24 december 2011

Gear: Extremities Lightweight Guide Glove

Most activities have their own requirements for gloves, which will be influenced by weather, activity, terrain and temperature; even on a short trip you'll probably take more then one pair.

I'm always looking for the perfect 'light' glove, for when it's not too cold. One that fights off that first chill. One to fend off the wind. One to wear hiking, scrambling and crossing a glacier. It would be nice if they're lightweight too, and don't break the bank.

I had high hopes I had found that perfect glove when I came across the Extremities Lightweight Guide Glove

Extremities Lightweight Guide Glove

They're  light: my size XL's weigh only 58 grams.

08 december 2011

Book Review: Alpine Mountaineering

I've done a few mountaineering courses in the past few years, and have also climbed a few mountains. However, living in The Netherlands means I don't have very easy access to mountains. This makes it hard to get a lot of experience and keep up to date with things like crevasse-rescue techniques.

So what do I do when I'm at home? - I at least try to stay up to date with the theoretical part of things. For that, there's the internet and there are books. I can easily get lost on the net for hours watching YouTube and reading about climbing gear, layering strategies for clothing, how to get a low pack-weight etc.. But it's also nice to hold a real book once in a while. 

Recently I bought Alpine Mountaineering by Bruce Goodlad 
(Pesda Press, ISBN 978-1-906095-30-7).

Alpine Mountaineering Bruce Goodlad
The book seems to be written for British hillwalkers wanting to 'cross the channel' and go the European Alps.