UKC

Hi,

I currently have a pair of ME Guide gloves and some thin powerstretch gloves. This combination has been great for winter walking. I'm looking to start doing some winter scrambling and easy summer alpine routes and from reading elsewhere another pair of gloves seems to be in order. Good options seem to be getting some softshell gloves or adding some mitts in case everything gets wet.

Do these options seem sensible, and what specific gloves do you use for similar applications?

I realise this is a question that comes up a lot, but I don't think this specific permutation has been asked for a while.

In reply to kestrelspl:

I've done plenty of winter climbing and summer alpinism in just ME Guide gloves with nothing underneath so I wouldn't say new ones are definitely necessary. I use Marmot XT gloves for everything basically only switching to the guides when it gets too cold. Never had a problem with my hands.

In reply to TomGB:
That's useful to know, do you find the thinner softshell glove works better than something like an ME Randonee? Also do you carry a thicker pair of gloves or a spare pair of something like buffalo mitts for really cold/wet conditions where your other gloves get soaked?

In reply to kestrelspl:

If it's cold and wet in the alps in the sunmmer, stay at home. I've got the Rab equivalent of the ME Guides and use them for everything. I also have a pair of down mitts I've worn once in the Arctic.

In reply to ianstevens:

Looks like from what people are saying I can save myself some money. What do you take for a spare pair of gloves for UK winter?

In reply to kestrelspl:

I don't. 99% of modern gloves still work (i.e. keep you warm) once wet.

In reply to ianstevens:

Which model are those Rab ones?

In reply to ianstevens:

Ok, so my current system should work fine. Might take a look at the marmot XT gloves for the alps in the summer when the guides might be a bit warm.

In reply to kestrelspl:

I recommend the XTs to everyone. I've destroyed one pair through overuse and am well on the way to destroying another pair. Nice and dextrous, windproof and pretty warm. The ME Guides will stay warm when wet and they're pretty waterproof anyway. I only put them on if the XTs get soaked through generally.

In reply to kestrelspl:

Firstly I would get a pair of buffalo mitts or similar since if your powerstretch gloves get wet (and cold) its a real pain to get them off and then get cold wet fingers into your guide gloves. Instead put the mitts on over the wet powerstretch and in half an hour or so your fingers will be warm enough to either carry on with the powerstretch or take them off and put the guides on. The buffalo mitts weight little, but their sizes are wrong, you need to get one size bigger than you normally would.

Secondly I would then think about an in between set of gloves between the powerstretch and guides such as the Marmot GT as mentioned here.

In reply to JayPee630:

I doubt they make them anymore as they're about four years old - think they might be a guide glove.

In reply to kestrelspl:

I much prefer thin gloves and like hard wearing ones so have used lined leather gloves for the last few years. bought from the right hard wear store they're very cheap. and multiples are cheap.

annoyingly hard to find are single layer non membrane soft she'll ones you can ring them out then put them back on and keep climbing

spares buffalo or better but heavy dachstein boiled wool ones reinforce the thumbs for maximum wear.

not a fan of goretex as once they wet out your buggered ad they won't easily dry while wearing them and dexterity is not too great

In reply to m0unt41n:

Thanks, I went for some montane mitts as a spare pair and will look into something like the marmot xts for the Alps in the summer when I think the guides might be a bit warm.