Winter Gloves.....

[AlphaDog]

I need to buy a pair of gloves for this winter and have a question....climbing above the treeline in the high peaks often involves hand over hand on bare rock...I was wondering if any of you have gloves or know of a brand of maybe rock-climbing gloves that won't tear like fleece gloves will....any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

[Kevin]

I bought a pair of $40 gortex gloves that have some nice grip to them at EMS recently...

[JimB]

poly pro glove liners

For winter climbing/hiking I always take along a couple pairs of polypro glove liners. They are available at Army/Navy stores or Walmart for 2-4 dollars. They will fit under any gloves or mittens and add warmth and help to keep the inside dry. For scrambling or climbing they are sometimes all you need and your other hand wear can stay in your pack until you stop. They dry quickly when wet and by wearing them when putting on your crampons or monkeying around with other gear you can keep your hands warmer. It is important to keep your hands warm because it takes a lot of energy to warm them back up once they get cold. Try them you'll like them. JimB

[altec]

I do not really do any climbing, but what about those Seal Skinz gloves that I always see advertized in Cabela's? They are made of some neoprene fabric I think, so they should be pretty tough, and they are waterproof. I would imagine rathr warm to boot.

Heres a link:http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/te...005142ii01.jpg

[mtgoat]

Originally posted by altec
I do not really do any climbing, but what about those Seal Skinz gloves that I always see advertized in Cabela's? They are made of some neoprene fabric I think, so they should be pretty tough, and they are waterproof. I would imagine rathr warm to boot.

Heres a link:http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/te...005142ii01.jpg

I tried them and they do OK for a while but don't allow your hads to "breath" so they get wet and clammy after a while. As a result your hads get cold as soon as you take them off. I guess they could have a pupose but I still have mine packed away since I first tried them. Oh yeh, your hands will perspire after too long then get cold despite the gloves.

I generally carry a few pair of the polypro gloves mentioned above and a pair of heavier leather gloves. This way I have a system that allows me to wear one pair of the polypros while another is drying while lashed to the outside of my pack and can be worn with the heavier gloves when need be.

[morrell12]

Northface

I bought a nice pair of North FAce mittens with liners last year on e-bay. I got them for 25 bucks and I think they retailed for about 80 at the outdoor stores. You might want to check them out. Also my buddy just bought a North Face Parka for 50 bucks brand new with tags and I think that retailed for over 200 in the stores.

Ebay is the site!!!!!!!!

[Kevin]

Just be careful to check feedback and look at how long someone has been an Ebay member before buying...

On a related note, the cheapie $40 EMS Gortex gloves did a VERY nice job keeping my hands warm and dry -- I highly recommend them!

[rondak100]

I've given up on dry...

I have EMS Goretex gloves. My hands don't seem to stay dry forever, but they never get cold.

Mike

[ADackR]

I always have liners (little blue ones) and then gore-tex shells on, my shells are getting old (7 years now) but still kicking.

this layering has always worked for me BUT everyone warms differently...

[pmagistro]

My winter experience above treeline in the Daks is limited to a few of the High Peaks, but I've never had to do anything more than really mellow scrambling....for which you can get away with just about any glove.

My bigger concern has been for my fingers....everyone here knows how cold it can be out there in winter! Couple things I have noticed though: 1) Your gloves will get wet inside, either from outside water coming in, from sweat, or from snow/rain falling in when you take the gloves off. 2) No single glove will do the trick for longer trips in the Daks. 3) Liners are great, so long as your outer gloves are large enough as to not reduce circulation to your fingers.

Accordingly, I usually carry three gloves with me on multi-day cold weather trips:

First, a cheap pair of lightweight liners, which I wear to cook and eat and write and anytime I need a lot of dexterity.

Second, a pair of windstopper fleece gloves that I hike in or use in camp when it's tremendously cold.

Third, a pair of gore-tex mitten shells with removable insulated liners which I use when hiking, floundering about in deep powder, carrying poles or an ice ax (which suck heat from your hands). The liners on these gloves will get wet over the course of a day, so I take them out at night and sleep with them either on my hands or next to skin to dry them out. If they don't dry out, I can stick either my fleece gloves or my liners into the mitten shells as a temporary replacement.

This is the best system I've worked out for cold weather backpacking...though if you need the dexterity of a glove rather than a mitten (for manipulating climbing gear and such) make sure you get something with removable liners.

[Jeff]

I am also of the belief that layering is the key. I recently conferred with an employee of Gore-Tex who was firmly a believer of the layering system also. As well as a few people here I see too. This system seems to work well for the whole body, hands and feet included. A wicking layer, a warmth layer, a shell. Does it work? Of course, or so many people wouldn't do it! Books wouldn't be written about it, and Gore wouldn't make so much money from it.