You've probably heard this time and time again but the key to dressing for winter in the hills is to layer up. Avoid the huge coat that will keep you warm down to -20 degrees as you will be either baking hot and sweating as you hike or freezing cold when you have to take it off or it gets wet. Layers have many benefits, they allow you to regulate temperature far more effectively by adding or removing layers, they help wick sweat and moisture away from the body which is crucially important for staying warm and if things get really cold or you are caught out in a storm, then you can always have a few extra layers in your pack to make sure you stay warm and safe.

Base-Layers

Wicking is very important, especially for base layers. No matter how cold it is, as you work hard climbing the fells you will start to sweat, this sweat if kept against your skin will draw heat right out of your body incredibly quickly, that's why your layers must allow the moisture your body naturally produces to be transferred away from the skin. There are many different types of materials that offer wicking ability to varying degrees, personally I find that Merino wool is great, not only does it dry very quickly and have great wicking ability, it will also keep you warm when it is damp so it is a win win in my eyes.

Mid-Layers

Next you must add some insulation, this should usually be multiple layers. Warm fleecy layers are ideal. They should still offer breath-ability but warmth is what you are looking for from this layer, something fairly snug fitting works well, personally I like to wear a thin fleecy layer, nothing too bulky and then over the top of this I will wear a warm down jacket. Down is an incredibly good material, very light, very compressible and incredibly warm it is ideal for the UK winter. However if your down layer gets wet, it will lose almost all of it's heat retaining ability, therefore you must be very careful to keep this layer dry. I just want to mention a quick word about Down, if you want a Down layer then please ensure it is ethically sourced and by this I mean making sure that it is sourced from non-live plucked, non-force fed animals. Most of the major manufacturers make extensive efforts to ensure that their Down is ethically sourced but please double check here. Alpkit also ensure that all of their down is ethically sourced. There are synthetic alternatives and I have one of these (Polartec Alpha) which I carry as a back up. If it gets incredibly cold I'll stick my synthetic jacket on underneath my down jacket, this is incredibly warm, I'm very well insulated inside of these two jackets.

Shell / Outer Layer

Your base-layers and mid-layers should now be keeping you warm enough but you need to protect yourself from the elements, namely the wind and the rain. Even the best mid-layers will become pretty useless if you are caught out in a downpour and if the wind is cutting through you then this is a recipe for disaster (hypothermia). That's why the final layer is crucial. This must be a windproof/waterproof layer, ideally with a hood that will keep you dry and stop the wind from cutting through you. You should buy the best outer layer that you can afford, a decent one will last you years and years if treated well and maintained properly.

The Other Bits & Pieces

Don't forget about your legs. If you follow the advice above but just go out in your usual pair of hiking pants then you will have cold, numb legs which is never fun. It's up to you how much you want to add to your lower half but just follow the same layering principles outlined above. Personally I don't go crazy on my lower body, I just wear a pair of thermal leggings as a base-layer and then I have some fairly hefty hiking trousers which have some water repellency and I find this is enough for me. Avoid Cold feet, I use a very good waterproof pair of Altberg hiking boots year round so come the winter I just add a nice thick pair of hiking socks and I'm good to go but I generally run fairly warm so if you need to add liner socks to keep your feet warm then do so. Hands are very important. There is nothing worse than having to struggle to put a tent up in bad weather with numb wet hands. I wear a thin, fleecy pair of gloves which are pretty good on their own but I carry with me and from time to time will use a big pair of waterproof mountaineering gloves to go on over the top. These layers on my hands are insanely warm and will see you through the coldest of conditions. Then there is the head. I'll start with a thin hat, fleecy but thin and breathable and then for the really cold days or for when I stop moving I have a big fluffy Nordic style hat which is very warm and covers most of the face. For extreme conditions I'll carry a balaclava also but the use of this is rare.

My Typical Winter Kit...

Feet:

Legs:

Upper Body:

Hands:

Head:

This gear is more than enough to keep me warm walking in temperatures as low as -15 or -20 which is pretty extreme for the UK. This is the gear list that I had with me when I hiked in Nepal in April 2017, it was suitable to keep me warm on those 5am starts with outside temperatures down to -15 degrees, so cold that my water bottle lid froze onto the bottle. Generally it would be rare for me to have on all of the items listed, lots of items remain in my pack until required but it's better to have them and not need them, than to need them and not have them.

I hope you've found this helpful and I encourage everyone to layer up and get out there, the hills can be incredibly beautiful in the winter and a lot quieter!