While clothing and traction aids that can be used across a fairly wide range, when gearing up for winter day hiking in the northeastern United States including the White Mountains, the Adirondacks, the Catskills, Vermont, and Maine, you want footwear.
You should dress for a wide range of activity levels, such as when you are exerting yourself and generating a lot of body heat or when you are at rest and need to bundle up.
The recommended approach for winter dressingis to add clothing layers when you get cold and take off layers when you start to sweat. You’ll probably be wearing gloves, hat, long sleeve jersey, long underwear, boxers jocks, hard shell pants, a fleece pullover, a hard shell jacket, warm socks, insulated boots, and high gaiters, when starting a hike in winter. You’ll probably take off your hard shell and unzip your pants to vent body warmth, right after about 15 minutes. Of course sweating may be avoided in winter because wet or damp clothing will chill you when you stop moving. That’s called layering and it occurs when someone in your group shouts out layer break! Take off layers if you start to sweat or slow down your pace to generate less body heat.
The following day winter day hiking clothing and gear will keep you safe and comfortable in belowtreeline conditions.
Treeline occurs generally occurs at about 4300 4600″ feet of elevation in the Northeastern United States. Below treeline hikes are usually protected by forest and are warmer and less windy than above treeline hikes, which are on p of exposed mountains or ridgelines. Have you heard about something like that before? Avalanche ols are rarely needed in the Northeast unless you are hiking in high risk mountain areas. Just think for a moment. You’ll want you should carry extra wind protection for your face and beefier traction aids, like full crampons, if you’re headed above treeline on a day hike.
I’ve also provided some advice below about what to look whenpurchasing gear for winter use steer you in the right direction about the capabilities you want in winter hiking gear, while gear lists are useful. Some hiking leaders may require that you use an insulated mountaineering boot for above treeline or long duration day hikes, single layer insulated boots with 400 equivalent grams of Thinsulate insulation or the equivalent are sufficient for below treeline hiking. Although, merrell Moab Polar Boots, Keen Summit County III Boots, and Salomon Snowtrip Boots. Good insulated winter hiking bots include. It can be useful to size winter boots a half to a full size larger than normal to accommodatea thicker sock or sock linerwithout compromising blood circulation. Avoid particular Pack Boots, which are less comfortable for vigorous hiking. Ok, and now one of the most important parts. Winter hiking boots will be rated for 20 below zero Fahrenheit or colder.
Winter Day Hiking Gear List
This is an area of personal preference and the sock systems people use vary widely, most hikers wear a heavier wool sock in winter than during other times of year.
They also provide extra insulation below your knee. Actually, high gaiters help prevent snow from entering your boots or making your socks wet. REI Lightweight Merino Hiking Socks or REI Merino Wool Expedition Socks. Now please pay attention. Whatever combination you use, make sure that there is plenty of space in your boots to wiggle you es around as this increases blood circulation and foot warmth. Needless to say, rEI makes excellent wool blend socks. Anyway, avoid gaiters that close with zippers because they break quite quickly. Sock liners are optional butcan be beneficial if you are blister prone. Look for gaiters that seal around your leg using velcro instead. However, the most popularhigh gaiters worn by hikers are Outdoor Research Crocodile Gaiters.
The Mountain Hardware Micro Dome Beanie is a good lightweight fleece hat and the windproof Mountain Hardware Dome Perignon Beanie is a very warm hat. Like a Polar Buff, many hikers also like to bring a neck gaiter, which can be used as a scarf or another hat.
Winter Hiking Clothing and Gear Buying Guide
One gloves pair should’ve been modular with an outer waterproof shell layer and an inner insulating liner.
Good modular gloves include. Eventually, one compromise approach is to use an insulating glove inside a waterproof shell mitt in order to provide dexterity and warmth. For instance, outdoor Research Meteor Mittsor Outdoor Research Arete Gloves. Besides, gloves provide more dexterity, mitts provide more warmth that gloves. You can also bring multiple liner gloves and switch them out when they get damp and cold.
Gloves secondpair is usually lighter weight and used while hiking when body movement will heat up your hands and keep them warmer. Softshell gloves are better than medium weight fleece gloves because snow sticks to them less and they are highlybreathable. Leather gloves absorb water and freeze and are not recommended. Fact, let’s say. Just think for a moment. Marmot Glide Softshell Glovesor Marmot Connect Gloves.
It’s best to pull a big puffy insulated jacket out of your backpack and wear it over your other clothes to stay warm, when you’re taking a break during a winter hike and have stopped moving. Lighter weight insulated jackets are insufficient for this purpose and are more suitable as a mid layer. If someone in your group has an accident and you should stay with them until help arrives, this coat could be sufficiently warm that you could stand around in it for a few hours. Loads of information can be found easily by going on the internet hypothermia is accelerated by dehydration and can have dire consequences. I’m sure it sounds familiar.|Doesn’t it sound familiar?|Sounds familiar?|does it not? this gear is usually distributed between group members, otherwise you’ll probably need a bigger backpack to carry it all, when hiking in a group.
For above treeline hiking, your biggest priorities are extra wind protection for your face and extra traction to prevent uncontrolled slides on ice and snow.
You’ll need to combine that with ski goggles to protect your eyes from blowing snow and to prevent them from freezing shut. Certainly, its best to find out how to use these ols from a qualified instructor, this is a fairly advanced stage of winter day hiking, either a mountaineering guide, or in among the winter hiking schools run by outdoor clubs in the northeast. The easiest way to protect your face is to use a balaclava with a fully integrated facemask like the Serius Comboclava. Generally, for extra traction, you’ll want you should buy othier crampons and ice axe.
For above treeline hiking, your biggest priorities are extra wind protection for your face and extra traction to prevent uncontrolled slides on ice and snow.
You’ll need to combine that with ski goggles to protect your eyes from blowing snow and to prevent them from freezing shut.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-KkSYhNAro
Certainly, its best to understand how to use these ols from a qualified instructor, this is a fairly advanced stage of winter day hiking, either a mountaineering guide, or in among the winter hiking schools run by outdoor clubs in the northeast. The easiest way to protect your face is to use a balaclava with a fully integrated facemask like the Serius Comboclava. Generally, for extra traction, you’ll want you have to buy othier crampons and ice axe. Winter Day Hiking Gear List. Winter Hiking Clothing and Gear Buying Guide. Puffy Insulated Hooded Jacket. Extra Gear for Above Treeline Hikes.