So what is Winter Mountaineering? This can range from a winter walk in the English Lake District to a high level mountain route such as the Cullin Ridge on the Isle of Skye, the important bit being that the ground you walk/mountaineer across is covered in snow and/or ice.
When you decide to start winter mountaineering, you will understand that the kit you have been using for ordinary walking may need to be added to or updated some-what. Crampons will be needed, as will an ice axe or a pair, plus extra warm clothing, safety equipment, ropes and more. The boots you have used over the summer months may not be upto what you have in mind, so it is the intention of this run of articles to show you what products we have on offer for the aspirational mountaineer to the fully fledged mountaineer who is looking for the next new thing to add to his/her plethera of clothing and equipment.
Lets start with clothing:
Base Layers:
These are the layers next to your skin. It is very important in winter conditions to stay dry next to your skin, damp =cold, cold = hypothermia. Hypothermia can set in after a very short time.
See the deffinition of HYPOTHERMIA here, read what the Scottish Mountain Climbing Archive have to say about understanding & avoiding mountain hypothermia here.
We think the best base layers for winter are produced with manmade fibers, these allow rapid movement of moisture across the surface of the garment, allowing super quick drying, this can cause a phenominam called the 'super fast cooling effect', as descibed by Mark Twight in his excellent book, Traveling fast, light & high, but this is really not too much of a consideration for the UK based mountaineer, but do take it into account. A good way to avoid this effect is to add a layer of pertex, like a wind shell or a Marmot DriClime, into your layering system, slowing the moisture transfer from layer to layer.
The base layers we are confident to offer in our online store are Marmot's Midweight Base Layers made using the Coconna Technology & Montane's Bionic Range, using Sportswool. Both are smell resistant & dry exceedingly fast.
Next come Mid Layers:
These can be a magnitude of fabrics & idea's, so its best to get a feel for this type of clothing, understand your own heating system in your body, meaning are you a cold or a warm person & then understand what the fabric/garments do & how these can work best for you. The original mid-layer is a fleece, but fabrics have moved on so much in the last 10/15 years that fleece as a good mid-layer is almost obsolete, bar using as a good pub top. What we now prefer to offer are garments that use a multitude of fabrics & ideas. I will offer a few here, but the list could be exhaustive under close scrutinisation of the outdoor market.
Marmot DriClime: DriClime is a light brushed fleece type fabric which is shelled by a microfibre windproof fabric, this gives you a moderately warm, windproof mid-layer. These tops can be used as a base, mid or outer layer depending on what the weather is & what you are trying to achieve. Driclime's will also help to slow down rapid moisture transfer, which in turn reduces the effects of rapid cooling by moisture being wicked from your skin too efficiently by the baselayer you are wearing. They do this by trapping moisture produced by sweating, in the microfabric windproof outer, this in turn will help the outer garment you choose in dealing with transporting the moisture from inside to out, by holding some of the persperation as descibed above, so it has a dual purpose.
Montane Krypton Jacket: The Montane Kryton is a similar idea to the Marmot DriClime, so to understand its benifits, just read the section above. What this does offer, which the Marmot doesn't, is a more specified product specification. The Marmot DriClime is a very simple style, which is in its defence, makes it a very versatile piece. What Montane have come up with, offers more features. It has adjustable cuffs, more pocket configurations, the Dri Active Suede (this is the fabric, very similar to Marmots DriClime, that makes up the lining) is reversed in the sleeve's, so it does not drag so much on the inners layers, which are your base layers. There is a hood with a wired peak, that is also helmet compatible and single-handed drawcords for adjustment of the face aperture and at the hem.
Next we have Rab's Vapourise, these come in a multitude of styles, but the best for the job, in my humble opinion, is the Vapourise Stretch top. This is the most versatile, best fit piece out of the whole range. Vapourise works on the same concept as the DriClime from Marmot, but it has differences. Notibly, it is not windproof, but is highly wind resistant using Pertex Equilibrium as the outer fabric, slightly heavier that its Marmot cousin, but very effective in moisture movement & management. It has stretch panels, made from Power Stretch inserts, that allow greater freedom of movement and is a close fit. There is a long zip at the front, which offers venting in 2 ways, 1: just unzip as you normally would, which give ventilation down to your solar-plexus or zip upto the neck & then take the second zip up as well, this allows venting of the core, giving great cooling, but keeps the neck warm at the same time. There is also a huge chest pocket, that will take a OS map and anything else you may want to chuck in there. Next come the shell garments, these consist of Jackets & Pants. The basics of what you are looking for here can again vary quite widely, from tough fabrics for the UK to lighter fabrics for Alpine. When looking for kitting yourself out for the UK, ask yourself where your main area's are where you will be going & what you are doing?
If your main activity is general mountaineering in the Lakes/Scotland/Wales, consiting of ridgelines, snow gullys & maybe the odd easier graded winter/ice climb then lighter fabrics will suffice, but remember there is a slight problem in serious weather with fabric compression. This is notably that the fabrics are thinner and therefore in high winds compress against the layers underneath more, allowing greater heat loss. This is a minor issue, but it is still a consideration when out in Winter, as weather can change quickly & the cold can come in very fast. Sunny alpine day, to hardcore snow storm is a very big differnce in perceived temperature. If your main application will be Scottish/Lakes/Welsh Winter/Ice Climbing then you need to be looking for a lot tougher garments, that will take the punishment of being abraided heavily against snow, turf, ice & rock and if your in the Cairngorms frequently you will understand. This type of activity can chew up clothing very quickly.
Jackets: The best jacket we supply & the one we think at present is the best winter climbing jacket on the market, soon to disapear for a season or so due to Lowe Alpines difficulties out in Italy, is the Aiguille Jacket. This is a bomb-proof storm shell, designed completely for winter climbing, driven by the top boy's at Lowe Alpine UK, so this is not italian design, it is designed by people in the UK, who understand UK weather patterns & what the UK mountaineer/climber needs. The hood is fantastic, closure is excellent & the cut is perfect for me (I am biases, I do have one!!). There is a double storm flap, stromflapped zipped ventilation on the back of the arms, as underarm pitzips are not the best due to your arms hanging down when you need the ventilation, alpine chest/napolean pockets, good closure around the wrists... there's not much more I can say... check it out, desire one, own one...!
From Marmot we have the
Spire Jacket. Marmot became well known thoughout the UK guide scene for producing the excellent Glemore Jacket, designed in conjuction with Glemore Lodge Mountain Guides, this was a super tough mountain shell. The Spire has taken its inspiration from this jacket to produce a slightly lighter, but very similar Gore-Tex shell garment, perfect for all types of winter mountaineering. Marmot understand the need for storm flaps, heavier grade fabrics & all the right feature, but not too many. This jacket also has a removeable snow skirt, so can double up as your ski jacket, if you so desire.
Next we have a slight difference to the last 2 items, as they are both 100% waterproof and are just shell garments, something that is very much desired by the UK market, maybe justified or more likely led by the marketing of Gore-tex. Now, don't get me wrong, waterproof garments have their place in our changable climate, but they are not necessary all the time and can cause bad moisture management, leaving your other layers working harder to keep you dry, which inevitabley can leave you feeling cold & damp. Not what you want when walking/climbing & stopping. The Montane Resolute Smock is a long awaited winter mountaineers dream. Made from Epic Alcatraz fabric, which is basically silicon encapsulated nylon woven into a tight, tough fabric. This is the definative single layer garment for winter mountaineering and cold climate exploration. The idea behind it is slightly different from the full layering system, but you still require the base layer, and depending on how you size the garment for yourself and what you are doing you may have room for a mid-layer or you may still use a belay jacket (we will come to these).
For those looking for something lighter weight, we have the Montane Meteor Jacket, this is a full mountain shell, but made using very light fabrics for the fast movers out there, or people wanting to shed weight out of their packs & lighten the load. This concludes the some of the jackets that we have on offer & are applicable for winter mountaineering, now we need to look at pants. These are the one item that gets trashed the most, but if you take care, you can make them last quite well. If you opt for waterproof, then the main area to watch out for is the knees, if you go for something that is highly water resistant, but has no membrane, you can expect a bit more perceived life, as there is no membrane to break/fracture so you won't be so concerned with wet knee's.
Pants for Mountaineering:
Lowe Alpine Flash Pants. These are Lowe Apines classic winter shell pant, great for skiing, touring, mountaineering and hardcore UK weather. They are proofed with Lowe's Triple Point Dynamic mebrane, and for those of you who remember Triple Point Ceramic (this was Lowe's own proofing, that was reputed to be far better then the Gore-tex offering at the time) then this is virtually the same thing. If your looking for a versatile pant for all-round winter activities, then you can't get much better that these.
The other offering we have at present is
Montane's Terra XT Salopette's, these are none waterproof, but highly water resistant due to the use of the Epic Alcatraz fabric the same as used in the Resolute Smock. There are vented zips down either leg for moisture/heat management & have well re-inforced knees, seat and akles. Reflectively flashed, you can be seen by your partner or the MTR (hopefully this will never be nessacary) & have a high-waist & are bibbed at the front giving more pocket options.
Next we have a must pant if you want to stay warm in the mountains. They are the Lowe Alpine Expert Jumpsuit, these are invaluble for winter mountaineering & climbing, they are made 100% from Stretch Aluetian Fabric (exclusive to LA), an excellently warm, stretchy & wickable fabric that moves moisture very efficiently. There is a deep chest zip, with 2 stretch chest pockets for energy gels, or heat pads if you think you need them. The best feature, is they have a drop-seat pant, meaning the call of nature (#2's) doesn't involve getting fully undressed. They are designed to be worn under what ever shell outer you so desire, but will work wonders coupled with the Lowe Flash Pants.
Finally belay jackets, these are jackets/smocks that are designed to be pulled over your mid-layer, if conditions dictate the lack of a shell, or your shell garment if wearing one. The idea behind it is that you climb/mountaineer/walk in your base, mid & shell garment (if so required) and then when you stop or belay (waiting & bring your partner to where you have fixed[or maybe have not as the case maybe] to the snow/ice/rock) you put your Belay Jacket over the rest of your clothing to stop heat loss or keep it to the minimum as much as possible. There are many differnent grades of belay thickness & there are several different thermal insulations that you will find. The main 2 are Primaloft (manmade fibre's) or Down (natural). Lets look at the reason for using either before we take a look at what we have on offer.
Primaloft: This is by far the best manmade insulation and the most compressablke that is on the market today, that aside, it is not to say that other insulations used by some brands/manufactures are not good, just that Primaloft is the best at present. Primaloft belay jackets are for change-able climates, such as what we have here in the UK. Primaloft will stay lofted whilst wet & offer some insulation still, maybe enough to survive, but don't beleive it will keep you warm whilst wet, like some sales people may imply at the point of sale. Primaloft also comes in 3 types at present, there is Primaloft One (the best), Primaloft Eco (using recycled fibres, which is very important for us all now) & Primaloft Sport, which is the lowest grade. Try to either buy Primaloft One or Eco if you can.
Down: Down is most certainly the best insulator for the warmth to weight ratio you can get. It is also the most packable insulation to boot. This means ultra small packsize for maximum insulation value. The biggest problem with Down, it that when it gets wet it collapses & loses all of its insulation properties, so becomes useless & dangerous used in the wrong conditions/situations. Down must be kept dry for its insulation properties to work.
So, for the walker/mountaineer/climber who knows that he is staying completely dry, i.e: he is in Alpine Conditions (these can extend to the UK, when we have a high pressure) then down is great, but if there is a chance that the weathe could warm up, or you are travelling up into the freezing level & back down again, Primaloft or manmade firbred insulation is by far better & safer. So, what do we have?
Montane Flux Jacket: This is Montane primo belay jacket for UK climbing & mountaineering. It is made using Primaloft Eco, has two Napolean zip pockets (big enough for OS Maps), a helmet compatible hood with a great closure, wrist & hem closure and use's 60g of Primaloft throughout most of the jacket (Shoulders and back, sleeves - other than cuff area, top and back of hood). With a DWR (Durable Water Repellency) on the superlight PEAQ Micro outer, it shed water spray etc pretty well. This is a great belay piece for climbers and mountaineers.
Montane Prism Jacket: This is a lighter weight version of the Montane Flux. As a fully belay piece for climbing it is a little light, but it is fine for quick stops when out on the hill, or for use on really cold day's moving through the mountains. It can be combined with the flux to make a double layer belay piece, if you have both garments in mind.
Marmot Trident Jacket : Marmot have have made a great belay piece this year, it is the Trident. They are using Thermal R Eco, which is their own insulation, but don't worry about that, as Marmot have a great history in using top-class materials to make top-class products. Marmot were the first American company to use Gore-tex & have been making some of the best sleeping bags for expedition use since the 70's. They are also no stranger to weather. The Marmot Trident is a fully waterproof belay piece, and doesn't cut any corners. It is sutied to the Uk or further afield & if your caught out in change-able conditions you could be glad of the Membrain proofing they have applied.
Part 2 will be all about Equipment you need to keep you on the white stuff & safe at the same time and Part 3 about accessories you will need to keep the all important head & extremities warm & dry.
[Remember: We can only offer advice, but the real knowledgfe comes from trying things out, understanding how fabrics & garments work & then applying this learnt information to what you have planned for your adventure/outing taking the predicted weather & conditions into account]
