One-Day Mountain Climb!
Trip Description:
One-day climbing trips are a truly amazing experience. If it’s your first time, or if you’re a seasoned summiter, the magic and beauty of climbing a mountain is still as breathtaking every time. These quick trips allow you to not have to carry extra weight like a tent, making a fulfilling, worthwhile day trip. Summiting a mountain for the first time is an experience like no other; you literally feel like you are on top of the world. However, to ensure you have a great time climbing with your friends, you need to make sure you have proper gear.
Conditions:
Mountain climbs can vary in general temperature and altitude, but one thing remains constant; massive changes in temperature! While you’re walking up a chute in direct sunlight, you’ll get hot, and you need clothing to accommodate. However, that will be very short lived, as if you stop at the top of the chute for a snack, the wind will quickly whisk away all that heat. This temperature change is really no joke, and you will probably re-layer many times throughout your trip.
General Gear:
Headlamp
Headlamps are incredibly important. You need them to see in mornings and nights, and they’re far superior to flashlights.
In a headlamp, you should look for a few things. Top priority is the amount of lumens the headlamp is, which is a measure of how bright it is. 325-350 lumens is a good area to shoot for. This will ensure you’ll be able to see everything you need to. Another key thing is to see how long a headlamp can run for. You’ll probably be using it for at least 6 hours in a day, especially if you use it in the mornings. You’ll want to make sure it runs for long enough, and make sure to bring extra batteries. The final thing to look for is a red light mode. Red light is much dimmer, but won’t blind people if you look at them with it on. It’s nice for camp, and when you’re around a lot of others, but it’s not a necessity.
LINK
Spare batteries for headlamp
Bring extra batteries for your headlamp, and check what type of batteries it takes. Some headlamps are rechargeable, or come with a rechargeable battery, so take that into account as well. If you have a rechargeable battery, still bring other batteries as well, even if you have something to recharge it with, just in case.
2 full water bottles
Water bottles are KEY!!! Especially on a long day, having a lot of water is sooo important. Being dehydrated on a climbing trip leads to a multitude of issues, including but not limited to: cramping, headaches, and tiredness.
Nalgenes are awesome, but hydro flasks work just as well. If you already have 1 liter bottles, just bring those. If not, look for something like this (48oz, 1.5L), this (32oz, 1L), or this (32oz, 1L). Again, both plastic and metal bottles are great, but both have advantages. Metal bottles keep water colder/warmer, but are heavier than plastic bottles. It’s completely personal choice, as well as the size, but never get a bottle smaller than a liter for water, especially for a trip like this.
Whistle
You can get a relatively cheap whistle like this, but make sure to have it all the time, in case you need it.
Pocket Knife
Pocket knives have so many uses. It’s always good to have one on a trip.
This is a cheap, small pocket knife. If you want to opt for a multi-tool or a swiss-army type knife, they have a much wider range of uses, and can pack a lot of different helpful things into a small space. Whichever you choose will be an amazing tool to assist you on your journey.
Sun glasses
These are incredibly important. Snow blindness is basically a sunburn you get on your eye. This sucks, and is also really damaging to your eyes, which can give you terrible headaches and cause you to lose vision temporarily. The reason it’s called “snow blindness” is because snow is really good at getting sun right into your eyes, and is really really reflective.
These sunglasses can’t be just normal everyday glasses, and one key part is having side protection. Because snow is so reflective, it gets in the sides of normal sunglasses. Some people make duct tape covers for the side of glasses, which is wayyy better than nothing.
These are good glacier glasses. They protect all sides of your face, and offer 100% UV protection. These are also good glasses, and offer a slightly different fit. However, for any glasses you are looking to buy, you should go into a store and try them on before buying them. Every face is different, and don’t rely on which look cooler, because you want them to fit your face well.
Sunscreen
Sunscreen is super important. Make sure to re-apply a lot, and get under your nose, the tips of your ears, and under your chin. SPF 50+ is good for mountain climbing, especially because of the harsh light from the snow.
Extra Food
Make sure you bring not only food for the meals, but make the meals larger than you would normally eat.
Extra clothing
You can bring extra clothes to wear in the car back if you want, but that’s more a thing for comfort. To make sure you’re safe and don’t get too cold on the actual climb, make sure to bring at least one extra layer just in case.
Snack food
SNACKS ARE AWESOME! Bring lots of snacks, as climbing a mountain can make your appetite weird. It’s good to consistently have small amounts of food, as sometimes people don’t like eating a lot in one sitting, and it’s good to constantly be refueling your body.
Clothing:
Long underwear top
Long underwear is a tight, light, breathable layer. It provides a initial layer of warmth and is not heavy.This is an essential layer.
Long underwear top: There are a few different materials that are used to make these. Wool and synthetic materials (polyester usually) are the main materials used. This and this are examples of good base layers. You don’t by any means have to buy one exactly like these, but they are good as they are made out of common materials. You can also read this guide if you’re looking to make a bigger purchase.
Long underwear bottom: There are a few different materials that are used to make these. Silk, wool and synthetic materials (polyester usually) are the main materials used. Typically, wool and synthetics are used, but silk has its place.This, this, and this are examples of good long underwear. You don’t by any means have to buy one exactly like these, but they are good as they are made out of common materials. You can also read this guide if you’re looking to make a bigger purchase.
Insulation parka with hood
An insulation parka or puffy/er coat is an essential warm layer. It serves as a very warm insulation layer.You’ll love having this warm layer at summits, small stops, or if the weather takes a cold turn.
These coats are incredibly important, but can vary a lot.
There are 3 main types of jackets, down, synthetic, and a mix of both. You may hear, “down is the best,” but typically, for a mountain climb, down isn’t always your best bet. 100% down isn’t very good for wet, sweaty conditions, as opposed to synthetic. Opting for a mix of both is usually ideal, cost and performance wise. Depending on the type of mix you get, you’ll either get a coat with down placed in certain areas like, or you’ll find a mix of down and synthetic throughout the coat. This is a very good synthetic/down coat, as it is relatively light, has a hood, and has a high rating of both synthetic and down. Check out this article if you want to do some more research to find your ideal coat.
Rain jacket
This is an important piece of gear for any trip you go on, as it is always good to be prepared for rain! The purpose of this rain jacket is to keep you dry, and serve as a windbreaker when necessary. You will use a rain jacket very very often throughout all of your trips.
This is a good example of a rain jacket that you want. It is waterproof and windproof, which is very important while climbing a mountain. You want to make sure your rain jacket is both of those before climbing a mountain, and This is an article on how to choose a good rain jacket if you feel like getting something more expensive and want to do your own research: https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/rainwear.html
Rain pants
Rain pants are your lower waterproof layer. They don’t have insulation, and aren’t meant to be very warm, just to act as a windbreaker and waterproofing.
These are great rain pants. They are waterproof, windproof, and have ankle zips. These are all very important factors, but the ankle zips are important in a different way. They allow you to put on/off boots to change socks, put on your pants easier, and are generally much more convenient than a full pant. On a different note, some more rugged and intense mountaineering rain pants have really cool features. This is an example of really intense mountaineering rain pants, which would be used for extreme mountaineering. You do NOT need to get something like that for your first climb, but it has really cool things. These specific ones are incredibly durable, use 3 layer ultralight fabric, and have suspenders. They also apparently have some kevlar in them, which sounds super cool.
Wool/pile hat
This is your warm head layer, and necessary for every climb.
This, this, and this are all good examples of a hat. Having ear flaps is really nice, but they are not totally necessary if you cover your ears with a hood or a buff. You can use any warm hat you have lying around, just make sure it’s comfy for you!
Gaiters
Gaiters are waterproof wraps that go around your ankles, from the tops of your boots to your calf. They keep snow, dirt, mud, etc. out of your boots and pants.
Pro tip: Make sure that your gaitors fit your upper calf before purchasing, or using for a climb.
Extra socks (wool)
Gloves or mittens
These should be waterproof gloves
Bula/neck gaiter
A buff is a great option
Technical Gear:
Mountaineering Boots
Mountaineering boots are critical parts of climbing, as they allow you to put crampons on, keep your feet warm, and provide ankle support.
You’ll want lightweight climbing boots like these, not plastic ones. These can be rented if you want, but they are very essential for any climb.
Crampons
Crampons are basically spikes that you attach to your shoes. They are mainly used for travel on ice, or very steep slopes.
They can be rented, but if you’re planning on doing a lot of climbing, these are a great investment. This is a good example of a basic crampon that is up to the task of climbing a mountain.
Ice Axe
The Post has some to borrow, if you don’t own one already! Don’t feel the need to spend a bunch of money.
You don’t need a super expensive lightweight ice axe, just a basic one like this. Most of them are around the same price of that type, this one is a good, basic ice axe.
Harness
The Post has some to borrow, if you don’t own one already! However, if you are going to purchase some technical gear, this is the item.
You don’t need the most expensive harness, although they can be substantially lighter. A good beginner harness has double-backed adjusters, gear loops, and hardpoints, all of which are common in our modern harnesses.
Helmet
The Post has some to borrow, if you don’t own one already!
Helmets are crucial, and always required for Post climbing trips (mountain and rock!). Typically for mountain climbing, you’ll want a shelled foam helmet if you’re looking to buy one for yourself, but the post has great helmets as well.
This is an example of a great helmet if you are looking to buy one, and this is an article detailing more about what to choose.
Locking Carabiner
Non-locking carabiner
This is a good non-locking carabiner rated for climbing.
Prusiks
A prusik cord is a small length of rope which is widely used in many parts of mountaineering and climbing in general. It basically attaches a loop to a rope, and (if you haven’t already) you’ll learn how to use it on field day.
You can get a prusik in an already looped form, or you can buy a length of rope and tie a double fishermans in order to form a prusik. You can buy rope at Next Adventure or other outdoor/climbing shops.