PTC*

Got the new motor. New to me that is, it’s been in this world a good wee while on it’s own already.
It’s another Mondeo estate, and its black. Black. I’m fine with black, I was more worried by the private reggie number that it came with and how quickly I could get a regular one onto it, but everyone else has just noticed the black. The big, black and long motor.
I was thinking it was a bit heavy metal, a bit satantic, a bit James Bond, a bit shinier than the last one, but no. “Oh, I like the new hearse”. I’ve now heard three folk say that to me independantly in the past two days.
So be it, I’m now driving a hearse.
Ha.

I did drag my feet a bit, Sunday morning was good, me, the girls, cuppas, laughter and fannying about. But I got all dressed up and Holly’s comment that “Dad, you look like a mountain superhero”  which I immediately tweeted kinda got me moving. Bobinson’s reply of “I’ll meet you there” galvanised me and I was out of the door.

The forecast was wrong, a text of “cloudy” when I was fueling up at Lix Toll confirmed it, I should have been 50 miles to the north where it was all blue skies and majestic drama. What the hell, I had a pack full of kit, food and enthusiasm for sitting in a tent during the 16 hours of darkness.

Bobinson was waiting for me, like a cheshire cat, or is that caterpillar that sits on the toadstool? Whatever, he was sitting on his truck at the new Lawers car park as I came up the hill. The new multi-level scar on the hillside car park that’s er, much better than the old one?
There was snacking, the donning of windproof layers and gloves and we were off up towards the Tarmachan ridge. It was cloudy and bloody cold, the ground hard frozen, the path was an ice floe and the folk descending looked chilled and relieved, which as darkness gathered and height was gained changed to chilled and terrified. The last couple eyed us with horror from within their frost crusted hoods.

The sunset was limited to a few holes in the cloud, but the thick orange beams shooting through were a fine sight. They looked like a 3 bar electric fire you can see in someone else’s house across the street, inviting, reassuring and with any warmth attached entirely imaginary.
The grass was thick and angry looking, every blade sharp and jagged with ice as the wind whipped over the ridge tempering each blade further.
I wanted to camp under the cloud, thoughts of the summit were dismissed by now and just under the wispy base of cold grey was a little flat ledge with a snow bank above the crags.

I grinned as I pitched an old red friend to the sounds of Phil chipping away at the rock hard snow to melt for cuppas. Too long man, too long.

We had cuppas and banter until it was dark. Phil had to go back down, bless him, he was just along for the those very cuppas and banter. As I saw his lights disappear rarely have I felt quite so alone. He stopped at the shoulder below and took some photies and  I knew what he was up to, so I shone my headtorch into the haze. Check it out, magic.

I had dinner, more cuppas, all of which were out of the base of my Jetboil as I’d forgot my mug, but it was fine as long as I remembered where the little notches were and didn’y pour coffee or hot chocolate down myself and my sleeping bag repeatedly.
I also had no iPod and no book, both were sitting on the bed when I got back. It was going to be a long night. Phone reception was okay, so did some of that stuff. I dozed a good bit which was rather nice as the temperature was dropping  and I snuggled ever deeper into my down cocoon.

I kept on sitting up to look outside to see if the weather was changing, most times I would shuffle back inside with a humphing sound at the persistent cloud, and every time I would shower myself and my gear with frost as the entire inside of the tent, inner and flysheet was coated. Above my face were little growing icicles of breath moisture, not as nice as an Orange Fruitie, it was properly cold.
Eventually it was clear above and I was back in my boots and outside into the vicious wind. A sky full of stars, glowing snow patches on the ridges across the coire and bank of fog below me, lapping slowly onto the slopes that lazily climb from Loch Tay.
The most remarkable thing was that all the hamlets along the loch, and especially Killin, glowed orange through the fog like UFO’s powering up to leave earth for somewhere better organised, or at least like a sneaky child reading a book by torchlight under the duvet.
Just amazing, captivating even, didn’t feel that wind sucking the heat out of me for about half an hour, and even then it was my toes sending the loudest danger signals to get back indoors. Damn those down socks are a life saver.

It was the early hours, the wind had woken me up and ice crystal were falling on my fcae from the shaking inner tent. It seemed brighter too so I stuck my head outside to see what was happening.
The moon had risen and was doing its best to light the land through various streaks and thin layers of cloud above. Below me a proper inversion had grown and Killin burned deep within it like the great red spot on Jupiter’s surface.
It was worth the price of admission just for that moment.

I went back to bed, snacked some more and fell asleep at last, warm and surprised at hopw quick it had become so late. Where time went I don’t know, I still can’t find it a few days later.

The morning was white and cold. I really didn’t want to leave the tent, but a pee was needed and like the night before once I was out I went for a wee wander. The ridge above was as viewless as the night before, but below looked more hopefull and as I enjoyed my hot porridge back at tent the layers of murk lifted just enough to show me a deeply frozen landscape where patches of sunlight played on the icy hillside and crossed the bubbling inversion like a U-Boat searchlight looking for a politically incorrect analogy.

I packed and I left, dowhillwards (I’ll now keep using that word until WordPress gets bore of telling me it’s a typo) instead of further into the hills. I had to be in Ayr to pick up the new motor in the afternoon, it was late when I left the day before, couldn’t be arsed anyway etc
I pulled on my tyre chains and crunched towards the loch and it’s wispy comb-over.
The fine dam on Lochan na Lairige has pipes running to Killin that are well hidden, but here and there are the aging remains of construction. I like finding this stuff, after a while it takes on the look of the mountain with the same colours and the manufactured edges soften to match the natural ones around it. Nature wins.

Big patches of blue appeared, the people passing me in the other direction looked happy to see it. It looked like it was clouding over again as I reached the motor, Joycees borrowed motor, but it was going to be fun for them whatever, hard frozen terrain with no deep snow to tire you out is a good day.

The car park will no doubt grow into the hillside in time, it’s on the other side of the road and downhill from where the old Lawers centre was. I hope the tidy that up properly too, looks like a cross between a building site and a motocross track. And the Somme.
The single track road down to the main road follows the same theme, so many trees are down after the storms and have just been cut up on the spot. The road is a carpet of branches walled by the pale circles of chainsawn timber. Strange.

Killin was a few minutes away and there I had steak and haggis pie breakfast. It was a joy to behold and I sat in the motor with it, a cuppa and some music.
The frost was thick and it didn’t start to soften until I was well down Loch Lomond. I got home, unpacked the gear, showered put on cotton and was late for getting the motor.
Oh well. Still, it looks like I still know how to camp on mountains, so that’s one less worry.

I have, and it’s about bloody time too.

 

I was always a gaiter wearer but in recent years I’ve been in softshell pants more often that not where internal gaiters were keeping out the crap or in trainers where gaiters were kinda superfluous. But manky legs are rubbish in a tent, and it’s manky out there just now, wet and muddy instead of snowy. So when Hillsound gave me a shout from their side of the Atlantic to flag up their new models, I raised an eyebrow at the gaiters. I love their Trail Crampons which are now available in the UK, but would that sharp designers eye of theirs work as well on other kit?

The model that arrived were the range-topping Super Armadillo Nano Gaiters, full of techy stuff.  The first thing you notice is the mix of fabrics, a very soft upper and very stiff lower section, and that’s the story on the Nano’s. The lower section that fits over your boot is cut from Superfabric, the dimpled surface of which has been seen on here many times on my Haglöfs Grym boots. This stuff is incredibly abrasion resistant and doesn’t absorb moisture, which makes it in great in the boots but potentially better in the gaiter application as my gaiters have always taken hole-punching crampon slashes. The stiffness also makes for a nicely shaped cuff around your boot that doesn’t fold or roll when plunged into murky horror, the seal around boots is excellent as I’ve discovered, with just enough flex to keep them feeling anonymous.
The upper half is Schoeller C_change, a breathable and waterproof membrane fabric with a huge amount of stretch to it. It also comes with NanoSphere treatment, essentially a super-duper water repellancy

I was right in-between an medium and large in the charts and it was a medium that arrived. The first time I tried them on was over baggy jeans and trainers and I could barely get them fastened, oh dear I thought.
The next time I tried them on was over slim fitting Montane softshell pants in the car park at Ben Donich and it all started to make sense. The zip starts at the “wrong” end, at the top, so with the slim-fit design you have to start the zip around your ankle, then pull the gaiter up like a sock as you zip them up. It’s a little awkward, but when the gaiter is pulled up, it’s like it just clunks into place above you calf. There’s a buckle at the top as well, this will protect the zip from pressure that might open it, but it’s still on an adjustable stretch webbing so security doesn’t come at the cost of comfort.
The zip is a YKK water resistant type so should be durable enough and behind it is a lightly padded storm flap to catch any drip and stop any pressure on your leg from the zip. The zip terminates under a velcro flap to keep it safe.
The hook is the right way around, that is, it hooks underneath your laces. This design is the only one that makes sense, it never comes out, once I had my pair of Mountain Hardwear gaiters with the hooks like this I never looked back.
For underfoot security there’s a fat replaceable nylon strap fixed onto buckles which are in turn attached to the Superfabric with beefy fabric tabs. The metal parts look a little on the wiry side for the weight of all the other components, so I’ll be keeping my eye on them for durability.

In use is where it all matters, and by the time I has walked ten paces the first time I wore them, I forgot I was wearing them. Over lightweight softshell and socks, the super-slim fit upper Schoeller section was perfect, the stretch in the fabric means there’s no sensation at all. Even awkward foot placements or stretches that I would have expected to at least tug the buckled top cuff down onto my calf failed to cause any issues, it’s like they’re made of powerstretch.
The Superfabric section sits there and warns the crap and rocks away from your boots quite effectively and where it joins the Schoeller bit becomes an external ankle of sorts, the Schoeller stretches into the Superfabric and it all moves without pulling down the leg section at all. Even plunging into bogs that you might expect to leave a shoe in when you pull your foot out didn’t upset it. While the tight fit might feel odd when you first try it, it works very well, just make sure you wear trousers that work with it.

The other aspect of the fabrics is moisture management. The lower section keeps the crap out, keeps water out too as boots stay dry, but the Schoeller upper really surprised me. On the Ben Donich trip where I was calf-deep in wet peaty horror a lot of the time, when I got back to the motor and peeled them off I was completely dry underneath, sure my socks were a little damp from hours of exertion, but no patches of trapped condensation on either my trousers of the inner face of the gaiters. I just stuck my Vans back on over the socks I was wearing and drove home.

I’m really impressed by the fabric performance, the Superfabric was a known, but the Schoeller is really what makes the gaiter work as well as it does along with the neat design.
The initially scary slim fit actually makes so much sense and works so well, besides, for bigger calves or heavier trousers you could get the size up (I’m UK9 and these gaiters are a medium). Weight for mine is 338g for the pair, is that good compared to other gaiters? No idea, but they don’t feel weighty when worn.
Bottom line is I like these, they fit me fine and it’ll be great to take them off in the porch of the tent and jump into my sleeping bag without having to roll up my muddy trousers first.
Gaiters are back, didn’t expect that.

 

Went to the Snowbaw outdoor trade show in Edinburgh during the week. It was a strange one, it’s almost a secret show as there’s no website for it, no registration, no advertising and as it turns out very few store buyers or media folk coming through the door. So, by the time Bobinson and I got there a good few of the exhibitors had given up and gone home, including Terra Nova which is a shame as I had stuff to see with them, but I’ll catch up with them in a couple of weeks.
Elsewhere there was a lot of the same old same old from the likes of Rab, a bunch of brands I haven’t featured on here and will be soon, brands new to the UK and some brands who still view me with suspicion, that would be Mountain Equipment. We saw a lot of kit that got us enthused, saw some pals, made some new ones and had a good day all in.

First person we saw was Ollie from 9point9 brandishing a Granite Gear shopping bag. It’s light, it’s technical, it’s a shopping bag. I want one. The Granite Gear stuffsacks suddenly clicked though, they’re oval where everyone else’s are round. Less wasted space in your pack whether you’re stowing one or a couple side by side, it’s a no brainer making them this shape.

There’s the eVent version above with which Ollie nearly herniated himself whilst proving it’s air permiability by compressing it while it was fastened up. Point proved, let’s take a rest in the sub-kilo 2-person Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2. Nice, and if you want to try it, come to the meet in February, more on that next week.

It’s in the UK, it’s on display for the buyers to see, but will we see it in the shops? Who knows, but we were quite taken by Montura and it’s mix of super techy kit and wooly jumpers.

I’m in a softshell above and Phil is wearing the expedition down jacket that Ollie’s being crushed by below. Well featured and very individually designed, a thread through the whole range.

Shelled insulation is in most folks gear cupboard these days but the model above has a few more features than most while still staying light. The powerstretch cuffs/thumbloops are brilliant and the hood is a mix of shell and the cuff fabric, feels a bit unusual at first but it’s going to fit perfectly every time.
There’s a range of pants, softshell with cargo pockets? Yes please.

The gloves are excellent, up there trading blows with the fine sculpting on Marmot and Haglöfs top-end models. There’s white leather (alright!) and a mix of shell, softshell and insulation varieties. The orange headband is a wonderful unnecessary.

I cried when I had to leave that jumper with the pouch pocket behind I’m wearing above. Merino comfort and a perfect fit, I’m in love.
The jacket below is wonderful madness, wool shelled technical lifestyle practical coolness. With a hood.

More softshell above, this time for girls and denim-a-like stretch bouldering pants below. The looks are very convincing and the styling is spot on if you look at what’s in the young peoples emporiums.

Phil’s trying a Gore-Tex ActiveShell jacket, stripped down for running or biking. Good hood and fit and like a lot of Montura, covered in reflective detailing.

And, in keeping with the regular tone of these pages, they have nice beanies and underwear in a box with panties printed on it. Interesting brand for sure, I hope we get to see some of it over here.

Gareth from Odlo was pleased with the new baselayer above, it has to be the lightest baseleyer I’ve ever seen, the label is the same weight as the shirt. Very fine and soft fabric with an open weave, should wick and dry fast.
The top below is a baselayer with bonus extras, it has a hood and a Buff-style roll neck so you can go from regular rambler to rather garish ninja in just a few seconds. Nice thumbloof cuffs on there too.

More X Bionic madness with this orange bike jacket with the techo-sausages inside. The fit’s good, but the sausages taste awful.

Hillsound are making a lighter weight Trail Crampon which is a bit more like the Kahtoola Microspike in spikatronicness and layout. Looks good I think.

 

Carn is a brand I haven’t had a close look at until now and the footwear is all pretty individual looking. There’s some very different fabrics in there too, I’ll talk about this some more when some samples arrive.
On the same stand were Woolpower which I took no photies of as we got blethering and I forgot, so again more on those guys when samples are in.

Kozi Kidz are already a favourite here and they’re still developing the range. Hoods now have adjustment, you can get the wonderful onezie above (could I squeeze in there…) and in the shots below you can see the new waterproof models for girls and boys. The green jacket will come with yellow zips when it hits the shops, and the blue version will have orange zips. There’s a  real joy to the Kozi Kids stuff, a lot of the brands could learn something here and have a look at their po-faced posturing and pro climber obsessions that nobody gives a shit about.

A couple of things on the Mountain Boot Co stand caught my eye, a lime green rock/alpine boot from Scarpa that was very light and an unintentionally matching Deuter pack above. The ACT Lite has some very un-European features like external pockets and feels like it has a good weight for its 45+10 capacity. I’ll see what I can do about a sample, something new. 

Said hello to Mountain Equipment and they were very nice if a little confused to see us. Looked at the K7 jacket above and below, box wall construction with EXL stretch seams for a close fit and the new EXL hood which I’ve got a close up of below. It’s basically a stretch hood, so it adapts to a bare head or a helmet with any adjustment. It’s gives unrestricted movement too, looks good.
There was some talk of the baffle behind the zip, it’s like the zip baffle on a sleeping bag, not stitched-through so it stays fat and the zip never becomes a cold spot. Had a wee look at some other kit too, it is all nice enough if familiar shaped.

Keen’s got plenty newness on the way. Above are the Womens’ Bryce and Bryce Mid’s. Waterproof, light and with a new patterned chunky sole. Yes, I know I shuild have taken a shot of it.
Below are the Santa Cruz street shoes, suede uppers and skate shoe style outsole. I love these.

Icebreaker, never been seen on here but was the first merino brand I ever wore and my Oasis crews still get worn. Graeme was happy to show us the range and there’s awhole bunch of stuff in there that raised an eyebrow.
Above are woman’s 200 weight Oasis crews, ah look at the colours. Below is a Sierra Full Zip, a 260 weight midlayer. Nice detailing.

The Orion Sweater above is straight of  fashion store but with a better fabric and thumbloops. Below is the girls Quantum Hood in 260GT weight, GT being the top end tech fabric. Fitted hood and thumbloop cuffs with a niknak chest pocket.

The black and blue top above is a girls LS Pace Zip, afitted sport top in 200weight and the pruple (yes!) one is either another one of them or maybe an LS Quest Zip in GT200 weight. Nice whatever.
Below is the show stopper, Icebreaker bike wear. There’s small range of bike gear and these are SS Circuit Jersey’s, back and front. Good shaping, brilliant pockets and cool 70′s sci-fi styling. Merino is nothing to fear on a bike, Smartwool got it so right with some of their bike gear and never followed through, here’s hoping Icebreaker stick with it.
The Circuit Bib’s are below and there’s short’s, 3/4′s, arm warmers and three other tops with a full range of woman’s fit versions. Nice.

Finally, at the bottom of the page it seems appropriate to have a selection of pants of all colours in merino flavour. I’ve got some Icebreaker on test, it’s kinda orange and I’ll get back to that soon.

Not a bad show all in all, there was plenty stuff to get excited about, but a lot of wheel spinning too, brands just fiddling rather than really developing. It’s probably the pressures of seasonal selling, having to produce something new for a certain time rather than when you’ve had a great idea. It’s probably one of the biggest flaws in the whole process, it’s not easy to be inspirational on demand. 

Anyway, I’m all enthused about gear which is nice. Much more soon.

Spent the day in Edinburgh at the Snowbaws outdoor show looking at some new kit,  some new brands too which was nice. I’ll do a write-up over the next couple of days and I’ll be announcing a “thing” too, I’ve got a few of the distributors working with me to put together a show-and-tell weekend at the end of February.
There will be sample tents, rucksacks, sleeping bags, trekking poles, clothing and plenty more for folk to test on a wild camp in the Southern Highlands. It’ll be on a Saturday/Sunday so hopefully folk will be able to make it along, I’ll be looking for maybe 5-10 volunteers, so if you’ve got a blog and want some exclusives to review or just want to come along for the banter it’s all good. Check your diary for the last two weekends in February and check back here in a few days for more details. There’ll be girls gear to test by the way.

I’d had a late Greggs, from the Gorgie branch just outside Tynecastle stadium where the show was and I haven’t been overly hungry since. But Holly looked worried at my lack of food enthusiasm and insisted, so with Joycee’s assistance a huge plate of red-hot mini tarts appeared. The tarts were awesome and now gone, the contents were ham, cheese and Damn Good Chilli Jam! which is made by fine bloke in Peebles and should be purchased and consumed by all.

It’s living the dream isn’t it, sitting here looking at Flying V’s on ebay whilst being brought cuppas and pastry delights by someone who’s smile is genuine and is also dressed as a Disney princess.

I was in a shop before Christmas, a big shop, it was in Braehead, Primark maybe? Anyway, they had what I thought were dressing up outfits for adults, cartoon characters, superheroes and the like and on the whole they seemed a little sinister and somewhat overly plush. Turns out it was pyjamas, all-in-one pyjamas, or onesies.
I dunno about this, I mean, a bedtime boilersuit? Is it just Andy Pandy Pandemonium or late night lounging luxury?
Whatever, the day after my discovery of this new fashion blip on my radar of pointless events, through the post came a techno onesie for test, an all-in-one ankle to wrist to chin baselayer for the outdoors. Gallus, I look like a frogman Action Man that’s been left on the radiator. More later.

I’ve had Horatio McCulloch and his wonderful works on here before, but I just came across this page on the BBC site which has a bunch of his paintings, all familiar Highland stuff or scenes local to me like the view below which is also in Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Museum (I can see my living room window just at the turn of the river). The genius thing is that it has links to a print ordering page which I didn’t know about as I’d bought this ages ago. Go on, you know you want one.

It’s not all good news. The (mostly) silver Ford estate which has carried me to work and mountains without fault or complaint for the past three years is dead. They ran out of room listing all the faults on the MOT fail sheet and had to continue the list on the tissue I was sobbing into.
So, new wheels please.

Glasgow is great for museums on a wet holiday fortnight, well, until the current bunch of curators who have no understanding of or empathy for the city or it’s history finally ruin every single one of them anyway. How dumbing down museums to the level of the instruction pamphlet that accompanies the toy in a McDonalds Happy Meal helps lift the population to better level of cultural awareness and understanding I don’t know.

Anyway, the People’s Palace was great, in fact the staff are brilliant in there and Kelvingrove has survived it’s revamp to a tolerable degree. Holly loves it as it’s full of stuff and has interactivity in spades. Above she’s hastily (that’s speed blur) recreating the painting with a bunch of foam buildings before shooting off to play in the Sleeping Beauty dressing up corner in the next gallery along.

Dad however was strangely drawn to one of the foam buildings. I swear it was whispering to me…

It said Don’t go to Beanscene across the road, the tables are manky and your cuppa will… be…. cold…. so cooooolllddddd….

There was no reason other than I wanted to go. That’s the best reason.

The first steps are the hardest, starting with the one that hits the floor beside the bed. The ones leading away from the motor are a mix of anticipation and dread. I knew how much this was going to hurt.

I was breathing hard and the wind was keeping me cool when I met David who was descending. I was glad of the rest and he was an enthusiastic soul, hopefully still is after my barrage of local information. I left with cheerfulness recharged and a chill about my body, I stopped and layered up next to some rocks which had deep crevices all through them. I skipped around peering into the dark drops as the clouds whipped by above in shades of pink. Cold, a bit breathless and having fun.

The wind was ever stronger and with a little dampness in it too, a sharp dampness at that, rocket powered drizzle is like having your cheeks wire-brushed.

Some snow, quite frozen too, some bog and quickly passing views as I strode with as much conviction as I could muster above the crags. A sharp descent on rock was done in the manner of a drunken, fat, middle- aged lady in high heels getting out of the back of a taxi. Though I did keep a hold of my handbag.

The sun was over there and I was here, I was happy for both of us. Swirling clouds lit by pinks and yellows glowed like neon against the dark wet rock as I winced into the wind to reach the trig point. Haven’t been here in years, nice to drive pass the obvious places, but what the hell it’s all Macfarlane country around Arrochar, honey I’m home?

I hid in a corner, the bramble jelly had stuck together my roll with it’s other contents of ham, apple and cheese very well. The first coffee tasted of relief, but the last little bit went cold when I was taking photies, the second coffee tasted of joy and went down quickly, the third coffee tasted of coffee which I was quite glad about as that’s what I’d actually put in the flask, not any of that other weird shit I was talked about a second ago.

I was enjoying the fuzzy fireworks but my hands were frozen. My mitts went on but it was too late, I knew I’m be all wobbly lip and teary eyes if I didn’t get moving soon. I got moving, downhillwards.

A truck came out of the forest in the dark to my mild alarm as I thought he was on the road at first and I’d lost my bearings to a worrying degree. More unexpected lights were at the landslide on the Rest and be Thankful, they’ve charmingly illuminated the the trouble spot with uphill facing arc-lamps. When the hillside is approaching your passing vehicle as speed you’ll be able to enjoy the experience in hi-def.

Yes, legs are a bit tight, and I should have drank more water, but I’m good tonight.

Yes, yes, I’m on my way.

It’s not been anywhere near a hill, but this Haglöfs Nevluk has hardly been off my back the past few weeks. It’s been wet, cold, windy and miserable and the Nevluk has been perfect for it.

If you think about it, heavy insulation probably should be waterproof, it’s going to be your outer layerwhen you sling it on after all and in these better days of slimmer fit shells you’re not going to take you waterproof off and try and slip your fragile insulation under it are you? No, no you’re not, it’s not 20 years ago.
But waterproof membrane fabrics and seam taping are bulkier and heavier as well as being more prone to damage when constantly compressed and folded for packing so we mostly get water resistant fabrics on insulationwhich is fine as modern fabrics kick ass. Bu,t if it’s cold and wet all the time, or even if it’s cold and dry and you’re going to be on your arse in the snow a lot, proper shelled insulation is where you’ll be going. Maybe?

The Nevluk is a “winter” jacket which covers a lot of bases. At 838g for my size large it’s beefy but not too much to carry into the hills on wet winter days where the combination of a Gore-Tex (Performance Shell 2-layer) outer and dampness defying Primalof fill (Sport flavoured Primaloft, 133g/m² in the body and 100g/m² in the arms) will beat a down jacket every time. It’s probably been designed as a ski jacket, apres ski jacket even give it’s sharp looks and as a general winter jacket for folk who live where it’s nasty weather, Scandinavia and outside my house for example. 
I’m thinking this because it’s warm, really warm, the Primaloft and outer shell trap the heat and even on very cold days physical exertion in the Nevluk sends your core temperature on a sharp upwards curve. It’s bloody marvellous.
I wear just a t-shirt under it so when I visit my folks house which is set to “pensioner” temperature I can just take my jacket off at the door and I’m ready to go in, no struggling off with jumpers while panting in the blaze of heat.

It’s got the detailing of a proper tech jacket, the hood especially is very clever as you’ll see above and below. There’s a big wired and stiffened peak with multiple drawcord adjustment which is properly attached but has an nicely sculpted fleece lined collar built in so your neck stays warm when the hood’s down.
The cuffs are nice and wide for big gloves and have velcro tabs and the hem has drawcord adjustment. There’s two big hand warmer pockets, one external chest pocket with a horizontal zip which I’m not so sure about, it’s a little awkward and liable to let rain or snow in (and not back out), although it hasn’t yet, so mabye I’m just fussing. There’sanother zipped internal pocket too.
The pocket zips and main zip (internally storm-flapped) are the water resistant type and are proving good so far, I’ve had my jeans sodden and stuck to my legs walking into the rain while not one drop made it through the front of the jacket. The zip pulls all have wee garages too.

The outer Gore-Tex fabric is quite tough feeling with a  nice soft handle (and not shiny at all) and a decent DWR treatment while the inner is the same soft fabric I’ve seen on the inside of Haglöfs’  Barrier range. I have a feeling this jacket will last for years, despite getting much more regular use than more dedicated hill gear.
The fit is great on me, usual Haglöfs slimmer cut, although here not so uncompromising as you’ll find on the racier kit, regular shaped people have nothing to fear.

A strange one, but my current favourite bit of kit. Really warm, lighter than you’d think, comfy, well featured and as orange as it’s possible to get.

Following on from the long running and hugely popular Muscle Car of the Week series, the new year brings the all-new T-Shirt of the Week series.

This is what the internet was made for, linking together people with a need to people with stuff. Finding this t-shirt was more than just a purchase, it was a meeting of geeks, an unspoken bond of understanding made through PayPal. Why? It doesn’t say on the t-shirt what it is, you have to know.

Yes, yes, I know that it’s also a way of avoiding copyright and trademark issues, but don’t burst my bubble here, I’m having a moment.

Oh aye, it’s the Antarctic research base from John Carpenter’s The Thing.