Layering clothes for the seasons

Yea I end up carrying all the proper layers and don't end up wearing half of it. So I'm not saying I don't tend to need to much so I skate by with carrying less. I still carry it and probably always will. I prefer to be on the cautious side :)

Still good to have the gear even if no chance of wearing it My last trip saw polar fleece pants coat fleece jacket gloves and hat in my pack but it was 20 and sunny (I did have sunscreen as well but that also didnt get used)

whats happening on some tracks in bad weather is people can end up having to give their clothes to other people who are suffering from hypothermia.. it may be because the other person needs dry clothes and all their clothes are wet.

some of the ultralight gear lists i've seen are so skimpy on clothes that they literally have to stay in their sleeping bags if the weather gets too cold because they don't have enough clothes to walk in the cold with. ultralight walker andrew skurka recognised this, although he doesnt call himself an ultralighter, he calls himself an ultimate hiker, he leans towards being an ultralighter, he realised he was getting "stupid light" he had cut so much gear out that he was becoming inefficient because he had to wait out cold weather storms. so he would add more clothes in to enable himself to keep walking in adverse weather

I've only worn down jackets twice when actually on the move. One time, I'd forgotten to bring a light polarfleece jacket and cursed my foolishness as the down jacket got a wee bit damp under the parka, thus losing its raison d'etre to some extent. I wore it for the entire 600m climb and descent right to the car. Another time Frank and I lingered at Black Hill Hut for a late lunch after coming up from Salmon Biv. I didn't want to take my big fluffy number off and descended 400m, mostly running down the track before I saw the need to remove it for a small ascent. One time I was being instructed on a course in winter on a mountain range and it was snowing. I was too cold to take much in except the fact that the instructor was nice and warm. He was wearing merino but there's no way I could have worn what he was wearing without sweating heaps and then freezing when I stopped.

I never had down jackets but always used a swandri. Being woolen it did not matter if it was wet as it always provided warmth. I have found that synthetic materials were never as good as natural fibers. Unfortunately my Swandri is no more - that is the full length one with the hood, and I understand they are no longer available. David

No matter if a Swandri is wet or dry, it remains very heavy. Pretty certain the Swandri jacket I had as a kid would weigh more then my entire clothing kit nowadays. Down and insulated jackets are great, at last count I own five of them. Currently want one more synthetic insulated jacket, simply because my current one is not insulated in the arms.

Swandris are still available but look at safety shops or their website. I still like my lighter weight swandri shirt even if Im given a hard time about it. They may be heavier but they work. I fell in a river with mine on on a cold day Just got up and carried on and rung it out when I got to the hut

Downies make the best pillows! I always carry one - even on day trips.

For milder temperatures the best mix I've used is a light merino thermal, thin merino jersey and my old reflex jacket. Admittedly the jacket is getting a bit tired but this combo seems to achieve the 'Goldilocks' temperature for me while moving and stopping for brief periods. Always take a down jacket for around the hut etc. As Honora says, in a loose stuff bag they make great pillows.