposting this from a couple of years ago. It's aimed at thru-hikers in March, but works fine for winter hiking. Don't wear jeans in the winter. Please?)


You need to think about two separate situations -- hiking, and camp. You'll need different clothing for these two activities, as you'll generate lots of heat while hiking, and none while sitting around a cold campsite.

Hiking clothes for cold weather require different layers, so you can handle a wide range of temperatures. I like a 4-layer system:

Base Layer -- a lightweight, long sleeve synthetic or wool top, a zip tee or crew neck is fine. It should wick moisture, and not be very warm all by itself. I really like the lightweight Icebreaker merino wool, but any synthetic is also fine.

Windshirt -- I was amazed at how much use I got out of a lightweight windshirt. One of the single-layer 3-ounce wind shirts is great to put on over your base layer for windy, cool hiking conditions. If you are cold-natured, you might try the Marmot Driclime windshirt, which is slightly heavier and warmer. This combo should be all you need for actual hiking in cold weather, unless it's raining or snowing (see below).

Insulation -- Not for hiking, but for rest breaks, lunch, and camp. A puffy insulated jacket is great here, either down or synthetic. Try to keep this around a pound. I really like the Patagonia Micropuff Parka with the hood, or the Montbell Alpine Light Parka, in down, also with a hood. This could be a 300-weight fleece top, but fleece is bulky and heavy for the warmth.

Shell layer -- waterproof, and somewhat breathable. A Marmot Precip jacket is fine, and not too expensive. If you have the cash, a Montbell Peak parka is more breathable, at twice the cost. You'll wear this layer if it's very cold, or raining, or snowing. It adds a lot of extra protection around camp, too, in bitterly cold weather.

That's for the top half of your body. For the legs, a similar system is useful, though I find my legs don't get as cold as quickly. I usually wear light weight long johns (base layer) and hiking shorts, wool socks, and trail runners. I add waterproof/breathable gaiters in snow and mud. I also carry rain pants (shell layer) and sometimes light weight wind pants (wind layer).

The key is that you can mix-and-match your layers to meet the weather conditions. Sometimes you might hike in shorts and a base layer top, other times you might add the wind shirt, or you could be wearing everything except your down jacket on the coldest days.

Now we get to camp clothes. You'll be sweating carrying a pack up and down the mountains, even when it's very cold outside. You'll likely arrive in camp with damp or wet clothing, and when it's cold, that's a recipe for hypothermia. So, you need some dry clothing in your pack. Here's a list:

Top: a dry base layer, should be heavier, like a microfleece zip tee. Then you can add your windshirt, insulation layer and shell as needed. Some people bring a very light vest, down or fleece, as well. (This vest can be wrapped around your feet at night inside your bag.)

Bottom: In cold weather I usually carry fleece tights for camp, which I can wear under my wind pants or rain pants. I also bring dry socks -- in winter these are nice thick wool socks for sleeping. Down booties are great in very cold weather (low teens or below.)

The key is to keep these layers absolutely dry inside your pack while hiking. When you get to camp, quickly change out of your wet clothing and into the dry (taking the opportunity for a quick cleanup with wipes or a damp bandana). Hang the wet clothes -- you'll be putting them back on in the morning. If it's verycold, you can consider taking your damp clothes to bed with you to dry out overnight -- better than putting on frozen clothing in the morning.

Hands and head: I carry two hats and two pairs of gloves, one heavy and one light. I wear the light set hiking, and the heavy set for camp and/or serious storms. A Powerstretch balaclava is an awesome light layer.

(Note that some experienced hardcore hikers don't carry camp clothes, or gloves, or extra anything. You may hear from them in response to this post. You may, after some cold-weather hiking experience, agree with them and leave all your camp clothes and extra stuff home. But it's probably better to have nice warm dry clothing in winter in the Georgia mountains.)

Finally, a closed-cell foam sit pad is one of the more useful things you can carry with you. It doesn't need to be any larger than your, er, sitting area, and weighs less than 2 ounces. You'll sit on it at rest breaks and around camp, to insulate you from the cold ground. At night you'll put it inside your sleeping bag under your feet for a surprising amount of extra insulation.
__________________
Ken B
'Big Cranky'

[Spider]

Thanks for your input! Very helpful. :)

[Raul Perez]

Check out my signiture link to hiking 101 the first 5 chapters goes over the basics on clothing on various seasons including winter. Hope it helps.

[Wags]

check out raul's videos. he has a really nice kit of gear and is what is commonly referred to as a gear junkie...

[psyculman]

One last thing, I'm a hammock hanger and remember reading something about using a space blanket for further insulation and was wondering if anyone knows where that should be placed for the best effectiveness.

It's going to be around 38 degrees during the day, and getting down to like 20 at night so you know what to base your answer on. I'm going to Shenandoah.

Thanks!
Spider

You did not say what kind of hammock you use.

In any case, if you do not have an undercover, a spaceblanket makes a great difference in warmth, if even placed inside of the hammock, directly under you.

Doubling up TWO spaceblankets, by taping them around the edges makes them much more durable, quiet, and easy to keep in place. But, also, placing them INSIDE the hammock.......that would be hard to keep in place.

But, a space blanket is not going to be nearly enough for that temperature.

An undercover of some sort is very necessary to hold bottom insulation under your hammock. At the temperatures you mentioned, you are going to need quite a bit of insulation of some sort. There are many quick and inexpansive solutions.

Better read up on this, at Hammock Forum !!!

http://www.hammockforums.net/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=9

[Raul Perez]

check out raul's videos. he has a really nice kit of gear and is what is commonly referred to as a gear junkie...

it's true.... i have a problem

[Wags]

but really, i've seen your posts and you are on the cutting edge with your stuff. you basically have what i consider the top 1 or 2 items out there for each piece of your kit. definitely not getting enough attention...

[Raul Perez]

appreciate the love... Will have a new video up tonight going over my current winter clothing gear testing in the blizzard on Sunday and the aftermath on Monday. Nothing like testing in the worst conditions to know what needs improvement and what was a really good decision. Wish I had more time to do actual hiking but work and family has been relentless lately.

[Spider]

You did not say what kind of hammock you use.


I'm using a Hennessey. I'm leaving either Sunday or Monday so I don't really have time to buy anything new online. I'm also bringing a closed foam pad for under my sleeping bag inside the hammock. I think I'll double up on the space blankets as well and hopefully that'll keep me warm enough. Thanks for the input! :sun

[Raul Perez]

Have fun, learn from your trip, and dont be too proud to bail if things arent working out.