Depending on where you live and the seasons in which you hike, a pair of completely waterproof pants are either going to be vital or unnecessary. I never dreamed of owning a pair when I lived in California, and I lived in the PNW for years before getting some, because I was a classic fair-weather … [Read More]
Rare is the woman who has the body that the clothing manufacturers have in mind when they are making pants. We each have our “thing” that disqualifies us from buying pants off the rack, whether it be a high hip-to-waist ratio, no hip-to-waist ratio, short legs, long legs, flat butt, round butt, potbelly, chicken legs, … [Read More]
The garment formerly known as long underwear, these wool, silk, or capilene leggings are key for winter excursions. When temperatures plummet, our incredibly smart circulatory system makes sure our vital organs stay warm first, leaving our extremities out in the cold (couldn’t resist). So if we keep our arms and legs, hands and feet warm … [Read More]
Some hikers skip this layer altogether, some stick with shorts that have the built-in liner, and some consider their long underwear to be underwear enough in the winter. This most intimate garment is completely up to you and your comfort, and for the record it’s not considered weird to go commando while hiking. Should you … [Read More]
This is the Denali coat, the Arctic coat, the one you couldn’t wear casually around town without roasting from the inside out. I bought mine, the women’s Rab Neutrino Pro, when I started to fall in love with climbing the Cascade volcanoes and needed to be able to tolerate temps near zero and realized that … [Read More]
Like the soft shell jacket, the hard shell jacket’s job is to keep your base and mid layers dry. But unlike the soft shell, it will do so in the stormiest most violent weather. Snow, wind, and rain are no match for a tough hard shell, and if you often find yourself hiking in winter, … [Read More]
A soft shell jacket is one of the most versatile items in your layering system, offering warmth, dryness, flexibility, and breathability in most weather situations. Barring anything severe like a torrential downpour or freezing temps, this would be my if-you-could-only-bring-one-jacket jacket. Lighter and less bulkier than a parka, it won’t overheat you; and with wind … [Read More]
This insulating layer helps retain the heat your body generates while moving, trapping the air heated by your body and keeping it close. Your base layer is your sweat-management layer; your midlayer is your cozy layer, something like a fleece hoodie, often synthetic, sometimes even a thin down coat over your base layer top. Consider … [Read More]
Without a good baselayer, the rest of your layering system will fail. So what should you look for in a base layer? What fabrics, fit, and features are and aren’t recommended? Let’s find out… Fit After your sports bra, this is the layer that will be right next to your skin. It should fit snug … [Read More]
Women have always had a problem with being confined, and we have always taken matters into our own hands. After years of being bound tightly with cotton, leather, whalebone, wood, and animal horns, finally, in the early 1900s, dancers broke free and started taking the metal hooks out of their corsets and replacing them with … [Read More]
