The North Face Verto Jacket - Review

I've been using the Verto windshirt for the last few months after picking it up during the summer. Here's North Face's blurb on the item:


'The North Face Verto jacket for men is specifically designed for climbing expeditions there space is a precious commodity. The Verto is wind and water resistant and compactable down to the size of an energy bar. '


I've been after a hooded windproof for quite some time now. Something to pack up small and clip to my harness for long multi-pitch routes or to use as a lightweight shell when moving fast in the mountains in poor weather, when a full shell jacket or a softshell would probably be too warm. From the start I'd had my mind set on the Patagonia Houdini jacket having read good reviews from the likes of Steve House and Colin Haley. I managed to get a very good deal on my Verto though so couldn't really refuse it at the time. Incidently I've gotten a Houdini in the last few weeks so hopefully after a few more days on the hill I'll be able to offer some good comparisons between the two jackets, anyhow, back to the Verto for now...

Sea cliff climbing at Gogarth keeping the spray and wind off with the Verto.

The first thing that strikes you about this jacket is how light it is, perhaps even stupidly light. My medium weighs in at 93g and packs down to less than the size of a small apple, stuffing into is own small chest pocket. The fabric is very thin and almost transparent, it's Pertex Quantum 7D, 100% Nylon micro ripstop, which comes in at 24g per square meter making it one of their lightest fabrics. It's windproof and fairly water resistant thanks to its DWR coating. The weight is kept down further as they have not used any drawcords in the hem or hood, instead they just use simple elastic closures. While on the hood I think these work well, fitting reasonably well over a normal head but also just pulling it off when worn over a helmet. For me personally the elastic isn't a tight enough fit round the cuffs or the waist. I wouldn't want to use it in winter as I think it would just get filled with snow. Another gripe is that while the fabric is lovely and soft and shiny, unfortunately this means that it quite readily slides out from under a harness which I found quite annoying.

Walking off Raven Crag in Langdale with the Verto

layered over a micro fleece on a cold day.

So the good points about this jacket. Firstly despite appearances it is rather hard-wearing. Its been out on quite a few routes with me now and has only got one or two small patches of abrasion on it which I'm happy with, and no holes at all. Because the fabric is so thin I quite often snag it in the zip but this hasn't damaged the fabric either. It is as stated windproof and it does shrug off a shower which is what its designed to do. I sat in the rain at the top of Carreg Wastad in the pass for 20 miuntes waiting for Stubbs to fight his way up a very wet Ribstone Crack and stayed dry underneath it.

It is an expensive jacket though, at £110 pounds, thats more than £1 a gram! That does seem to be the kind of money people are paying for a high end hooded windproof these days as the obvious competitors of the Houdini or Arc'teryx's Squamish hoody all all around that mark. Montane's lite speed is a slightly more cheaper option that is out there. If you want another opinon its also been reviewed recently in Climber.

La Sportiva Trango S Evo - Review

The La Sportiva Trango has been my staple go-to summer boot for over half a decade. I first purchased a pair of the original Trangos in 2005 and loved them immediately, unfortunately I soon grew out of them and sold them and soon after in 2006 purchased a new pair of the Trango S Evos. Here’s Sportiva’s blurb on the boot: 

'Evolution of the famous model Trango S, it features the Gore-Tex® membrane, that guarantees waterproofness and breathability. A modern multi-purpose lightweight boot: vie ferrate, mountaineering, alpine hiking. Lightweight is its main characteristic, reached thanks to the usage of innovative and performing materials. Absolute comfort, waterproofness and appealing look make it a multi-purpose product. Lacing system derived from climbing shoe technology, with the addition of a lace lock that allows double tension. Innovative multidirectional ankle hinge “3D Flex System”. Double rubber reinforcement on the toe box. Rubber rand with differentiated height on the areas of higher abrasion.'

What you first notice about these boots is just how light they are, at 1250g they are some of the lightest B1 boots on the market. They have a back ledge for crampons but no toe welt, and they’re lined with a Gore-Tex sock to make them waterproof.

I use these boots as my go to summer boots in the UK, from walking in Cumbria to scrambling on Skye. I’ve also used the boots in the European Alps, Canadian Rockies and Sierra Nevada for alpine climbing on predominantly rock routes and in winter 2007 I used them in Scotland for a few weeks winter climbing while waiting for my new winter boots to arrive. They seem to have excelled at pretty much everything I’ve thrown at them and I’ve probably used them (my first pair of Evos) for somewhere in the region of 150 days of use.

Scrambling on Millstone Buttress, Tryfan in the Trangos.

Some may think that a fully rigid boot is overkill for general summer walking in the UK, and they may be right, there are much cheaper unrated boots out there that will do the job but the Trangos rigid sole has a good rocker and walks well, I’ve never got blisters in them (or for that matter in any Sportiva boots). The gore-tex sock inside the boot does limit breathability to a degree; I noticed the difference when switching to the Evos from the originals but the advantage is that they are waterproof, which is pretty key for the damp UK climate, out ways this. In the height of summer they are warm, but not unbearably so and no more than most other summer boots as they have no insulation as such.

When it comes to scrambling and climbing, this is perhaps the arena that the boots shine most in. The old Trangos climbed fantastically, and I wondered at first with the slightly wider fore foot profile of the new Evos if they would perform to the same standard. After a lot of testing I can say that the Evos climb just as well as the old ones, I quite happily climb up to Severe/5.6 in mine depending on rocktype, route and conditions. Like all mountain boots, they are never going to smear well but due to the sticky soles they do better than some. The rigidity of them makes them edge well, and the high rand helps them stick in cracks.

East Ridge of Mt Temple, Canadian Rockies.

With regard to winter use I find the boots a little cold for Scottish winter use, especially climbing where your boots are laced tight and your often stationary for long periods. If your just after a boot for winter hillwalking you may be able to get by with these. The same is true of alpine routes with long snow plods, cold north faces or anything particularly high but as I said above for rock routes they are fantastic. I have used these boots for climbing in winter and they do work however they lack the support for serious ice or mixed routes as well as the warmth, but if you only intend on a few weekends a year and can’t justify a pair exclusively for winter they will do the job.

So I’ve sang the praises of these boots, what are the downsides? The biggest and perhaps my only grievance with these boots is the durability of the uppers. A lot of the current reviews out their criticise the durability of the sole of the boot, and rightly so, a lot of climbing in them does wear it out quicker than other boots but the offset of this is that they wear out quickly because the rubber is sticky and climbs so well. If the rubber was harder and the tread had more volume they wouldn’t climb as well. You can get boots re-soled for less than a quarter of the price of a new pair, but if you wear out the uppers you’re going to need to shell out the cash for a new pair. In their design of the boot Sportiva have used a white woven synthetic material on the inside of the boot along the instep of the boot, I imagine this was done to keep the weight of the boot down. After a year and a half of use I started to develop a hole in this section of the boot which exposes the body of the boot underneath, this has happened on both boots.

Lewis Abbott and Chris Philips using the Trangos Via Ferrating in the Italien Dolomites.

Sportiva could easily fix this by having this area covered by more of their harder wearing synthetic leather, which is what I think they attempted to do when they released their Trango Alp GTX. I used these boots for a year (2009-10) after I wore out my first pair (the local resoling company informed me it wouldn’t be worth putting a new sole on my boots due to the wear on the uppers) and was disappointed. I found the fit to be quite different to the Evos, they felt heavier and less agile and I couldn’t climb as well in them. The lacing system is different and I found I couldn’t get it tight enough to get the fit I wanted despite sizing them half a size smaller than my Evos. This lacing set up does look more durable than the Evos as I have snapped a lace loop on each boot on my Evos. I didn’t use them for long enough to see if the instep re-enforcement held up longer then the Evos but my guess would be that it would have. Due to my disappointment with the Alps I bought a new pair of Evos, identical to my old ones – they’ve perfect, just like the old ones. I know that in the next few years they may suffer the same fate but if I get a similar sort of lifetime out of them I think I’ll have got my money’s worth out them, again.

So in conclusion, in my opinion the Trango S Evo is one of the best all round summer boots out there, especially for those venturing out for mountaineering rock routes in the mountains. The uppers do have a durability issue which I think Sportiva could easily change with a slight design change, but even this wasn’t enough to stop me buying another pair.

Arc'teryx Cierzo 35 - First Impressions

I probably didn't really need another rucksack, in fact theres no question about it - I didn't. But with Ultimate Outdoors reducing a lot of their stock in their January sale I couldn't refuse one of the Arc'teryx Cierzo 35 packs, reduced down from £70 to £50 at Ultimate Outdoors Lancaster. Arc'teryx describe it as:

Lightweight and highly packable summit pack. Our lightest day pack under 40 litres.

So, the most obvious thing thing that blurb is that this pack is supposed to be light, and it most certainly is weighing in at 580g. I've had a play about, and if you do a bit of trimming, and removed the compression system you can knock about 100g off this which is getting into serious lightweight territory for a pack this size. Its frameless and has minimalistic waist strap which comprises simply of 1.5 inch webbing with no padding. The capacity is a conservative 35l, but if you really stretch the lid you can just about cram 40 in there. Theres one large lid pocket, and a main body - thats it, no side pockets or zips, no hydration sleeve etc. Its clean, and I like it.

My predominant winter climbing pack for the last half a decade has been my trusty POD Black Ice, one of the ones that Pete O'Donovan in his garage before production moves to China. It is a great rucksack but due to its size, when I'm going fast and light, or climbing something pretty hard I found myself wanting a frameless sack that was a bit smaller and lighter, willing to sacrifice some comfort on the walk-ins. I thought I'd solved this when I bought my Black Diamond RPM in the summer, and while this was great for Chamonix style alpinism I've found for British winter climbing, getting a full rack, harness, helmet and other winter kit is a bit of a squeeze. So enter the Cierzo...

Walking off the Ben with a fully laden Cierzo 35.

I took it out on its first proper outing on Tower Ridge at the weekend. I packed fairly light, but still had all my winter gear and a moderate sized rack in my pack so it wasn't at its lightest for the 2 hour walk in. Surprisingly though it actually carried fairly well, with the hip belt taking more load then I was expecting it too. Unlike a framed rucksack you do have to be careful how you pack the cierzo as the back padding is minimalistic, you could if you wanted add in some extra foam sheets to pad it out a bit more. once we got to the climb I re-packed the sack, with the lid tucked inside the main body and hip belt fastened out of the way. As expected it was a dream to climb with.

This is by no means a definitive review, I'll write one when I've truly used and abused the pack but I think the Cierzo is going to do well. I'm going to take it down to Snowdonia with me next weekend for some rock-climbing and mountaineering, and I'll take it up to the Cairngorms when I'm there in a few weeks time. I also have high hopes for this when the summer alpine season comes around, for stuff of more traditional nature - i.e. not lift accessed, and I reckon it will just about take bivi kit.

The pack has already received positive reviews on the Alpine Guides site and on Alpinist.

Black Diamond Reactor - Review

After twelve months of use I think I've put my pair of Black Diamond Reactors sufficiently through their paces to warrant a long term review. They can be seen on Black Diamond's website and are advertised as:

'An excellent all-around leashless tool at a great price, the Reactor delivers precise placements and exceptional control.

• Dual-pommel TPU grip for ice/mixed use
• Aluminum shaft
• Shaft is CEN-T certified
• CEN-B Laser Pick included'

I purchased the tools in December 2009 while living in Canada. At the time I was after a pair of more technical tools for cascade icefall climbing in the Rockies, and perhaps the biggest factor in me deciding upon the Reactors was their price. I wanted a tool with a dual-pommel style grip and while Nomics would of been (and still are) my first choice they were out of my price range, the other contender was the Fusion 1 however this tool while excellent on the mixed did not perform well on ice, and at this point in time the Fusion 2 had not been released.

Since then I've used them for a whole season of cascade icefall climbing as well as some continental style mixed climbing. They've also done a season of alpine climbing in the European alps and most recently have been climbing ice and mixed routes in the UK. I'll look at the advantages to using the tools in each of the above activities sequentially below. After a general overview.

Reactor with micro hammer.

The reactors are the heaviest (marginally) of the Black Diamond's technical ice tools, weighing in when set up with micro hammers at 675g per piece. This makes it 3g heavier than the Fusion 2, 50g heavier than the Viper and 87g heavier than the Cobra. For Petzl fans its 70g heavier than the Nomic and 125g heavier than the new (10/11) Quark. The shaft is stainless steel with a dual pommel TPU grip. At the base of this is a clip-able spike. The head is Black Diamonds modular stainless steel head which is common across its range. I added grip tape to the shaft above the upper pommel for better grip when matching, and for when swinging the tool from this position.

For cascade ice climbing I have the tools set up with laser picks and two micro-hammers. I've had a few comments about how I go on without an adze, but for pure water ice I don't miss it. The main use for an adze in cascade ice climbing is clearing rotten ice from the surface to get good screws and in my experience I can perform this task fine, if not easier with the pick. Two hammers mean both my tools are equally balanced, and given the choice, although neither is a appealing prospect I'd rather hit myself in the face with a hammer than a adze!

Climbing WI4+ with the Reactors in the Upper Evan Thomas, Canadian Rockies.

I enjoyed climbing on the tools, finding them similar to a pair of Vipers but with the advantages of the dual grip. They worked well from the easiest angle ice (where sometimes I found it easier to swing from the upper grip position) up to WI4/5. At this point I begin to feel the limitations of the tool, particularly on featured, vertical ice as due to the relatively shallow pick angle (when compared to tools such as the Cobra, Fusion or Nomic) meant the shaft would often impact the bulges as I tried to hook them or make placements on top of them. If your not constantly knocking out routes in excess of WI4/5 this won't really be an issue for you.

I packed the tools when I headed out to Chamonix for the sumer alpine climbing season, at first feeling they were perhaps a little overkill. They were however fantastic, and worked really well for me in the alpine realm. I used them on several routes, snow-ice faces to mixed ridges. Examples being the North Face of the Tour Ronde, routes on the Tacul Triangle through to the Kuffner Ridge on Mont Maudit. For predominantly snow/ice routes I rolled with the lazer picks but for routes with more of a mixed nature I swapped the lazers out for fusion picks. These are BD's aggressive T-rated picks, for general use Titan picks would be more appropriate - but here is a limit to the number of picks one can have! I also replaced one of the hammers with the standard adze. I could of used a micro adze, but if your going to buy an adze for the axes then your obviously planning on using it - so just buy the big one. When you add the adze though, there is a noticable difference in the swing as despite the head getting heavier the weight is now further back then forward. This is minor, but is noticable on ice, on mixed it isn't really an issue.

On the Kuffner Ridge of Mont Maudit, with Reactors and tethers.

They coped well with both moderate terrain and technical climbing. On easy angled slopes I tended to clip my tethers to the head to allow me to plunge the shaft. This nonsense about not being able to plunge tools like this is rubbish in my opinion, In soft snow they still plunge fine. In harder snow, or when I've got the tethers climbed to the spike I often simply invert the tools and plunge the heads. If the snow gets any harder than this I'm into daggering terrain - or swinging from the upper grip (a lot of critics cited this reason for not using such tools in Scotland - its Scottish Winter CLIMBING for got sake, not Scottish Winter Plunging...).

Next up was the UK winter season, which started for me with some early season mixed in the Lake District followed by several trips to Scotland. I had the tools set up in their alpine configuration, with fusion picks for this and found them to be fantastic. At first I had concerns about the teeth on the top of the fusion pick making removal from placements difficult but I haven't really found it an issue. For Scottish ice they've been great, having had them out at Beinn Udlaidth, the issues I had with them on really steep featured ice in North America haven't manifested yet over hear due to the comparatively lower grades and thinner ice. They've also done really well on the mixed having climbed consistently up to tech 5 in them. If your knocking out real hard mixed test pieces, VIII & IXs, then you'll probably be better off with something like a Fusion, as there is some pick shift when matching with these tools.

End of a day's early season climbing on Great End, the Lake District.

So in conclusion, the Reactors are an awesome all-round tool, especially for the UK based climber that perhaps dabbles in ice-climbing, mixed and alpine. If you want a tool specifically for hard water ice on the continent then there are tools out there that will do job better (Petzl Nomic).

Winter Climbing Clothing

With the winter season coming early this year I've already been out on a few routes, and I've been trying out the first of a few new clothing system ideas I've got for this winter, mostly made up of bits of kit I picked up while living across the pond last year. I'm a big fan of softshell clothing, I think its ace, infact in winter I hardly ever wear waterproofs - I find them constrictive and not breathable enough. The British climate however often doesn't lend itself well the whole softshell concept though, often being fairly warm, and as a consequence wet. Recent conditions have been almost alpine or continental like though, with low temperatures producing fairly dry snow.

For my baselayer I've been wearing a long sleeve 240 weight Icebreaker on my top and powerstretch tights on my legs. My midlayer is a Patagonia R1 Hoody which works really well on the walk in having sleeves that roll up and a big deep zip for venting. When I get to the base of the route I pull the sleeves down and stick the thumb loops on beneath my gloves to keep spindrift out, and I put up the hood under my helmet which acts almost like a balaclava. On my legs is a pair of Mountain Equipments G2 Ultimate Mountain Pants. They are made of Gore's Windstopper material which I have a bit of love/hate relationship with (See my blog on Summer Alpine Clothing) as while I like the fact that its weather resistance and waterproofness means I can forgo carrying waterproof pants, their breathability is really poor. The big thigh vents are open from leaving the car which alleviates some of this issue but their still not perfect. They also have internal gaiters which do a fairly good job of keeping the snow out of your boots, especially if you add a little piece of elastic that goes under your boot. My climbing jacket which goes on over the top is a Arcteryx Gamma MX Hoody, a softshell hooded jacket that I picked up a few months ago after wanting one for a long time, and it is perhaps one of the best jackets I've ever used - I'll review it fully after I've given it a bit more abuse. Two of the best things about it though is firstly is that its got a fully technical helmet compatible hood, and secondly the cut and stretch of the jacket is superb allowing complete freedom of movement.

Gamma MX Hoody & R1 Hoody winter climbing in the Lake District.

In the sack I carry a really lightweight waterproof shell, a Patagonia Specter Jacket. I carry this purely as a emergency jacket, if I can help it I won't be wearing it when I'm climbing at all as I would probably shed the really lightweight fabric, but for walking off in a storm it will do fine. If the forecast is particularity bad I'll take my Haglofs Spitz, which is still fairly light but much more burly. Always in the top of my bag is my belay jacket, which is really the workhorse of the system, coming in and out of the pack all the time, at belays, when gearing up and down etc. As its been fairly cold I've been taking my Rab Neutrino Endurance Jacket which has worked well, although it has all the well known disadvantages of being down, and of course the advantages. I have been thinking a heavyweight synthetic jacket may be a good investment to replace it though, with the Patagonia Das Parka and the Arcteryx Dually Belay Parka looking like very good contenders.

And thats it. I think its a fairly lightweight system, based around the softshell and belay jacket concept and so far its done well. I'm skeptical about how well it will do in more British (warmer and wetter) but we'll see.

Black Diamond RPM 26 - Review

I've been using my Black Diamond RPM for most things over the last 6 weeks in Chamonix, from long rock routes to big norths faces, and its taken it all in its stride, and I'm super pleased with it. Here's BD's spiel on the pack:

'Designed for constant movement on big days, the lightweight RPM features a highly compressible, ergonomic design so it moves with you during climbs and scrambles.'

I've been thinking of buying a small lightweight pack for a while now, I toyed with purhasing with the Arcteryx Cierzo 18 or 35 for quite a time while climbing in the Rockies but was never convinced as the 18 seemed to small and featureless but the 37 was a bit too big. I saw the RPM in Snells and it looked liked it fitted somewhere in the middle, so went for it.

The RPM is essentially frameless, so don't expect to be carrying any loads in it. Its got a small waist strap effort which is effectively just their to keep it stable rather than transfer any load, this comes off really easily when you start climbing though. The back does have a thin layer of foam which gives some comfort and structure when packing. Enough of talk of carrying loads though, if your carrying big loads you don't want this rucksack! What this pack excels at is big days going fast and light in the mountains.

For lift accessed climbing, and staying in hut in the Alps this is perfect. I can quite happily fit water, food, a few layers and first aid kit plus whatever gear I need for the route. It compresses wonderfully as well, so you end up climbing with a snug small rucksack rather than something half empty and flapping around. The zip design is a little unusual, and a departure from my normal rucksack purchaing trend, I've always been of the school of thinking that zips can break and I'd always prefer a solid drawcord and buckles/lid. Zips are light though, this back weighs in at 600g, sure there probably not as durable as a standard system but I think I'm willing to sacrifice a shorter lifespan in this case. For such a small sack two ice axe loops on the front are also great.

Using the RPM alpine climbing in Chamonix.

The fabric seems to be relatively hard wearing, after 5 weeks of use in the alps theres only a few scuff marks and one small hole which was caused by hauling it up coarse Chamonix granite on the Rebuffet route. Its never going to last as long a old school alpine sack like my POD Black Ice or similar, but its a fraction of the price and the weight.

The downside is that I doubt I'll be pulling this pack out for much use in the UK, I could imagine the zip letting water through into the main body of the pack really easily and it probably the wrong kind of size for most mountaineering days, plus mines is white, which is certainly not the colour of choice for most moist, mossy or muddy british scrags. But if your looking to go lightweight in the Alpine regions this would be great, I could imagine this being a really good sack for long ice routes as well.

Theres a few other reviews floating around the web, one at Sierra Descents and one at the Colorado Mountain School.

Junkyards & Norquay

Just a quick note here.


Last weekend (Sunday 28th) I headed out to the Junkyards with Dena & Ian for a fairly chilled afternoon, we threw a top rope up and climbed some of the steeper lines on the curtain before doing Scottish Gully, all fairly standard stuff. With regards to conditions theres are some big shear cracks forming in the ice on the main falls, I counted 4/5 with about 6ft in between them, I don't think theres any immediate danger but its certainly showing that its late in the season. The curtain is also thinning, and theres a big hole at the bottom. The itself isn't too bad to climb on, theres a granular layer thats sitting on top of the proper stuff thats formed as a result of the freeze cycles, this in combination with the ice below actually gives quite easy placements, it goes without saying that the steeper (WI4) lines are all really hooked out. If your after leading stuff I'd be wearing as due to the quality of the ice I was wearing about placing screws, and if you do place some, especially for top-roping make sure you bury them with some snow/ice. It was over 10 degrees when we were out there in bright sunshine and screws were certainly falling victim to melting out.

On a side note we hired some gear from a place in Canmore as we were a bit short, including a pair of Black Diamond Cobras - absolutely amazing tools, probably the best I've climbed on (yes, better than the Nomics I think!).


Yesterday (Sunday 4th) I was out skiing, as the other resorts were going to be busy due tot he easter weekend we decided to check out Norquay. Its a small resort, only 5 chairs all with a mixture of runs coming off them but it was satisfying for the day, if I spent several days there in a row I would certainly get bored, its no Sunshine or Louise but considering there were probably only 50 other people there all day (Sunshine would of been in the 1000s) it made some pleasant skiing, being able to just burn down runs with nobody else on them.

When i get chance I'll try and ass some photos to this. I reckon I maybe have next weekend left for winter stuff if the weather keeps going the way it is and then I'll be packing the skis and axes up until next season.

Arc'teryx Gamma SK Pant - Review

As the winter season draw to a close I thought I'd offer some thoughts on some of the kit I've been using this season, starting with the Arc'teryx Gamma SK Pant. Arc'teryx's blurb for the pants on their website is as follows:

"These super durable softshell ski pants are designed for high-output touring days, combining superior mobility and breathability with cold/dry weather protection. The Burly double weave textile is extremely tough, comfortable next to the skin, and stretches with movement. Perfect for skiing or alpine climbing, these lightweight pants feature articulated patterning and built-in stretch powder cuffs."

I'd had my heart set on a new pair of ski pants for this season, something that would handle both backcountry and touring stuff as well as days at the resorts. Below is a basic summary of features and qualities I was looking for:

• Breathable - skinning up hill is hard work, especially in the spring sun!
• Water-resistant - it generally doesn't actually rain in most of the environments I use these so they don't need to be waterproof as such but a degree of water resistance to shrug of snow is needed.
• Wind-proofing - to keep the wind chill at bay.
• Hard-wearing - I don't want these pants to wear out after one season, so the material in general needs to be fairly tough, and some protective material of sorts on the cuffs.
• Braces - I like braces, especially on ski pants.
• Big cuffs - either with or without a zipper but big enough to get over ski boots.
• Look cool - for being down with the kids on the corduroy!
  

So taking these into account I began to trawl the web for possibilities, and narrowed it down to the Patagonia Backcountry Guide Pant and the aforementioned Arc'teryx ones, both which ticked most of the boxes. I tried both pairs on in Monodsports in Banff and in the end settled on the Gamma's.

I bought the Gamma's in a medium, I probably could of got away with a small, and if I was buying them for alpine climbing I certainly would of gone for a smaller size but for skiing I wanted to be able to get a good few layers under them in the depths of Canadian winter as well as avoiding that stereotypical 'tight pants' European skier look! They come with a pair of braces that are quite low profile but still do the job, I like this as sometimes when you've got a pair or two of braces on, and a transceiver and a camera on a strap you've got so many straps on your upper body it feels like you should be in some sort of S&M movie! The cuffs are wide enough to fit snugly over ski boots and keep the snow out, but are easy enough to pull up to adjust buckles when switching from walk to ski or cranking up for a particular challenging line.

The pants are not insulted, theres no fleece or synthetic lining to add warmth but I liked that. I find when touring all I need to wear under them is a pair of thin thermals, on warmer days I go for a pair of Mountain Hardwear Alpha Dry Tights and on cooler days, a pair of Arc'teryx Rho LTW merino wool pants. For piste skiing I wear the same but add a pair of powerstrech pants in between the layers, which has so far kept me comfortable down to about 20 below. The climate is while being very cold at time, pretty dry here, I've never felt damp in the pants despite their lack of waterproof membrane. The closest I think I've come is when sitting on chair lifts when snow has begun to melt a little on my thigh which are pretty warm from just burning down a run - this is easily brushed off though as it beads instantly thanks to the DWR treating of the pants, which is still going strong after over 25 days of heavy use.

Wearing the Gamma SK's while touring on the Colombia Icefields.

Like I said above, I've used the pants for over 25 days now, for all of my backcountry and resort skiing and they still look as good as new. Theres one small knick from an errant ski edge on the cuffs, on the softshell fabric rather than the hard wearing patches. One other feature I particular liked and i've found useful in the backcountry is two cargo pockets on either side which are handy for a map or other things you want quick access to.

At $200 there not reasonable but not exactly expensive for a Arc'teryx item. A lot of people criticize Arc'teryx gear for being over priced, and a year a go I would of agreed however I bought a few items of their gear while over here and I have to say its some of the best I've used. Sure its expensive, but is does the job and it lasts. Simply put you get what you pay for.

So in conclusion, if your looking for a pair of pants for all you ski exploits, then take a look at these, they haven't let me down yet.

Just a quick addition here, I've just seen that the pants have also been reviewed over on the Alpine Guides Blog, check it out to see their views as well.

Summer Alpine Clothing - Soft Shell Pants

After my return from Canada, and once I get my practical work done for my dissertation I'm planning on spending some time in the Alps with various people this summer, hopefully ticking some of Rebuffet's classic routes in the Mont Blanc massif. Joining me for the first period of the trip is my friend Lewis Abbott, we had a conversation recently and he asked what I thought regards soft shell pants for summer alpine climbing so I thought I'd spill some of my thoughts on the topic on here.

So whats the definition of soft shell, in my mind its something that is much more comfortable to wear than a full hardshell (Gore-tex, eVent etc.) due to better breathability and less restricted movement, the downside being that they don't offer the full weather protection of a proper shell.

The soft shell concept has been around for a lot longer than people think, perhaps not in its current guise of sexy stretchy fabrics that have been popular for the last five years, the original soft shell was the combination of pile and pertex by Buffalo in their smocks, and similar things from companies such as Montane and Mardale. Shortly after this shelled-micro-pile became very popular, with the most famous incarnation being Marmot's Driclime fabrics. These consist of a windproof and water resistance outer fabric with a high wicking linear hung inside and are in my opinon one of the best options for a soft shell options out there, Rab popularized this design even further with the introduction of their Vapourise line which works on the same concept.

Sporting a Montane Pile/Pertex Extreme Smock, where it belongs, in Scottish Winter.

If we step away from the above and look at the types of fabrics that most people at present would consider stereotypically 'soft-shell', soft to touch stretchy fabrics they can be roughly divided into two categories, those built with a membrane and those without. Membrance fabrics such as Windstopper, eVent softshell and other all other a lot of protection but often offer little advantage in breathability over a conventional waterproof. Fabrics without a membrane are usually a lot more breathable but don't offer the same level as protection.

So how does all this crap relate to what to wear on your legs in the Alps, wells lets look at what you want a pair of pants to do. Full on waterproof salopettes like we'd traditionally see being worn in the depths of scottish winter are overkill for the alps, you'll get far too hot so breathability is key. You want them to have a degree of weather resistance, to be windproof to a degree, be able to shrug of snow and maybe some light rain as when you've got your harness on (which 90% of the time you will have) you won't be putting your over-trousers on that easily. Alpine climbing is hard on your clothing, particularity on the knees and ankle cuffs so you want them to hard wearing, reinforcement in these areas is a good idea. Finally your going to be wearing these pants for climbing so you want them to have good movement, this can be through stretch or just pants that are cut really well.

So what are good options that are out there?

I personally prefer a softshell pant without a really heavy membrane, and am quite happy to sacrafice some of this protection for breathability. I own a pair of membrane pants, Mountain Equipment G2 Ultimate Mountain pant and they are good pants but I find there uses limited, and generally not suited to summer alpine climbing (I use mine for Scottish Winter and cascade ice climbing where the temperatures are cold and its often wet, many people don't realize it but the wind-stopper fabric by Gore is effectively waterproof).

The two pairs of softshell pants that I've owned that I've found have worked particularly well in the alpine arena are the well known Patagonia Guide Pant and the much more elusive Montura Vertigo Light Pant. The guide pant has been around for years, and theres been a few different incarnations but in general the design has stayed roughly the same. They use a stretch woven fabric which gives a good freedom of movement and is DWR treated, if you look after this, washing it and re-activating it regularly it will keep beading water and shrug off snow without a problem. One feature I liked in the pair that I owned, circa 2006/7, was the gathered ankles which had a nice burly piece of hard wearing material on the inside to protect them from errant crampon spikes or sharp ski edges, they also had a zip though which meant you could still get them over bigger boots, and another good feature were two webbing loops on either side which allowed you to fit a piece of elastic you put under you boot, reducing the need for gaiters. I found the pants very hard wearing, despite them actually not having the reinforcements I mentioned originally, they did a lot of miles of rock routes, scrambles and actual alpine stuff and if they still fitted me I's still be wearing them now. From a UK perspective they're actually pretty dam useful once you get back from your trip to the alps as due to the breathability, and weather resistance there the perfect pants the UK hills in spring and autumn, and for some aspects of winter.

Wearing the Guide Pants in the Jostedal, Norway.

So lets move on and talk about the second pair I mentioned, Montura Vertigo Light Pants. I'm guessing that a large proportion of the people reading this won't of heard of the brand Montura, and until a few years ago I hadn't either. Its an Italian company and from what I can see there are very few places outside of Italy that you can purchase their stuff, the shops of Cortina of full of it, and I think Cham3s in Chamonix, France stocks some. I picked mine up from Matterhorn Sports in Zermatt, Switzerland in 2008. Simply put, there amazing, the best alpine pant I could want. The cut of the pants is fantastic, its very tight and athletic so may not suit everyone, think technical ronhills and you won't be far off. The ankle cuffs and lower leg are particularly close fitting and form a nice seal at the top of your boots stopping snow from getting in, due to this theres no excess fabric flapping about to catch on your spikes either. The next box in my list of things an alpine pant should do is that there hard wearing, the seat, knees and inside legs are all made with a Kevlar weave material which is incredibly tough, I've worn mine on Skye, Scotland and for anybody thats climbed on the Gabbro there this is a definite testament to them. So this leaves us with breathability and weather resitance to deal with, and the designers of these pants tackled this really well. The front of the pants are constructed of a stretchy, fairly waterproof ripstop material whereas the backside is made of a simple stretch woven material that is much more breathable. Climbing pitches of ice, or steep snow sections its the front parts of your legs that are going to need the protection, these pants give that but allow you to dump heat out the back at the same time - its a great idea.

Vertigo Lights in action on the Nadlegrat Ridge, Valais Alps, Switzerland.

So that my two cents, there are a lot of other pants out there that I've not had personal experience with, when I wear out my current pair I'd be keen to try out Arcteryx's Gamma AR Pant, and Mountain Equipment's Liskamm Pant also looks like a good contender.