Top Tips for Winter Hiking - Clothing
Hiking in winter can be a challenge, especially if you live in an extremely cold environment like the Canadian Rockies. That doesn’t mean you can’t head out in winter though, you just need to be properly prepared to handle the cold. So what does it take to hike in winter?
Well that largely depends on where you live. If you are in a warmer coastal environment such as Vancouver, you really need to focus on staying dry. Here in the Canadian Rockies, it’s more about staying warm in frigid temps. In reality, to have an enjoyable time in winter, you need to prioritise both of those things, so you can stay warm and dry.
So I guess the real question is what do you wear to achieve this? A good rule when out hiking both in Summer and Winter is to wear clothing that wicks sweat and dry’s fast, this is especially important in winter. You need to do everything possible in Winter to stay dry, that means absolutely no cotton clothing!
In winter the focus should be on Merino, Synthetic and soft shell materials, with the option to add a down jacket and hard shell depending on the environment. Below is a list of how I normally layer for a winter hike. This layering system will generally keep me warm down to -20C…
Pants/ Trousers:
- Merino Base Layer – I will change the thickness of these depending on temperature
- Softshell Hiking Pant
- Ski Pants if it goes below -15C
Upper Body Layering:
- Synthetic Base Layer – Merino works too, but I find Synthetic manages moisture better
- Merino T-Shirt
- Light Merino Hoodie – A light fleece mid layer would work the same
- Softshell Windbreaker
- Down Jacket – It’s not often I actually wear this, but it’s always in my backpack
- Hard Shell – This is more important in wet environments like the coastal regions.
Gloves:
- Glove Liners – Ideally with touch compatibility
- Softshell/ breathable gloves for the hike up
- Mittens/ Ski Gloves for when you stop
Extras:
- Beanie
- Headband
- Buff
- Neck Warmer
This may seem like a lot to carry, in warmer temps I may skip a layer, but generally I find this works really well for me in a wide range of temperatures. It’s also really important to remember that although you maybe really warm hiking up, once you stop you get cold very quick, so you will need those extra layers.
Footwear - How To Keep Your Feet Warm
Arguably the biggest challenge to hiking in winter is keeping your feet warm. This is something most people struggle with, including me for my first few winters. Quite often people will use toe warmers or put on multiple pairs of socks to try to combat this, but there are better solutions which I’m going to share with you.
Lets start by talking about socks. In theory, wearing more socks will keep your feet warmer… Well that’s actually wrong. Most of us get footwear that fits perfectly with just 1 pair of socks. By wearing more socks, what we are actually doing is restricting the circulation, which will actually make your feet colder instead of warmer. For that reason, just a single pair of hiking socks is all I ever wear, as there’s other ways to keep your feet warm.
So what’s the solution?
Winter Boots go a long way to helping keep your toes warm. These boots are specifically designed to be used in colder temperatures. Most winter boots have added insulation, stiffer soles, and a gaiter hook built into them. Then we have to talk about the soles… winter boots are designed to be used on snow and ice. The soles offer much better traction and some even have compounds built in to help improve traction on ice. Now these don’t replace the need for micro spikes, but you can go much further before you need to reach for the spikes.
Like most people, I’d survived without winter boots for a number of seasons, I’d just deal with having cold feet. But now that I’ve made the switch, I’d never go back. They make such a huge difference to your hiking experience, especially if you are snowshoeing or using micro spikes.
Winter Boots aren’t the entire solution though. The other way to help keep your feet warm is to use gaiters. The main function of gaiters is to keep snow, mud and rain out of your boots. You definitely want to be using them to keep snow out, as that’s part of keeping your feet dry. But even if you are on a compacted trail, gaiters do help keep you lower legs warm including your feet. They can actually do such a good job, I’ve had to take mine off as my feet were getting too warm!
It is important to remember that winter boots are designed to keep your feet warm whilst active. At the start of this post I said you need to keep yourself warm and DRY, the manufactures of boots also know this. You don’t want to have sweaty feet when hiking up a trail, so they purposely limit the amount of insulation in the boot to try and reduce the possibility of this happening.
If you decide to stop for a long break, your feet will still start to get cold. The best way to combat this is to find a pace that allows you to keep moving without the need for a rest break… think slow and steady! If you stop, not only will your feet get cold, but also the rest of your body.
If you do need to take a break, try to find a sheltered location out of the wind. That may mean hiding behind a rock, which is something I regularly do on summits, as shown in the picture here. This was actually taken in Summer, but at over 11,000ft, it felt more like winter!
When To Use Snowshoes & Ice Cleats
Depending on where you live, there maybe times when trails are covered in deep snow or ice. Hiking these trails without the proper equipment can be extremely tiring and even dangerous. Ice Cleats are essential on steep or icy trails. They work like mini crampons, and can give you a huge amount of traction on snow and ice. I always carry these when I’m hiking on any trail in Winter, as you never know when you will need them.
Ice Cleats come in many different styles. Some are designed for walking on flat snow covered trails, others are significantly more aggressive and are designed for steep icy terrain. Personally, I prefer the more aggressive ones. I find they work best in most conditions and are extremely durable.
If you find yourself hiking in deep snow, then snowshoes are a better option. Even with snowshoes you will still sink a little, but they make it much easier and allow you to go to some really awesome places. If you think the trail you are heading to will have deep snow, then I always carry snowshoes. There’s nothing worse than setting out on a trail, only to get half way then realise you needed snowshoes.
Staying Safe
Many hazards exist in winter. With short days and cold temperatures, even a small mistake can quickly become a big problem. Getting lost is very easy in winter and plenty of people struggle with navigation. Unlike summer when the trail maybe obvious, in winter snow could make the trail completely invisible.
I won’t dive too much into trail navigation here as that will be a blog post on it’s own, but make sure you have multiple options for navigation. If you are using your phone to navigate, ensure the map is available offline and that you have a power bank to keep your phone charged in cold temps.
You also don’t want to blindly follow summer trails in winter, as many of them travel through avalanche terrain. Both of the trails shown in the images above are a prime example of this. If you think you will be travelling in avalanche terrain, than I highly recommend taking an avalanche course to better prepare you for travel in this type of terrain.
Apps such as FATMAP do have avalanche overlays that can help identify avalanche terrain, but without the proper training it’s best to avoid avalanche terrain as much as possible.
Are you planning a trip in winter? Let me know in the comments if you have any other winter travel tips!
If you have any questions regarding winter travel, you can either ask them in the comments or send me a message on social media and i’ll do my best to answer them.