Cold weather climbing

[Burnham]

Most of the time my climbing season ends about now, or a bit earlier in the fall, here in the Cascades. In addition to cold and wet, we get snow (that heavy, moisture laden type) and getting into the woods begins to be a challenge. This year, and for another few, I have a climbing project that must be done after the trees go dormant, so about now. My main issue with cold weather climbing has always been keeping my hands from getting cold enough to render my ability to manipulate biners, snap hooks, tools, etc. ineffective. I know I am more suseptible to this than some, perhaps due to repeated exposure over the years.

So my question is, do others have this problem, and do any of you have advice on remedies? I have rejected gloves with heavy insulation...can't open a biner any better with mittens on than with numb thumbs. I have tried chemical hand warmers packets with limited success, but that is the only thing I have found to help so far. Ideas???

Here is an opportunity for the southern boys who had to listen to us northerners theorize about palm climbing to play the same game .

 

[Base]

not that it gets to cold here in the damp uk, but on occasion when climbing in frosty conditions, i always find putting my hand near the exhaust exit my top handled to be some help...... or pay someone else to do the job

 

[tjk]

when it gets real cold I hear low profile expendition glove, then I take a pair of the smuff gloves xxl and cut off the fingers and thumb and put then over the expedition for dexterity and to save the expensive expendition gloves.

 

[rborist1]

:Eye:

 

[Matt Follett]

I agree with Craig on the neoprene, wonderfull stuff, as he says protect it though or you'll tear it to shreds fast...

Here in St. Catharines, the 'Banana Belt' of Canada, we rarely see the cold temps Craig encounters... For those moderate days, down to -10 C the Atlas Winter grips are great, almost the same feel as the blue ones but with a little insul to help.

If it's dry, and your not digging around in the snow during clean-up one pair will usually get you through the day, when it's wet... better have a few.

 

[monkeypuzzle]

What is winter?

-southern boy-

 

[2 Guys With Saw]

The neoprene glove liner sounds like a good solution. Last year I was climbing into the middle of Dec., my hands also get cold, making manipulation of ropes etc. hard. I think I will try them. Where do you get such an animal.

 

[rborist1]

:Eye:

 

[2 Guys With Saw]

neoprene glove liners

Thanks, I will be in Edmonton next week. Will stop at The A&N Boutique,

 

[rumination]

winter is already hitting hard here in Hawaii as well. last night I think it dropped below 70!

 

[2 Guys With Saw]

I feel for ya. It must be a tough go having to live and work in such conditions, stick it out, it will get warmer.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Winter?

Oh, yea.

I wear a jacket, er something.

Sometimes my toes get cold.

 

[NickfromWI]

Keep on movin!

In WI, it's not abnormal to be climbing in the -10 to 10 degree range, though twenties to thirties are much more typical.

I've found that if you make a special point to keep moving while in the tree (and on the ground), you keep the blood working throughout the whole body. Sometimes on those cold mornings, we may want to start out nice and slow until the sun comes and helps us out.

My hands are very succeptible to suffering in the cold. They get yellow and numb if I don't take care of them. I HAVE to move a lot to keep them happy.

Heavy insulation doesn't work well for our work. I use some tiny liner gloves made by polartec/manzella...the second one down are mine:

http://www.manzella.com/ProductList...ditional&Product_Line_Code=Base&Group_Code=HP

....then over these I put either the blue smurf gloves or the yellow sticky gloves that everyone seems to have forgotten about! It's a toss up. Blue ones don't breathe, so the sweat makes you wet which equals heat loss. The yellow one's breath very well, but on a windy day, the wind whips right through and steals the natural heat of your hands on it's way out.

If you have gloves that are too tight, this will inhibit blood flow. Loose fitting or only slightly snug is the way to go. If you usually wear size large smurf gloves, you might need XL if you have liners underneath.

 

[rahtreelimbs]

While not exactly related to hand warmth, I have found that a boot dryer ( I have one made by PEET ) does wonders in keeping my feet warm. A warm dry boot is a great thing to start a cold day with.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Originally posted by Rich Hoffman
A warm dry boot is a great thing to start a cold day with.

And seal it with beeswax!

 

[rahtreelimbs]

Originally posted by MasterBlaster
And seal it with beeswax!

Thanx MB, I forgot that one!

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

The yellow pollypro sticky gloves usually hold me down to the low 20's if it is not too windy.

With my big hooks, I cannot find anything else that works.

I usually have to stop working around 15* or so due to past frostbite.

 

[rborist1]

:Eye:

 

[Tom Dunlap]

Burnham,

There are some basic warm up strategies that I'm sure you follow already. But here goes...

Anytime you're cold, put on a hat. If you're still cold, put on a thicker hat.
Eat well and drink lots of fluids. Thick blood doesn't circulate well.
Don't smoke. Vaso dialator sp?
NO COTTON! Cotton cools/kills

Take a look at the gear that ice climbers use. The bent grip/articulated mountaineering gloves are really reasonably priced.

Are you familiar with vapor barrier liners VBL? Wearing nytril or latex gloves and then insulation gloves will work wonders. Keeps your hands dry. I could go on and on about VBLs. But I won't unless bribed with long green.

My glove strategy is built on several combos. I can work, and stay warm, with very little bulk. I'll lay out the systems, warmest to extreme.

Blue Smurf gloves
Poly pro knit glove liners with Smurf gloves over the top
Thick fleece gloves. If you need more finger dexterity, slit the finger and thumb tips on the gloves. That way you can poke your finger out and then suck it back in to stay warm. Make the cut just below the bend at the first digit.
Now it's time to add VBLs
Then I get out the nylon shelled ski gloves. I make sure that I pick up a half dozen pairs at pre-season ski sales for ten bucks a pair. When they get torn I dab on some adhesive called The Welder. Along the lines of Goop but this stuff actually sticks and stays in place. Gives the gloves a longer life.
Now its starting to get chilly so I get out my Granite Gear Ice Sparring gloves: http://www.granitegear.com/products/winter_gear/mitts_gloves/ The gloves have clips on the cuffs to attach to rings on my jacket cuffs. Idiot strings through my sleeves work too in case I need to shed the gloves and don't want to risk dropping them.
OK, now it's finally gotten cold. No messing around. Get out the mitts. Heavy shells with fleec liners. Gloves on the inside with VBLs.

A saying that I leared from Will Steger when he was preparing for his '86 trip to the North Pole. He said that if you keep your knees warm you keep your feet warm. Same goes for hands. The blood goes through the muscles where its warm then at the knees and elbows there isn't any insulation. No different than leaving the front door open. Neoprene wraps or even taking the tops off of some heavy socks to keep your joints warm.

We just had our first snow in the Twin Cities today. Ugly, wet, freezing rain and snow. Blech...I spent the day looking at old maps of Poland to try and see where my Grandfather lived before he emigrated to the US. Much more fun than slogging around in the slop.

Tom

 

[MasterBlaster]

I've worked ice storms down here where our climbing ropes would freeze unless we kept them on the hoods of the linemans trucks.
They wouldn't let us put them in the cab. We(the climbers) had to ride in the back between trouble spots. The linemen sat in the warm truck and worked the floodlight in the trees.
We were freezing. All you had to do was touch your saw against the limb.
I'll never work an ice storm again under those conditions. Too old for that crap.