My Winter Backpacking and Bushcraft Gear

Over the past two weeks I have been trying to give you a list of my backpacking and bushcraft gear. I have done the posts in the order that I have because each subsequent post builds on the prior ones. In order to understand my winter gear, you will need to look at both my clothing and my three season gear.

My Three Season Backpacking and Bushcraft Gear

My Three Season Backpacking and Bushcraft Clothing

My Winter Backpacking and Bushcraft Clothing

As with my clothing system, my winter gear is in large part composed of my three season gear with some alterations and addition. If you remember, the base weight of my three season gear is 14 lb (6.4 kg). However, before I get into the details, let me give you a bit of background on my gear selection process and philosophy regarding winter backpacking.

When I wrote about my winter clothing, I mentioned that for many people winter seems to be a time of restricted movement and limited travel. One of the reason I gave for why I believe that to be the case is the clothing systems currently employed. Another obvious reason however is gear selection. People seem to resign themselves to the fact that being out in the woods in winter requires more gear, and just let themselves go. Winter backpacking or bushcraft seems to be a code word for turning a man into a pack animal. I don’t believe that to be necessary, and a lot of what I have tried to do with my winter gear has been focused on avoiding this problem.

For me reduction in weight is not simply important for the obvious reasons, i.e. you can move more easily and travel deeper into the woods, but there is also a secondary, related reason. When the weight of a set of gear increases beyond a certain point, people naturally look for ways to get around it. One of the ways is to use devices that can supplement mobility. The most obvious one is a sled or pulk that you can pull behind you. This allows you to increase the amount of gear you can comfortably transport. My focus on reduction in weight has allowed me to avoid such devices, because while useful, I find them very restrictive to mobility in the woods. While a sled makes the load easier to move, it significantly restricts where one can go. In a more mountainous terrain, mobility with a sled becomes very limited despite the ease of movement.

For similar reasons, I have stayed away from skis. While they are a great tool in certain types of terrain, and a very skilled skier can use them effectively in many ways, ultimately, they limit where one can go. Having to backpack with skis strapped to a pack is something I never want to repeat.

So, to summarize my approach, just as with my clothing, my gear is centered on mobility. I want to be able to go wherever I want in the woods, whenever I want, and for as long as a chose. My gear is centered around allowing me to do that. Now, on to specifics:

Temperature from 32F (0C) to 0F (-18C)

As with my winter clothing, my winter gear is divided into two groups. The first set of gear is designed for temperatures from 32F (0C) to 0F (-18C).

The gear that I use for this temperature range is nearly identical to that used for my three season backpacking with one change, and one permanent addition. To that I add some other items depending on the terrain I am likely to encounter. All of the gear is carried in the same pack, the REI Flash 62 that I use for my three seasons backpacking.

To begin with, please take a look at my three season gear here if you have not already done so. The one change that I make is to replace my MSS warm weather Patrol 32F (0C) sleeping bag with the Western Mountaineering Antelope MF sleeping bag. It is rated to 0F (-18C) and weighs 2 lb 7 oz. It is filled with premium 850 goose down and has a micro fiber shell. The shell is water resistant and light, but not as tough as those made out of Gore Tex. As you can see, the Western Mountaineering Antelope MF weighs only 1.7 oz more than my synthetic warm weather bag, and it interestingly compresses down to the same size. That is the reason why I can still use my three season pack for most of my winter backpacking.

The one permanent addition I make to my three season gear to convert it to winter backpacking in addition to the substitution of the sleeping bag is to add the Patagonia DAS Parka. I store it in the front floating pocket where it gives me easy access. If you have not read my post on winter clothing, you can do so here. It would make a lot more sense. The DAS Parka weighs 1 lb 13 oz.

I also usually bring a piece of closed cell foam pad to sit on. It weighs  2 oz.

And that’s pretty much it when it comes to converting my three season gear to winter use for temperatures down to 0F (-18C). I replace the sleeping bag with a warmer one, and I add a jacket. Everything else stays the same. The total base weight of my gear with this set up increases to 16 lb 0.7 oz (7.2 kg). That is the set up I carried on my last trip to Echo Lake. You can read about it here. It will be sufficient for most winter outings in temperatures down to 0F (-18C).

 

Now, under certain conditions, I may need to add some extra items to facilitate mobility. I may bring one, all, or none of these items depending on the terrain I am about to encounter.

The first item is my snowshoes. As I mentioned earlier, I do not like skis because I find they limit where I can go. I have had much greater luck with snowshoes, and my love for them has increased exponentially since I got a good pair. The snowshoes I use are the 25 inch MSR Lightning Ascent. MSR’s Ascent series are designed for backwoods travel. They have multiple straps in case some of them get damaged, and they have fairly aggressive crampons built into the frame which allow for travel over steep terrain. They also lock the shoe in very well so there is no lateral movement. Compared to regular strap bindings, this greatly reduces snowshoe overlap. The pair of snowshoes weighs 3 lb 15 oz. They are heavy, but worth their weight in gold when you hit deep snow.

The next item is my crampons. I have two different sets that I use depending on the conditions. I don’t always need or carry crampons, but when heading to elevation, or expecting icy terrain, they are a must. A few years back I dislocated my shoulder in the woods because I didn’t have my crampons. I try not to make the same mistake again.

If I am expecting just light crampon use, I bring the Hillsound Trail Crampon Pro. These are what I would call approach crampons. They have relatively mild spikes, flexible frames, and universal attachments that can fit them onto just about any regular backpacking boot. They will not work well with very soft boots like PAK boots. The pair weighs 1 lb 7.9 oz. There are lighter options like microspikes, but I like the more aggressive crampons, and the anti-balling plates, which prevent snow accumulation on the bottom of the crampons.

 

When serious crampon work is needed, I pull out my rigid boots, and my full crampons. I use the Black Diamond Sabertooth Pro crampons. They are fully automatic and require that the boots be designed to work with such crampons. They are a general mountaineering crampon with horizontal front spikes, instead of vertical ones for ice climbing, although they perform very well in that role as well. I have been very happy with them. The pair weigh 2 lb 1 oz. Either set of crampons requires a crampon bag (at least I require it), which I made myself. It weight 6 oz.

And of course, when I use crampons I need my ice axe. I currently use a 60 cm Black Diamond Raven Pro as my general mountaineering axe. I have been making some modifications to it this winter, but I’ll leave that for another post. The ice axe weight 15 oz.

Now, this is definitely everything. The only other items are clothing that may come in and out of the pack depending on conditions. You can see my posts on clothing for the details. In the weight calculations here, I am including the weight of the DAS Parka in the pack weight because it stays there for most of the time and certainly when I am moving. Assuming that I am carrying all of the additional gear; snowshoes, the heavier Black Diamond set of crampons, and the ice axe, the total weight of my pack for the winter gear for temperatures above 0F (-18C) is 23 lb 5.7 oz (10.5 kg). This is the gear I carried on one of my January trips this year. You can read about it here.

Temperature below 0F (-18C)

When the temperatures drop below 0F (-18C), then some larger changes are required.

Specifically, three changes occur. The first is that I once again switch to a warmer sleeping bag. I replace the Western Mountaineering Antelope MF 0F bag with the Western Mountaineering Puma MF. Just like the Antelope, the Puma has 850 premium goose down fill and a microfiber shell, however it is rated to –25F (-32C). It weighs 3 lb 7 oz and is quite a bit larger when compressed than the Antelope. I am sometimes asked why I don’t just get an extremely warm sleeping bag, something rated to –40F (-40C). The answer is that the warmer the bag is the exponentially larger it has to be. That small increase in insulation leads to a large increase in weight and volume. Using your shelter, sleeping bag and clothing together can get you into those temperatures without the added weight and volume (unless you are on Antarctica).

The second change is that I replace the Patagonia DAS Parka with the Eddie Bauer First Ascent Peak XV jacket. The jacket is much warmer, and correspondingly heavier and bulkier. It weighs 2 lb 6 oz. For more information see my post on winter clothing.

Because of these two changes, my gear now becomes too bulky to fit into my REI Flash 62 pack that you saw earlier. With the larger bulk I need to switch to a larger pack, the Gregory Palisade 80L. It is a significantly heavier pack at 6 lb 3 oz for the medium size and has a 80L volume. The added weight translates directly into comfort as it does with most Gregory packs. Even with the heavier loads, I have always been comfortable wearing it.

The only other change I may make depending on exactly how cold the weather is, is to replace the Kovea Spider stove with the MSR Whisperlite International. Together with a repair kit and a 22 oz bottle, the MSR Whisperlite weight 1 lb 7 oz. It is quite a bit heavier, but worth the weight when you have to melt a lot of snow.

So, for this second set of gear designed for very cold weather, the total weight, assuming again, snowshoes, crampons, ice axe, jacket and the MSR Whisperlite stove replacement, is 28 lb 13.4 oz (13 kg). Now, that is quite a bit of weight. To that you have to add fuel, food and water. Even so, with two litters of water and three days of food, the weight should still be about 37 lb. It is heavy, but still quite portable over long distances and varied terrain. This is the gear I carried on my summit attempt of Mt. Washington. You can read more about it here.

Of course, this last weight represent the extreme weight of my gear, with me bringing tools for every terrain I might encounter at very low temperatures. For the average person doing winter backpacking, most of that gear will not be needed. If you just look at my winter gear without crampons, snowshoes, etc, for temperatures above 0F (-18C), then the base weight would be 16 lb, 0.7 oz (7.2 kg).

I hope this has been of some use. The above represents what i would call my bushcraft and backpacking gear, which allows me to move through and stay in the woods. If I am out for more specific pursuits like fishing, hunting, or ice climbing, more items will be needed.

Edit: I forgot to mention in the post that for winter backpacking, I remove the Sawyer Squeeze filer from my gear. Filters freeze in winter and can get damaged easily. During winter I melt and boil my water from snow, or use purification tablets if I am in an area devoid of snow. Therefore, you can remove 5.0 oz from all of the weights I listed above. I also replace my collapsible Platypus bottle with a collapsible Nalgene bottle. It is the same type of folding bottle except that it has a wide mouth opening like regular Nalgene bottles. The wide mouth prevents it from freezing over as quickly as a regular Playpus bottle.

I also add a second Nalgene folding bottle as a pee bottle. Getting out of a sleeping bag at night in cold weather is not a good idea. You lose huge amounts of heat and have to spend a lot of energy afterwards to reheat the sleeping bag. So I guess, you can add the 5.0 oz back to the above weights. :)

The Incomplete Woodsman - Skills We Lose Because of Our Close Mindedness

Before I begin this latest rant, I want to be clear that here I am going to focus on those of us who select skill sets and equipment that we think will make us better woodsmen. I will not be talking about historical researchers and recreationists. That is an academic and worthwhile pursuit based in research, nor would I be speaking about gear and skill selection that is honestly based on reasons other than practicality or direct furtherance of woodsmanship. This is also not meant to be a direct response to anyone else’s post either. As luck would have it, a few fellow bloggers have recently posted on similar subjects. I started writing this one a week or so ago, so its intent was not to address any of their posts directly.

Long time ago, when I first started going into the woods here in the US, I noticed, just as have many others that a large portion of backpackers lack some basic wilderness skills. It was shocking to me that people would go into the woods but know almost nothing about making fire, selecting a shelter site, tree identification, etc. So, I quickly steered towards what has come to be known as the bushcraft community, a group of people who were more interested in preserving the skills used by outdoorsman throughout history.

As time passed however, I started noticing a peculiar trend with some members of that community. The problem as I see it is one of selective historical memory of outdoor/woodsman skills. It is as if though people pick a particular time period in history and proceed to learn all of the skills utilized through the time. That is all well and good, but for some reason they would then refuse to learn any skills that were developed by woodsmen after their chosen historical period, or use any technology that post dates it, with the exception of technology that mimicked the look of the old ways (ferro rods, parachord, etc).

It is as if though for some people history is divided into two periods: the time when there was valuable knowledge of wilderness skills, and the time where there was none. Different people would draw the line at different places, but for most it seems to be the late 19th/early 20th century, focused around Nessmuk and Kephart. As a result, people would work very hard to preserve the skills known and used during that time period (an admirable pursuit), but then strangely they would refuse to accept or even acknowledge the possibility that there was any further development in woodsmanship after that period, and no knowledge or development that occurred after that period is worth learning or using.

I am very perplexed by what I see as this artificial dichotomy. As far as I can tell, development of woodsmanship, wilderness skills, and bushcraft occur on a continuum. Each generation of woodsmen (recreational or professional) that goes into the woods learns from those before them and then elaborates on those skills and improves on them based on what is learnt over the years. We seem to forget that while Nessmuk and Kephart were passing down traditional knowledge, at the same time they were innovators both when it came to skills and equipment, and they quite often departed from the “old timers” in their recommendations.

In my opinion it is foolish and disrespectful to many woodsman to assume that everything worth knowing about being in the woods ended in 1920. Not only is it strange from a theoretical standpoint, but in my opinion it leads to poor woodsmanship and is as regrettable as the lack of knowledge of those backpackers who can not start a fire or use a compass. Each group has neglected valuable knowledge about living in the woods; but just done it by ignoring the knowledge of different time periods.

It is certainly understandable how one can reach the conclusion that after a certain point in history knowledge of woodsmanship was lost. If we look at current backpackers very superficially, we may be justified in saying that they know very little about life in the woods, and that as a result we should look at woodsmen from the past for guidance. If we however look more closely, we will see that this couldn’t be further from the truth. It is true that many backpackers lack basic knowledge of the woods, but that has always been true of the recreational outdoorsman. In fact, both Nessmuk and Kephart write about those people during their time, and the same is true if we look even further back. Wilderness guides and experts were always in need to lead other less knowledgeable people through the wilderness, and dime store novels about their exploits were always fast sellers.

The same is true today. Yes, the average person who car camps on weekends may lack knowledge of the woods, but there are many others, and have been continuously through our history, who perform great exploits in the wilderness. In 2010 Andrew Skurka completed a six month, 4679 mile circumnavigation of Alaska on foot and with pack raft, navigating with a map and compass. In 1986 Reinhold Messner became the first person to climb all 14 26,247 ft (8,000 m) peaks without supplemental oxygen. In 1992 Sir Ranulph Fiennes and Dr. Mike Stroud became the first people to cross Antarctica unsupported. In 1995 Richard Weber and Mikhail Malakhov became the first to reach the north pole and return under human power unsupported. In 2010 Ed Stafford became the first person to travel the length of the Amazon. The journey took him two years. And these are only few of the many examples out there.

Are we to look at all of those woodsmen and skilled outdoorsmen and tell them that their knowledge and skills are not worth learning? That the height of woodsmanship was achieved in the 1920s, so the developments they contributed and the skills they pioneered should be ignored and marginalized? Is the gear they used and developed for their journeys somehow less “outdoorsy” than that developed by someone in the 1900s?

Some proponents of woodcraft or bushcraft appear to see everything as a struggle between woodsmanship and modern backpacking. For them somehow they are mutually exclusive, and the later is to be looked down upon. Perhaps this mentality is understandable. It is in large part reactionary to the regulations of the 1970s where in order to curb the tide of irresponsible outdoorsmen, there was a large push to use modern equipment rather than natural resources. Now the pendulum seems to have swung in the opposite direction, degrading anything that was a product of the second part of the 20th century and forward. While understandable, I believe that mentality to be overly simplistic and driven by emotion rather than practicality. Unfortunately the result is loss of valuable wilderness skills and abilities.

Woodcraft, woodsmanship, bushcraft, or whatever else we want to call it progresses through time. A smart woodsman learns from the experience and knowledge of those who preceded him, and then continues to innovate and develop. He takes technology that works and adopts it so that his ability to travel through the woods can be furthered and achieving his goals can be made possible. Ignoring the past, whether it be the distant past or the more recent past is a foolhardy approach that I find disrespectful to all those woodmen that have risked their lives, and in many cases have lost them in furtherance of those skills, knowledge, technology and equipment.

The luxury of rejecting more modern and practical gear and techniques is only something we possess because we do not actually rely on any of the woodcraft that we so loudly preach. It is only when your trip is restricted to the backyard that we can talk in grandiose terms about the spiritual value of woodcraft and the evils of modern technology. We then take this emotional drive, combine it with a dose of nostalgia, and we force upon the outdoor community this artificial dichotomy of woodcraft vs. modern camping; a dichotomy that is neither true nor necessary. No actual woodsman throughout history has had the luxury to do so because their lives have been too focused on practical pursuits.

Of course any of us who are more familiar with the woods can go out there in moderate temperature, spend half the day collecting firewood and then sit by the fire wrapped in a wool blanket. Does that make for a better woodsman? In my opinion it does not. In one stroke of the brush, this person has now limited his abilities as a woodsman. Instead of being able to travel further, climb higher, hunt more game, gather more resources, and explore a greater part of the forest, he has locked himself down because of poor gear selection in a way that completely ignores the spirit of those woodsmen from centuries past who went into the woods with practical pursuits in mind, to explore, to hunt, to pioneer. Furthermore, this person is now limited in the type of weather in which he can go out. A blanket and fire is fine in mild temperatures, but when the mercury drops, the result is that this person ends up staying home because as our predecessors such as Kephart and E.H. Kreps noted, wool blankets are inadequate for winter travel. A better woodsman? Why is the ideal being able to go into the woods with a blanket roll, a tomahawk and a knife? How does limiting what we can do, where we can go, what we can hunt, how far we can travel, and even the time of year in which we can go out make us better woodsmen? In my opinion it does not, and the approach would make people like Nessmuk, Kephart, and the woodsmen that preceded them look at us like we have lost our minds. Any goal we wish to pursue, whether it be minimalist gear, weigh reduction, long distance travel, hunting, fishing, etc, can be furthered by and accomplished within a more inclusive view of skills and gear that is not limited by any specific time period or trend.

Because of what I perceive as our close mindedness, we continue to lose valuable woodsmanship skills. A backpacker who ignores the techniques used by woodsmen in the first half of the 20th century is just as responsible for the destruction of woodcraft knowledge as the “woodsman” who ignores the techniques used by woodsmen in the second half of the 20th century. Once we abandon these arbitrary notions about what knowledge is useful and what knowledge is not, we can move forward towards more well rounded knowledge of woodsmenship, and beyond this philosophical “us vs. them” and “traditional vs. modern” nonsense. Certainly, one is free to enjoy the outdoors as they see fit, and going out with period equipment offers many educational and personal challenge opportunities. Many have gone into the woods with period equipment for educational reasons. People have climbed Everest in early 20th century gear, and have crossed Greenland with 19th century gear. All worthwhile pursuits. Or perhaps, if any of us feels like they are such accomplished woodsmen that living in the woods with modern backpacking gear is too easy, they may want to try it with retro gear for the added personal challenge. However if our goal is to be a well rounded and proficient woodsman, then I believe a more open minded approach is required. I believe that we need to look at the totality of skills and equipment available to us, without judgment or sentimentality and decide what works best and what will allow us to be most proficient in the environment we will encounter. I believe this approach much more closely resembles that taken by the woodsmen that preceded us.

My Winter Backpacking and Bushcraft Clothing

You recently saw my three season clothing. It is the main component of my winter clothing system as well, so if you have not read it, please have a look here.

Before I get into details about the actual clothing, I want to go over some issues that I see with the more traditional approach to winter clothing. In large part, my separation from that approach and what I see as a very limited and somewhat outdated method to winter clothing selection is what has lead to the system that I currently use. For more background on the theory, you can see my post here.

I have read it many times, and it is said fairly often that winter is a time of limited mobility because exerting yourself will cause you to sweat, which admittedly is a large problem when the temperatures are low. This seems to be the predominant view on winter clothing and activity in the bushcraft community. As a result most trips involve pulling a sled or carrying a massive pack over a very short distance, then setting up camp. As I mentioned, I think that is the result of an outdated approach to winter clothing.

There are two dominant approaches within the current methodology, at least in the bushcraft community, that seem to control and inform winter clothing selection. The first is to wear the usual layers (base, insulation and shell) with a large, heavy outer coat like the army surplus parkas. The second is to have the same base layer, then a large amount of insulation, possibly in numerous layers, covered by an oversized shell jacket like an anorak. Both approaches focus on wearing enough clothing to be warm in winter when you are sitting in camp. The unavoidable result is that once a person tries moving, he immediately overheats. At that point, with the first approach, the large heavy jacket is impossible to remove because its size prevent it from being stored in a pack, while with the second approach, having to remove layers from under the anorak and then put them back on when the movement stops is horribly inefficient and leads to much heat loss. As a result of that inefficiency, movement in winter ends up being very limited.

In an attempt to cope with these issues, people tend to mistakenly focus on two components as a panacea for the problems with the system. The first is breathability, and the second is the type of material of which the clothing is made.

It is often thought that if a material is breathable, then you will not overheat. That couldn’t be further from the truth. If your clothing traps too much heat, then you will overheat, you will sweat, and you will get wet. A breathable material does not magically dry you out. Put on a fleece or wool jacket in summer and see how dry you stay. For that matter, put on a simple breathable t-shirt and see how dry you stay after you do some jogging. A breathable material will allow for the movement of normal moisture regularly produced by the body, but if you are overheated, it will do very little for you. To add to the problem, in cold temperatures, breathability becomes less of a factor because the moisture from your body tends to freeze within the material before it has a chance of leaving the clothing. As a result, even breathable clothing will become saturated with moisture and ice.

Similarly, many think that a specific magical material will offer a solution to the problems. Every outdoor community has it’s own magical material, whether it be wool, fleece, Primaloft, Gore Tex, Ventile, etc. Each claims to keep you warm yet cool; be fully breathable yet fully waterproof. Ultimately none of them offer a solution. If improperly used within the system, or if the clothing system is improperly designed to begin with, then no material will fix the problems.

Instead, my solution has been to focus on selecting clothing with specific dedicated purposes and making sure it is properly designed for the task. The functionality comes from properly applying those components, not from the materials themselves. I prioritize the design of the clothing and its ability to be used efficiently.

My approach to winter clothing is centered on mobility rather than insulation for camp use. My system has two components. The first is the action suit. You can see all of its components in my three season gear. Depending on the temperature it may utilize both pieces of upper body insulation and the shell layer, but its ultimate goal is to provide just sufficient insulation and protection for when I am active. Often times that is very little. This light insulation or action suit allows me to move rapidly and exert myself without overheating.

The second component of my system is designed to deal with the times when I am in fact stationary. Once movement stops, the heat produced by the body drops significantly. When stationary, much, much more insulation is needed to keep you warm than when moving. Because my system is centered around mobility, this insulation layer for stationary activity has to be stored for most of the time. This means it has to be light and compressible so that it fits in my pack. It also has to be designed so that it can be put on quickly when I stop so I don’t lose the heat my body has already generated, and it has to pack away quickly and easily when I am ready to keep moving.

So, now that theory has been covered, on to the details. Remember that I am starting with the components of my three season clothing as my insulation when mobile; it is my action suit. It is enough to keep me from freezing when moving. When I stop however, I add the secondary, heavy insulation which has so far been stored in my pack.

First, for my lower body I don’t use that much additional insulation. I find that if my core is protected and warm, my legs deal with the cold just fine. The only addition is a pair of mid weight Capeline thermal long johns that go under my pants. Also, in winter, since there is usually snow, I wear my shell pants, which provide some extra warmth. Some people like to carry a pair of zip on insulated over pants, and I thought about getting some, but I have not needed them so far.

The main insulation component of the winter system is a large jacket that gets put on over all of my other clothing. It is often called a belay jacket by climbers. It is just a very warm, lightweight, easily compressible jacket. Depending on the temperature, I use one of two jackets.

For temperatures between 32F (0C) and 0F (-18C) I use the Patagonia Dead Air Space (DAS) Parka.

It is a synthetic, Primaloft One fill jacket with 170 grams of insulation. It has a thin water repellant shell, and weighs 1 lb 13 oz for the medium size. At least, this was the 2012 model that I have. For 2013 it has gone through some redesigns including a change of insulation to 60 grams of Primaloft One and 120 grams of Primaloft Synergy. I’m not sure what the overall effect will be.

For temperatures below 0F (-18C) down to as far as I have courage to go – about –30F (-35C), I use the heavier, Eddie Bauer First Ascent Peak XV jacket.

The Peak XV is a down jacket. It uses 850 fill premium goose down, and has a very tough (I think unnecessarily so) cordura shell. The jacket weighs 2 lb 6 oz. I use the large one so that I can easily layer it over whatever I am wearing. The Peak XV is clearly heavier than the Patagonia DAS Parka, and it is not nearly as compressible. It fact, it compresses to the size of my three season synthetic sleeping bag. However, it is extremely warm and well designed.

Aside from the jackets, there are a few other items to talk about. One is the gloves. Other than the liner gloves mentioned in my three season clothing list, I carry the actual OR Arete gloves. Together with the liners, I find them warm enough for virtually any activity that requires my hands to be out of my pockets. The gloves have a Gore Tex shell, which keeps them dry – something I find very important.

The next item is gaiters. I have started using them all the time in winter as they keep the snow out of my boots and keep the bottoms of my pants dry. I use a pair of knee high (just under the knee) REI Havenpass eVent gaiters. I know that the OR Crocodile gaiters are very popular, but I didn’t like them because I find the attachment they use to connect them to the boot laces is pretty much useless. It is much better on the REI gaiters. The pair weighs 7.2 oz.

As far as boots, I use several different ones. For more detailed information, have a look here. For warmer winter weather, down to 0F (-18C) I use the same Solomon Quest 4D boots that I mentioned in my three season clothing. I just put on a thicker pair of socks. It the temperature gets colder than that, I use the Merrell Norsehund Alpha boots. They are a double boot that has a very good amount of insulation and a relatively stiff sole. If I will be doing any more technical travel that requires full crampons, I switch to the Scarpa Mont Blanc boots. They are a completely rigid mountaineering boot that can take automatic crampons. Because of its single boot design, I find it relatively comfortable to use over long distance travel. I typically use vapor barrier liners (VBL) with my boots in winter, which prevents the moisture from my feet from getting my boots and socks wet. I wear liner socks under the VBL.

And that’s it. It’s pretty straight forward. I use just the same clothing all year round with the few additions you see above. I’m sure others will disagree very strongly, but this is the system I have been using, and it is what has worked for me. I find it gives me great flexibility, and most importantly, allows me to be active during winter.

My Three Season Camping and Bushcraft Clothing

Now that you have seen my three season gear, I figured I would go over my three season clothing with you guys. There is nothing special or unusual about it. It divides into the typical base layer, insulation, and shell components. I’ve been going over different clothing options for a while, and this is what works for me. Just like with my three season gear, my three season clothing is intended to go down to temperatures of 32F (0C). Of course I do not always carry all of the items you will see here. In warmer weather a lot of the insulation gets left at home. However, a combination of all of these elements allows me to use this clothing down the the above mentioned temperatures.

Base Layer

As a base layer, I use very simple components. I use underwear that is 100% synthetic. It’s nothing special, it just wicks moisture well, and most importantly dries fast. It is from the C9 line by Champion. On top, I use a synthetic t-shirt from the same manufacturer. Again, nothing special, it just dries very fast, which is what I find important. You can see the t-shirt in the picture below. I have spared you the underwear shot.

 

Mid Layer/Insulation

The mid layer provides both insulation and protection. For the legs I use a pair of Mountain Hardware synthetic soft shell pants. They are a nylon spandex mix, which gives them great stretch and flexibility. They also dry very fast and have proven to be very durable. They don’t make this particular model any more, but I simply aimed for the thickest, most durable looking one I could find. That’s it as far as a mid layer for the legs. It’s function is more one of durability and protection than insulation.

For the top half of my body, I have two separate components that serve to provide insulation. The first is a Carhartt mid weight fleece top. It is about the equivalent thickness of 100 weight Polartech fleece. I have had it for many, many years. It is well worn, but still serves me well. I am sure there are more high tech tops out there, but this one is an old friend. It has a half zipper, which helps a lot with ventilation when needed.

On top of that, I currently use a REI Revelcloud jacket. It is a synthetic jacket with 60g of Primaloft One fill. It is virtually identical to the Patagonia Nano Puff, except much cheaper. It compresses into a very small package, while providing good insulation. The Primaloft One insulation deals fairly well with moisture, and the jacket is thin enough to layer well with other clothing. It weighs 12.5 oz, and a lot of the time it stays in my pack. During three season backpacking, I mostly use it when I am sitting around in the evenings. I used to use a 200 weight Polartech fleece for this layer, which worked well, except that it was much harder to pack. The REI Revelcloud compresses to about a third of the size of the fleece jacket, which frees up a lot of room in the pack. I resisted the change for quite some time, but eventually the smaller size won out.

Shell Layer

For me the main purpose of the shell layer is rain protection. All of my clothing is fairly wind resistant, so I don’t tend to use it as a wind shirt, although sometimes I would put my shell jacket on for extra insulation.

The primary component of my shell system is the Arcteryx Beta SV jacket. It is made of Gore Tex, and is one of the lightest durable jackets that I have found.

The jacket weighs only 11 oz, and spends most of its time in the pack. I always carry it with, even if I am not expecting rain. Unlike some ultralight jackets that are designed just as emergency rain gear, the Arcterix Beta SV is a tough and robust jacket that that is a good all around component of a layering system. It also packs very small, so it is easy to always have it with me.

Ordinarily, if I am not expecting rain, I will not bring a shell layer for my legs. However, if I know that I am going out into the rain, I will bring a pair of shell pants. My current ones are the Marmot Precip full zip pants. They use Marmot’s own proprietary breathable waterproof membrane. I got them for two reasons. The first is that they are relatively cheap. I use them in winter as well, and shell pants tend to get torn up when using crampons. I didn’t want anything too expensive. The second reason is that they have full side zips, so they open completely. That way I can put them on without having to remove my shoes. The pants weigh 12 oz, but unfortunately, because of the full zippers, they don’t pack as small as I would like.

Boots

Before I mention the boots, a word about socks. I use a wool/synthetic blend socks. You can get them from any outdoor store. I know people obsess about socks being pure wool, but there is a reason pure wool socks are almost impossible to find-they suffer from some problems. Wool tends to stretch and become loose. That is countered by adding synthetic materials that will allow the socks to maintain their shape. Wool/synthetic blend socks work great. I carry an extra pair in my pack that I keep dry.

As far as the boots, I use the Solomon Quest 4D. They are a Gore Tex lined full leather boot. They have fairly flexible, but thick soles. I like a full boot instead of ankle length ones or trail shoes because I find they protect my feet better. I don’t worry about ankle support, but I find that when going down hills, the fact that the boots can grab your ankle securely prevents your toes from getting jammed into the boot. I’ve had these boots for a long time and I love them.

Gloves

I will usually have a pair of gloves with me, especially in spring and fall. Currently I just use a pair of liner gloves from my Outdoor Research (OR) Arete gloves. They are nothing special, just something to make sure the skin is not directly exposed to the elements. They can also be dried out fairly easily using body heat.

Hat

My hat is an old merino wool watch cap. I am very picky about the way hats feel, and this is one of the few that I like wearing. It is getting a bit stretched out, and it does take very long time to dry, but it is still the one I carry.

Neck Gaiter

The last component of my system is a Smart Wool neck gaiter. It does a great job at preventing heat from escaping around the neck, and can also be pulled up to cover the face.

And that is all of my three season clothing. I don’t carry extra items. What you see is literally the entirety of my clothing. I try to stay away from gimmicks and claims about magical material properties. I focus on well designed clothing that when used properly can give you the best protection over the largest range of conditions.