Hikewear

  

The clothing I take to wear whilst hiking has become pretty standard now...hasn't really changed over the past two years.  Nothing has worn out or been damaged yet, apart from a pair of over-trousers which got ripped apart on rocks during a night hike on Kirk Fell.  Generally I use the outdoorgearlab.com website as a buying guide for my purchases.

Underpants

First off let's talk underpants.  I started out wearing my usual Patagonia Capilene Briefs on the Pennine Way.  I'd never had any problems before...but this time I had pretty bad chafing of the inner thighs after a few days walking.  The Y-front style of the briefs was ditched in favour of some ordinary cotton boxers I had as a spare.  These covered more of the inner thigh, reducing chafe.  For future adventures I will be switching out the briefs for Patagonia Capilene Daily Boxers.

Trousers, T-shirts, and Lightweight Fleece.

Trousers

For trousers I love the comfort of my Prana Zion Stretch Pants.  With trousers I always buy a size up in waist, as I like to feel free in any position without tightness/restriction.  The Zions' slimline in-built belt takes up the slack and does an okish job of not slipping....but does occasionally have to be re-tightened.  Leg wise I also get a size up to use trouser twists more effectively when not wearing gaiters.  Ticks are nasty!

The trousers are quick to dry off after getting wet and I love the side zip on the cargo pocket that allows me to access it easily when sitting down. 

The comfort of these trousers in all positions is just superb...it's easy to see why rock climbers love them so much.

T-Shirt

My choice here is the New Balance Ice Short Sleeve.  I have two and normally take them both in case one gets wet.  I find them comfortable and supremely breathable, as well as being very light.  Additional benefits are sun protection and anti-microbial treatment to control odour.

Lightweight Fleece

The Patagonia R1 Hoody.  I knew this piece was a classic, but hadn't been able to fully appreciate it until the Pennine Way made it clear.  Of all the gear I took....this was the winner.

More specifically its balance of warmth and breathability, which made its comfort range impressively large.  I only had to take it off once during the whole walk...setting out from Malham when temperatures were briefly milder. 

The half zip was great for venting and I never seemed to overheat on climbs, whilst the hood was awesome for finer temperature regulation...a little cold - put the hood up....a little warm - put the hood down.

During my ascent of Great Shunner Fell in the coldest wind chill I'd ever experienced...I kept thinking ,"...gonna have to put my insulated jacket on soon", but I never had to.  The R1 kept me warm enough combined with the heat generated from climbing. 

This was all of course with a windshirt or shell on top of it.  I highly recommend!

Windshirt and Insulated Jacket.

Windshirt

There are now better windshirts out there than my Arc'teryx Squamish Hoody for wind resistance.  For breathability though, it excels.  If it ain't raining then most of the time I'll be wearing this.  Its comfortable and weighs nothing.

I wore it over my Patagonia R1 going up Great Shunner Fell as mentioned above, and found its wind resistance properties to be sufficient.

Insulated Jacket

Here I use a synthetic product rather than down as it retains some thermal properties when wet.  It's damn rare that I have to actually wear it when hiking....generally it gets more use on food and summit breaks....and I'll wear it whilst setting up/taking down camp too.  Sometimes though...using Great Shunner Fell as an example yet again...it was needed.  Once I got to the top I threw it on and it stayed on for most of the way down, as I wasn't producing the body heat I was when ascending.

I use the Rab Xenon X, which has had great reviews for many years now.  Somehow I managed to get an ember hole through the shoulder of it.....tut tut.  I like the look and feel of it, and use it as my normal out and about coat.

Waterproof Shell and Over-trousers.

Waterproof Shell

Initially I bought an Arc'teryx Alpha FL shell but became interested in the new Columbia jackets that didn't need a DWR coating to repel water.  The lure of not having to worry about reproofing or the DWR failing mid adventure was just too great a temptation to resist, so I got the Diamond version of their OutDry Extreme shells and passed on the Alpha FL to my son-in-law.

On first inspection the material doesn't look that breathable but over the couple of years I've had it, I've had no problems with overheating clambering up mountains.  The pit zips are sizeable and most of the time I have them open.  The wrists have good Velcro fasteners and the shoulder area is reinforced against wear from pack straps.

The hood adjustment to cinch the hood tighter takes a bit of finesse and I find I am unable to do it with a gloved hand.  Also I feel the cut around the lower face could be higher to give more protection...the zipper only comes up to the chin.  The raised bling motifs on the jacket I find garish too.

Overall though it does the job and I'm happy with it.  This material is waterproof in itself and will never wet out.

Waterproof Over-trousers

The Berghaus Paclite over-trousers are very easy to get on and off thanks to their 3/4 leg zippers.  Having dual zippers on each leg means you can also vent them.

The Gore-Tex Paclite material is really lightweight and the trousers compact down well.  I did ruin a pair falling heavily on my ass on a scree slope, but that was to be expected.  I just bought another pair as they do a good job.

Ski goggles, gloves and buff.

Ski Goggles

I didn't realise just how important it is to carry a pair of these until my Knoydart adventure.  Faced with horizontal rain and strong winds blowing straight into my face I had to retreat to a bothy.  Ever since I always pack them no matter what season.

My pair of Bolle Y6 OTG goggles are nothing special, but they do the job.  Essential kit.

Buff

Standard buff by Buff.  Made of Merino wool this protects my lower face from freezing up in bad wind-chill, and also takes the sting out of horizontal rain/hail/sleet. 

Liner Gloves

These Rab PrimaLoft gloves are a lightweight Merino wool blend with conductive fingertips for use with touchscreens, which works very well.  I wear them when my hands get a bit chilly but only in dry conditions...as I like to keep these dry for camp use.  If need be I can wear them as liners under my normal gloves but I've never had to so far.

I have found these to be durable, after having bought similar from other brands that didn't last long.

Gloves

Gloves, gloves, gloves.  One quickly learns how essential they are and how much up shit creek one could be without them.  I've only been taking one pair on adventures so far, but I should be taking two to be honest in case a glove gets blown away.

I use SealSkinz Scafell XP Gloves and I find the warmth to dexterity balance to be superb...being able to set up/take down camp with them on is great.  The only thing I am unable to do is adjust my shell hood. 

The thumb and index fingers are supposed to allow use of touchscreen devices, but I find I have to take the glove off every time I want to use my phone.   In bad conditions my hand gets wet then goes back into the glove making it slightly damp.  Do this enough times and I end up with a wet glove inside and out.  The gloves are waterproof though as my other hand that holds the phone always remains dry.

I am happy with them overall...but would love a pair with more reliable touchscreen responsiveness.




So there we have it....next blog will be about my campwear.