Winter Snow Sport Gear
Winter Hiking & Snowshoeing
Amazon.com
Backpacking Forums
---- Our Gear Store ----
The Lightweight Gear Store
 
 WINTER CAMPING 

Shelters
Bivy Bags
Sleeping Bags
Sleeping Pads
Snow Sports
Winter Kitchen

 SNOWSPORTS 

Snowshoes
Avalanche Gear
Skins
Hats, Gloves, & Gaiters
Accessories

 ULTRA-LIGHT 

Ultralight Backpacks
Ultralight Bivy Sacks
Ultralight Shelters
Ultralight Tarps
Ultralight Tents
Ultralight Raingear
Ultralight Stoves & Cookware
Ultralight Down Sleeping Bags
Ultralight Synthetic Sleep Bags
Ultralight Apparel


the Titanium Page
WM Extremelite Sleeping Bags

 CAMPING & HIKING 

Backpacks
Tents
Sleeping Bags
Hydration
Kitchen
Accessories

 CLIMBING 

Ropes & Cordage
Protection & Hardware
Carabiners & Quickdraws
Climbing Packs & Bags
Big Wall
Rescue & Industrial

 MEN'S APPAREL 

Jackets
Shirts
Baselayer
Headwear
Gloves
Accessories

 WOMEN'S APPAREL 

Jackets
Shirts
Baselayer
Headwear
Gloves
Accessories

 FOOTWEAR 

Men's Footwear
Women's Footwear

 CLEARANCE 

Backpacks
Mens Apparel
Womens Apparel
Climbing
Footwear
Accessories

 BRANDS 

Black Diamond
Granite Gear
La Sportiva
Osprey
Smartwool

 WAYS TO SHOP 

Sale
Clearance
Top Brands
All Brands

 Backpacking Equipment 

Shelters
BackPacks
Sleeping Bags
Water Treatment
Kitchen
Hydration
Climbing


 Backcountry Gear Clearance

Topic Options
Rate This Topic
#125881 - 12/26/09 05:27 PM Gloves or Mittens?
fadetoblack6902 Offline
member

Registered: 12/12/09
Posts: 21
Loc: St. Louis, MO
I am trying to decide what handwear to bring on my Utah backpacking trip. I know mittens in general are warmer, but does that still apply if you have full finger liner gloves and then a mitten shell? It seems like not having contact between the fingers would negate half the benefits of mittens.

I've never really liked mitts because of the loss of dexterity, although I'm not sure I'll be warm enough in gloves with liners. Maybe 2 liners would work, but seems bulky.

What about ski gloves with some sort of overmitt?

Temps will be 10F to 30 daytime, down to negative 10 at night. Very dry environment, although there will be some dry snow.

Any suggestions on which gloves/mitts I should find?


Edited by fadetoblack6902 (12/26/09 05:38 PM)

Top
#125892 - 12/26/09 09:11 PM Re: Gloves or Mittens? [Re: fadetoblack6902]
Eugene Offline
member

Registered: 12/26/09
Posts: 60
Loc: San Diego, CA
For me, my fingers would still be a little cold if I wore gloves in mittens.

When I do when I want dexterity is to wear convertible mittens. If I want extra warmth, I'll wear a shell over that. A vapor barrier will help that still warm over a longer period.

I'd love to try lobster gloves in a mitten shell. I have the opposite of that for my motorcycle which works okay, but I'd rather than the gloves were lobsters as well.
_________________________
www.eugeneleafty.com

Top
#125903 - 12/27/09 01:20 AM Re: Gloves or Mittens? [Re: fadetoblack6902]
Jimshaw Offline
member

Registered: 10/22/03
Posts: 3983
Loc: Bend, Oregon
cold thumbs suck. In real cold, unless you need the thumb, you will most likely pull it into the mitts with your fingers, easier to do with mitts than gloves. The liners will insulate your fingers from each other, but the thinner they are the less of this effect there will be. When using the thumb it will be isolated from the other fingers and will get cold but the insulation of the glove thumb and the mitt thumb will add to each other - moral, wear warm mitts, thin liners, or get a liner with an extra thick thumb. I had really fine expensive BD ice climbing gloves and not only were they really uncomfortable due to their thickness, but my fingers froze in them - sold em on ebay.
My favorite mitts are made by Kombi, relativiely inexpensive and goretex shelled
Jim
_________________________
These are my own opinions based on wisdom earned through many wrong decisions. Your mileage may vary.

Top
#125925 - 12/27/09 05:22 PM Re: Gloves or Mittens? [Re: fadetoblack6902]
phat Offline
Moderator

Registered: 06/24/07
Posts: 4107
Loc: Alberta, Canada

I personally layer up a bit. Typically using ragg wool gloves, a ragg wool mitten, and a nylon or goretex overmitt to keep most of the snow off.

*most* often I just end up wearing the gloves under the overmitt, an then layer on the mitten if it gets really cold.
_________________________
Any fool can be uncomfortable...
My 3 season gear list
Winter list.
Browse my pictures


Top
#125943 - 12/27/09 09:53 PM Re: Gloves or Mittens? [Re: phat]
thecook Offline


Registered: 10/03/08
Posts: 541
Loc: Minnesota
I almost always use gloves under mittens. With rag wool gloves and a poly liners, I like the mittens a little loose. For any other combination, my hands are warmest if the mitten is snug but not tight around the glove. Mittens by themselves tend to be cold for me. I don't know if mittens alone have too much air space, it is just subjective feel, or there is something else in play but I'll stick to gloves inside mittens because it works.
_________________________
If I wouldn't eat it at home, why would I want to eat it on the trail?

Top
#125944 - 12/27/09 10:13 PM Re: Gloves or Mittens? [Re: thecook]
fadetoblack6902 Offline
member

Registered: 12/12/09
Posts: 21
Loc: St. Louis, MO
Sounds like a layering system of mittens and gloves is
the way to go. Thanks guys! I'll let ya know what I pick up.

Top
#125948 - 12/28/09 12:35 AM Re: Gloves or Mittens? [Re: fadetoblack6902]
TomD Offline
Moderator

Registered: 10/30/03
Posts: 4963
Loc: Marina del Rey,CA
I wear liner gloves-OR PS150s, plus mitts or gloves over them. I also have a shell mitt. My mitts are made by Heat Factory and have a separate thumb. You can put chemical heat packs in a small zippered pocket on the back of them.

Ski gloves may not be waterproof. My REI ski gloves aren't. So, I would bring a waterproof mitt shell of some kind, just in case.
_________________________
Don't get me started, you know how I get.

Top
#125985 - 12/28/09 08:50 PM Gloves AND Mittens [Re: fadetoblack6902]
300winmag Offline
member

Registered: 02/28/06
Posts: 1342
Loc: Nevada, USA
I only use gloves for winter camping that have removable pile liners. I have 3 different thicknesses of pile glove liners and would take the medium and thick ones plus GTX mitten shells.

Personally I consider mittens (or at least mitten shells) to be a safety item on any winter camping trip.
_________________________
"There are no comfortable backpacks. Some are just less uncomfortable than others."

Top

Shout Box

Highest Quality Lightweight Down Sleeping Bags
 
Western Mountaineering Sleeping Bags
 
Lite Gear Talk - Featured Topics
Backcountry Discussion - Featured Topics
Make Your Own Gear - Featured Topics
Featured Photos
Spiderco Chaparral Pocketknife
David & Goliath
Also Testing
Trip Report with Photos
Seven Devils, Idaho
Oat Hill Mine Trail 2012
Dark Canyon - Utah
Who's Online
0 registered (), 160 Guests and 0 Spiders online.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Newest Members
Noodles, McCrary, DanyBacky, Rashy Willia, WanderBison
13240 Registered Users
Forum Links
Disclaimer
Policies
Site Links
Backpacking.net
Lightweight Gear Store
Backpacking Book Store
Lightweight Zone
Hiking Essentials

Our long-time Sponsor, BackcountryGear.com - The leading source for ultralite/lightweight outdoor gear:

Backcountry Forum
 
 

Since 1996 - the Original Backcountry Forum
Copyright © The Lightweight Backpacker & BackcountryForum.com