Richard Gear's Latest Answers

Q: Hi. I'm going trekking to Everest Base Camp in November 2007 and need some advise on what to take, as far as sleeping bag and jackets go. I currently have a Mammut Stratus Hooded jacket, which I'm hoping is adequate? My real worry / concern is the sleeping bag? Do I buy down or synthetic?

I want something I can use when I get back here, so am tempted to go synthetic, but am worried about the bulk of something warm enough to keep me toasty. I also don't know how cold it's going to be at that time of year, so don't know how warm a bag to get. Finally, I want something that won't break the bank! It's not much to ask is it?! Can you suggest any good ones? Please help!!!

A: Gear here, Richard 'Trekking' Gear, at your service. First time visitors to the Himalayas are often confused about what to expect in terms of weather and conditions, so here's a quick run- down of what's likely.

The temperature varies with altitude. The higher you get, the cooler it will be. If you walk in from Jiri, it's actually warm and humid during the day, but as you get higher, temperatures drop. Even so, daytime conditions are more like UK spring...
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Q: I'm planning to climb up to 6700 meters (Huascaran in Peru) and am looking for the best combination to stay warm in those conditions. My current idea is using thermal underwear, a windstopper fleece, a softshell and then a Gore-Tex hardshell. Will this combination allow the right trad eoff between flexibility for all conditions and sufficient thermal insulation capacity?

A: Gear here, Richard 'Andean Climbing' Gear. What worries me about your system is that it seems to rely on you being able to mix and match layers to suit the conditions, unfortunately while that's easy enough on a nice summer's day ramble in the Dales, it's less practical in a high mountain environment where you're going to be carrying a pack, wearing a harness and probably have coils of rope around your body too.

It's hard to be exact about your insulation needs as well as there are so many different factors coming into play. If...
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Q: I've seen alot of stretchy Gore-Tex jackets and trousers (not pants). But does anyone make stretchy eVent jackets and trousers?

A: Richard 'Stretchy' Gear, master of elasticated shell clothing and sorcerer of stretch. The short answer to your question is - to the best of my knowledge - No! Nobody is making stretch eVENT waterproof fabrics at present, because eVENT doesn't produce a stretch eVENT fabric.

Because I'm irritating though, I'm going to take it a step further and ask why you'd want a stretchy waterproof...
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