Alpine

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Our guide team puts a lot of time into testing and reviewing some of the best gear in the industry. This catalog of the alpine climbing gear our team uses is broken into categories: Clothing, Gear Essentials, Alpine Specific, and Overnight

The alpine kit can be very ambiguous because there are many environments where we as climbers climb. We are focusing this kit on mountain ranges such as the Cordillera Blanca, Cascades, Bugaboos, and Chamonix to give a large breath of alpine terrain.

Each link above is a toggle to move you down this page to the style of climbing you would like to review. You will stay on the same page and can scroll up or down to preview other category information at any time.

CLOTHING

FOOTWEAR

• Spring Glacier / Rock Boot- La Sportiva Aequilibrium Speed GTX

  This is your 3 season alpine boot and most likely your go-to spring alpine boot for most climbs. You are looking for comfort on the approach, waterproofness for snow, and rock climbing functionality on easier sections of technical climbing. Pro-tip, you can dot-rubber the front sole for better climbing performance if you are climbing a lot of technical rock in these shoes.

• Mountain Boot - La Sportiva G5 Evo

  The G5 or comparable style boot from other manufacturers is the boot style of choice for colder weather alpine conditions or for when you’re climbing more ice on the route and need a more stable climbing platform for your crampons. The integrated gaiter design provides a high level of waterproofing and increases warmth without sacrificing weight. For these reasons, you will see many experienced climbers and guides in this type of boot over a more traditional leather boot. We highly recommend paying the additional upfront costs for the integrated gaiter your first time purchasing boots, you won’t regret it!

• **The Fast and Light - La Sportiva TX4 Mid GTX

  When you are more focused on rock climbing capabilities in areas like the Bugaboos, where glacier travel is mostly easy and minimal, you can get away with a mid-top approach shoe. You can cut weight on the hike and gain a lot of climbing performance for easier routes like the West Ridge of Pigeon Spire or even the North East Ridge of Bugaboo Spire. It’s an option we use often when we are not working and need to go a little faster and lighter.

• High Altitude Boot- La Sportiva G2 Evo

  Alpine climbing environments change depending on location and in the high alpine, think South America and 6000m peaks, a warm and light double boot is critical. These routes often necessitate camping/bivying on the glacier. Having a liner that can be removed is key for drying out the inner boot and making sure your feet are warm at the start of the day. A single boot will freeze overnight, making them ice cubes in the morning. Liner boots can be stuffed in your sleeping bag overnight allowing them to dry and be warm in the morning.

• Socks - Smartwool Mountaineering Extra Heavy Crew Sock

  Wool retains heat when wet, the heavyweight option will provide the most amount of warmth. Bonus, use these socks when you are sizing your climbing boots at the shop.

UPPER LAYERS

• Synthetic Sun Hoodie - Arcteryx Women’s Taema Hoody and Men’s Cormac Hoody ( Layer 1 )

  As the temperature drops, long sleeves are often a better base-layer option to provide more warmth. On hard hikes into climbs, we find that we still sweat - but a short sleeve leaves our arms more exposed and adds to staying too cold. A long sleeve adds more protection and helps us to stay warmer on those harder, cooler hikes into the climb. If you do sweat, bringing two of these layers, one for the approach and one to swap at the base of the climb will offer the option to stay dry, even if working hard on the morning approaches. The hoodie feature also blocks much of the sun's UVA rays protecting your body from burns, critical on snow.

• Fleece - Arcteryx Women’s Delta Hybrid Hoody and Men’s Delta 1/2 Zip Neck Hoody ( Layer 2 )

  Grided fleeces are a proven technology. They breathe well, add more warmth than a sun hoody, and this piece has a good chest pocket for storing a phone and other small valuables. We swap this layer and the sun hoody interchangeably based on temperature and output for the day. Having an optional hood may be a preference and should be supplemented as needed.

• Mid Layer Insulation - Arcteryx Women’s Proton Lightweight Hoody and Men’s Proton Lightweight Hoody ( Layer 3 )

  An additional synthetic jacket as a layering and active climbing piece, the Proton LT breaths flawlessly and is essential as a mid-weight layering piece in colder weather. This piece insulates the core, keeping you warmer, and breathes when you need it during high-output activities.

• Insulation Vest - Arcteryx Women’s Atom Vest and Men’s Nuclei Vest ( Layer 3 or 4 )

  Vests keep your core insulated and warmer, promoting an overall sense of warmth without adding bulk to the sleeves. Vests are a go-to for us year-round and we typically wear them over our insulation jacket in the cold or over top our fleece during periods of cooler weather. We find synthetics are best for this layer.

• Windshell Jacket - Arcteryx Women’s Squamish Hoody and Men’s Squamish Hoody ( Layer 4 )

  High wind is often the weather event that makes most climbing uncomfortable, even when there’s sun and mild temperatures. We prefer to have a very light and durable layer to help block the wind. This can also be the key piece that keeps you warm when wearing a fleece just isn’t enough warmth and adding more insulation is too much.

• Hardshell Jacket - Arcteryx Women’s Alpine Guide Jacket and Men’s Alpine Guide Jacket ( Layer 5 )

  Hardshell jacket performance has improved tremendously in the past half-decade, providing the best of protection and breathability while storing in a small profile. For those reasons, more often than not, we keep softshell fabrics at home and bring the hardshell into the mountains. In the alpine environment, we are looking to blend weight and durability, which always seem to be in contrast. This jacket has a good balance of both but won’t fail you.

• Cold Weather Insulated Climbing Jacket or Low Alpine Belay Parka - Arcteryx Women’s Nuclei FL Hoody and Men’s Nuclei Hoody ( Layer 6 )

  We try to move fast in the mountains, which starts with efficiency. We often have this style of jacket in our backpack, but pull it out when winds pick up on ridges. We are often climbing in this layer in a snowy environment and for good reason. The Nuclei line is warm in a lightweight package. A thoughtful design that will make climbing tasks easier when the weather is not.

• High Altitude Belay Parka - Arcteryx Women’s Alpha Parka and Men’s Alpha Parka ( Layer 7 )

  It’s nice to have a large emergency parka, even if it just sits at base camp. The cold mornings and nights can get uncomfortable without a little extra insulation. We often sleep in this layer when in the high mountains which helps keep our sleeping bag smaller to save weight without sacrificing warmth. And of course, when the weather is horrible and we still need to climb, we need a storm shelter. The Alpha Parka is Arcteryx’s warmest down-insulated belay parka. Has RDS-certified 850-fill goose down for outstanding warmth and is complemented with mapped synthetic insulation for added breathability in moisture-prone areas and our favorite feature it the 2L GORE-TEX INFINIUM™ with ultralight, ultra-durable Hadron™ face fabric blocks wind and resists water while adding warmth equivalent to 100g of down.

BOTTOM LAYERS

• Synthetic Base Layer - Arcteryx Women’s Rho Heavyweight Bottoms and Men’s Rho Hybrid Bottoms ( Layer 1 )

  Adding a base layer to your bottom half can really keep heat in when it’s cold. This is a classic recommended piece for rock, alpine, ice, and skiing.

• Synthetic Shorts ( Layer 1 )

  The next active layer for your lower half offers a nice trekking pant option for the hike into base camp.

• Heavier Weighted Synthetic Pant - Arcteryx Women’s Gamma MX Pants and Men’s Gamma MX Pant ( Layer 2 )

  The Gamma collection is currently the standard colder weather softshell pant for snow/ice/rock environments and we prefer softshells for this layer because of the additional durability you receive from the fabric. This is your outer layer and will go over the top of your other pieces. These layers move well in the mountains and haven’t let us down yet!

• Stormshells- Arcteryx Women’s Alpha Pant and Men’s Alpha Pant ( Layer 3 )

  When there’s an active blizzard or it’s just wet outside, you need to keep your lower layers dry, ultimately keeping you warm. We always pack a hardshell pair of pants in the mountains, even if seldom worn. This layer should fit over all of the above pieces. Having full side zips is important for ease of putting this layer on over all your other layers, including when in boots and on the move.

• Puff Pants- Arcteryx Men’s Nuclei Pant ( Layer 4 )

  Light, packable, and built for belays, or any place exposed to biting cold, the Nuclei provides warmth that frees you to focus on your task. 80g Coreloft™ Continuous insulation goes from waist to knee, with 60g at the lower leg to balance appropriate warmth and lightweight. The light, tough Arato 15 fabric blocks wind, and GORE-TEX reinforces the seat and knees. Full separating side zips make on-and-off easy - even on hanging belays - and an accessible thigh pocket doubles as a stuff sack.

ACCESSORIES

• Approach Glove - Black Diamond Mid-Weight Fleece Glove

  Great to sweat in and wet out on the approach and then toss them into your bag at the start of the climb.

• On Route Climbing Glove - Petzl Cordex Plus Gloves

  A great all-around climbing glove when it gets colder on the rock and you need to climb in gloves. They are dexterous and well-built for climbing granite cracks.

• Warmer On Route Climbing Glove - Showa TemRes 282

  A great all-around climbing glove when it gets really cold, your route has more snow, or the conditions are very wet. A truly waterproof option. Gloves run small so size up one or two sizes…

• Colder Weather Climbing/ Belay Glove - Black Diamond Patrol Glove

  High durability, high warmth glove for cold climbing and belaying. We like this glove since it also transfers to a great winter work and ski glove. Versatility counts in your kit!

• Emergency Glove/Mitt- Black Diamond Super Light Mitts

  When facing extreme cold, mitts are often the only option to keep hands warm or to re-warm when needed. The Super Lights are a warm and durable option we’ve taken all over the world and still have held up over time.

• Sun Hat - Smile Mountain Guides Happy Camper 5 Panel Hat

• Water Bottle - MSR 2L Dromlite

  A bladder-style water bottle conserves space as you consume more water and these are still very durable.

• Food: Energy Bars, Fruit, Sandwiches, Trail Mix. 100 Calories an hour!

• Sunglasses - Julbo MONTEROSA 2

• Goggles - Smith Brand

  When you have high wind and extreme cold, you will want to change from sunglasses to goggles in order to protect your face better. A low-light lens, a lens that is bright, is best for improving visibility in poor conditions.

• Sunscreen/ Lip balm

  Look for Zinc products when searching for sun protection.

• Buff - Smile Mountain Guides Neck Gaiters

  Buffs are multi-functional making them great pieces for warmth in colder environments and as sun protection in warmer or sunnier ones.