Recommended Clothing List
| Head System | |
| Hat | A warm woolly or fleece-lined hat is good to wear at night, to help you stay warm. “If you’ve got cold feet, put on a hat”. |
| Torso System | |
| Base Layer Long Sleeve Wool Top | Even when wet, woollen garments will generate heat ‘exothermically’ for
up to six days. Naturally breathable, merino wool garments such as Ice
Breaker or Ullfrote make perfect base layers. |
| Second Base Layer | Also bear in mind that wool garments can often be obtained cheaply from Army Surplus stores. |
| Mid Layer Wool Top | For woodland work, around open fires, a Swanndri Ranger Shirt is perfect, but for mountain trips, fleece is a lighter, faster drying option. |
| Outer Layer | Windproof Top Finely woven cotton Ventile fabric is great for windproof clothing. Ventile is also shower-proof and Mosquito-proof. |
| Shell Layer Waterproof Jacket | Buy the best you can afford – seriously! ‘Marmot’ makes the very best jackets in XCR Triple Layer Gore-Tex fabric, as do ‘Lowe Alpine’ in their Triple Point Ceramic fabric. |
| Legs System | |
| Base Layer Wool Long Johns | As recommended by the old frontier’s men, woollen underwear is the business for keeping you warm. |
| Mid Layer | Combat / Cargo trousers Ventile trousers, if you can afford them. Otherwise Ex-military combats are fine - cheap and strong. For mountain walking, consider buying some fleece bottoms, as cotton becomes very cold, when wet. |
| Shell Layer Waterproof Trousers | The best over trousers are, again made from, XCR Triple Layer Gore-Tex and Triple Point Ceramic, but don’t stand too close to the fire. Ex-military Gore-Tex trousers are fine (esp. Ex-Dutch Army). |
| Feet System | |
| Wool Socks Thorlo Socks | Any sock with a high % of wool will be ideal. Wool doesn’t hold odours like synthetic fabrics |
| Hiking Boots Sturdy, broken-in and waterproof | Carry a boot-care kit. A nailbrush to scrub off mud, and some Nikwax ‘Aquawax’ (kept in a ziploc bag) to apply after cleaning, will keep your boots watertight and looking good. |
| Emergency Back Up System | |
| Emergency Clothing | A very lightweight shower-proof / windproof shell, called a ‘zoot suit’ made from pertex 6 fabric, packed with extra woollen base layers make an perfect back-up system. Both sets of clothing fit in a standard Ziploc bag, to live in the bottom of your rucksack. |
| Waterproof Socks Seal Skinz & Porelle Dry Socks | These socks have a breathable membrane with a merino wool lining. Excellent for river crossings, when you have to get back into wet boots. |
| Mountain Environment Additions | |
| Gaiters Outdoor Designs | Stops water running down inside your boots when trudging about on the heather. |
| Waterproof Mitts Outdoor Designs | Look for a glove with an inner fleece liner mitten and a tough waterproof outer shell. |
| Second pair of gloves | In really wet or snowy conditions, it’s a good idea to pack a second pair of gloves, in case your main pair gets wet. |
| Mountain Hat Lowe Alpine Mountain Cap | A completely waterproof, all time classic, made from Gore-Tex or Triple Point Ceramic fabric. |
| Wind-proof Balaclava Outdoor Designs Gore Windstopper Balaclava | Worth it’s weight in gold when the wind-chill drops well into the zeros. |
| Duvet Jacket Snugpak ‘sleeka’ jacket | Perfect for lunch stops on the hill, to help you stop cooling down. Being synthetic, this jacket performs better in damp weather, than it’s feather counterparts. Also good for sleeping in, in really cold weather. |