If this post is promoting any brand, it's Military Surplus Wool specifically, and Military Surplus more generally. In my experience, milsurp stuff is often the best bang for the buck. People always point out that there are competing or better values from the "civilian market," but here's my take on it: since military gear is uniform—that is, it's the same and there is a lot of it made—it's very easy to find. It might be possible to find similarly priced, quality civilian gear on eBay, but in my experience, if you're looking for a specific piece it's much harder to find. (I'm not going anywhere important with this....)
Until last winter I'd never really thought about my clothes at all—not from a fashion standpoint, not from a function standpoint. My wardrobe was essentially t-shirts and jeans, top to bottom, with some flannel shirts thrown in. It was all black, shades of gray, navy blue, with a few other colors slipping in. At some point I realized that I didn't really have any good clothes for being in the woods.
I've now put quite a bit of thought into my clothing choices. I went from owning zero pieces of wool clothing (socks excluded) to having several shirts and two pairs of pants. It went from an almost monochromatic color-scheme that wasn't fit for blending into the woods to now being made up of about 50% greens and browns. That thought I've put into my clothes has paid off, I think. I've ended up with (frankly) more than I need, and I didn't spend a ton of money on it all, either.
Blah blah ... that's great.
Wool doesn't need any cheerleaders; its selling-points are well known, but it remains, for many, a love-or-hate fabric. For me, I was sold on two factors: the ability to keep you warm even when wet (and how it handles wet weather, but this was mostly learned later on), and that I'd be able to easily find used wool for pretty low prices. It wouldn't be fashionable or name-brand, but it would be usable, durable, warm, and so on.
(It also came down to other personal values, but these aren't terribly important considering what I have to say. I once read somewhere that synthetics are for people who visit the outdoors, while wool is a fabric for those who live in it. I think there is something to that in terms of durability, warmth, and more.)
Anyway, to the point of the post. I've found a winter clothing "system" that works well for me and that I'd like to explore. This won't be a natural vs. synthetic post for two reasons: As I said, I don't care who uses what, and I don't personally have any experience with expensive synthetics to make comparisons. I will mention synthetics, but I won't be trying to persuade anyone to make any decisions either way.
I've also put thought and effort into making sure my body acclimates to the cold this year. This is a related topic but different enough that I won't mention it beyond this.
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| A "Real Winter" day! |
Base layer
Admittedly, this is probably the weakest part of the system, even though some people consider it the most important. I have a set of Joe Boxer long johns from K-Mart that are 50/50 cotton/poly, a set of 100% polypropylene milsurp heavyweight thermals, and two other tops that I pick based on the weather—another 50/50 cotton/poly long-sleeved T and a 50/50 cotton/wool milsurp undershirt. I know, "cotton kills," yadda yadda. But frankly, I'm not really worried about it. And it'd be great to have a set made of light- or medium-weight merino wool, but I'm not willing to spend the money on them right now.
Upper body insulation
Due to the possibility of wetness, I've decided to stick with wool pretty much exclusively. Since buying some wool button-down shirts I hardly touch my cotton flannels anymore. To fill this role I have 4 wool sweaters of different weights, and three button-downs. The temperature dictates the number and thickness of the layers I'll use. I usually start with a sweater and add a button-down (if needed). If it ever got really, really cold, I'd probably try to add another sweater; at this point I'd imagine my clothes would feel overly bulky and cumbersome.
In this category the two shirts I want to mention are the Pendleton Board Shirt and the US M1951 wool field shirt.
Having never worn and probably never seen a Pendleton, all of what I had known of them was what I'd read. A lot of people were saying they were great, really warm, double as jackets, and so on. The one I got wasn't all that thick, has a loose weave, and is therefore not as warm as I expected. Unfortunately I put a pretty good hole in it thanks to a thorn. I definitely wouldn't recommend it as an outer layer if it's going to be exposed to abrasive stuff. I do like the shirt, however, and as a layer I can't complain about it.
On the other hand, the field shirt is great and I have no complaints about it. It's thick, tightly woven, and I wear it as an outer layer all the time.
Lower body
I have been incredibly pleased with my wool pants; they've exceeded my expectations. I bought wool knowing that it retains its insulating abilities when wet, and that it's also somewhat water repellent, but I could not have known its true ability to keep me dry.
I wore them quite a bit this fall when I expected wet weather, and I've worn them in snow quite a bit this winter. I've yet to get really wet—my knees and butt occasionally get a little damp, but hardly so. I've worn them in steady rains and cannot complain. I've read some horror stories (usually from military men) about wet, heavy wool, but haven't had this experience myself. Unlike soldiers, I don't have to sit in one spot in the rain for long amounts of time—ever. I find that if I'm moving around, doing something, and it happens to be raining, the wool will probably keep me dry. Prolonged exposure would probably be too much.
In comparison, several times I've been out with friends either in rain, messing around on a wet lawn playing games, or in wet snow, and the nylon-clad friends usually end up soaking wet and freezing. I've seen the same with the kids I work with. If they were wearing expensive Gore-tex this might not be the case, but with their standard synthetic gear they get uncomfortable quite fast.
The other area in which they really shine is noise: no swish-swishing around in these as I would in the old (early 2000s) pair of snowmobiling bibs I have (made from what appears to be a Cordura-like nylon), and I value that. Also when compared to those bibs, weight/bulk and general comfort come to mind. Until recently I thought the only way to handle snow was "snowpants"—I had a good pair, but they were bulky and bothersome. Now I know that I can remain just as dry and warm and be more comfortable in my wool trousers.
If I ever find myself getting cold I'm considering making a liner from a cheap wool blanket I have, but I've yet to be out in very low temperatures to know whether I'll need to or not.
Outer layer
I've been using a garment I made from canvas, and I've found it satisfactory. Since I'm the one who made it, and I'm no clothier, I know every little thing that's wrong with it—but all of that aside, it's functional and I'm relatively happy with it. This summer I was reading about anoraks/parkas, and using cotton canvas seemed surprising to me. A lot of places had the same things to say, though, so I decided to give it a try.
Anorak/parka probably isn't accurate to describe mine, nor is jacket/coat. I've been calling it a "shell." It has a wool-lined hood and a wool hoodie-like pocket. Both insulate better than I was expecting, and I am glad I chose to make both additions.
One of my friends says I look like I belong in Stalingrad. I don't disagree.
This is one area in which "cotton kills" is misleading. Canvas is relatively water repellent. As a tenting material, it's essentially waterproof if the inside remains untouched—touching it conducts water through the fabric and starts a leak that won't go away. (Science has a name for this but I can't remember it right now.) Of course, when you're wearing a garment you have to touch the inside. But the way canvas keeps water out is in the weave: Water makes the threads swell, which helps keep additional water from penetrating. I've worn this shell in reasonably heavy rain, and with wool underneath I remained pretty dry, all things considered. Wet snow also makes the canvas wet, though far less so than rain. This is not really an issue with wool underneath; I still remain quite dry when compared to nylon-clad companions. More on this here and here.
Boots
I've long had a pair of bigger "pac" boots (actually snowmobile boots I was gifted years ago), but for walking around in the temperatures we get here I felt like they were too much. They are very nice boots and I have no plans of getting rid of them, but I feel like they're a little more than I need most of the time—also bigger and more restrictive of movement than necessary.
For years I had a pair of Wal-Mart hiking boots which I'd wear in winter, but they needed to be replaced: they never really broke in, were stiff and uncomfortable, and were only ankle-high, letting too much snow in. So this summer I bought a pair of ICWB (intermediate cold weather boots—alternatively cold/wet) on eBay for about $45. So far I like them quite a bit. They're lighter and less cumbersome than my other boots though less warm.
The military issues them for use in temperatures between 14° and 68° F (-10° and 20° C), but so far this year I've found that I can (smartly) wear them below that range. I bought 10 1/2s, but the insulating "booties" that came with them are size 10 (presumably these aren't issued in half sizes). I tried them out a bit but found that they squeezed my toes too much. Beside that, they don't seem necessary most of the time. If it's very cold I've been wearing two pairs of socks instead of the booties, and if my feet are still cold I should be wearing the big boots.
Since most of my winter activities involve moving a lot I've found that these boots are enough with one pair of socks. I appreciate the small amount of extra foot flexibility I have in them and the lighter weight/smaller size. I will wear the bigger boots on days I expect to be sitting around a lot and on days when the temp is exceptionally low. With either pair of boots I tuck my pants into the boots when there are more than a few inches of snow on the ground so it's not working its way up my pant leg.
(On the ICWB: This is my only experience with Gore-tex, the so-called breathable waterproof wonder-material. I haven't been walking around in rivers or anything, but I haven't had my feet get wet from the outside in these boots yet. However, when I take the boots off my feet are often slightly damp with perspiration. With wool socks this isn't an issue, but I'm not really sold on "breathable." FWIW.)
Hats and gloves/mittens
I haven't put a ton of thought into this category because I haven't really found it necessary. I'm familiar with winter, so I've always had hats and gloves around.
For the last several years I've almost exclusively used the fingerless glove/mitten combo (one item—the "mitten" part folds back) that many people use. Some people call them "glittens." I like these, but if handling snow they get wet and the snow works its way under the fold. Not good for throwing snowballs or making snowmen. So this year I made another purchase, just to try something new.
I'm not entirely sold on these yet, but so far they're pretty good. They're "trigger finger" mittens made of canvas and leather, and they're used with a wool liner. As far as keeping my hands warm they're OK—could possibly be used with two liners when cold enough. The leather stays dry, and when the canvas does get wet it hasn't been a real problem. My main gripe is that they are a pain in the ass to get on. The gauntlets aren't big enough to easily fit over my shell, so sometimes I have to struggle with them for several minutes. I can see myself possibly buying another similar pair with bigger gauntlets, or perhaps making something similar myself lined with wool blanket material.
Hats—nothing special. I have a handful of beanies and toques.
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I guess that about covers it.
Hi Anthony,
ReplyDeletelike I said on BCUSA, I like this post.
Well thought out and said. I especially like the "visit and live"-statement!
I'd love to get my hands on one of those GI-shirts one day...