Arctic headwear recommendations please!

[tobes01]

As I've mentioned before, I've been lucky enough to blag a week's dog sledding in Sweden in early Feb (still no idea how I got that past SWMBO).

Anyhoo, I think I'm mostly sorted for kit, but I'm a bit short in the headwear department - all I've got is a merino beanie. I'm not a big hat fan, but I suspect that wizzing around for 3-4 hrs at a time is going to get chilly in -25 degrees, so does anyone have any hat recommendations? Mad Bomber trapper hats look nice but it's a lot of money for something I won't wear again.

TIA,

Tobes

 

[ged]

I wouldn't go anywhere like that without several balaclavas (not to mention a few neck tubes). I don't like balaclavas with separate holes for eyes and mouth, you get too much frost forming on the fabric around the mouth and nose. My favourite for walking is a wool + thinsulate one which I'm still wearing from walking the dogs this morning in -10C to -15C. After the first mile or so in those temperatures I usually roll it up to make a sort of woolly hat because I'm getting a bit warm. When I run I have to take it off and stuff it inside my shirt. I have thin balaclavas too. I usually wear one in my sleeping bag, partly for the warmth but also it helps to keep my sweaty head from making contact with the sleeping bag fabric and making it dirtier than it otherwise would be.

 

[big_swede]

Fur hats or bomber hats are the only way to go IMO. Try to get one locally, they are a few quite cheap brands common up there. Put it on the souvenir account.

 

[tobes01]

OK, looks like that's another item for the Swedish shopping list then

 

[Shewie]

I should have my Fjallraven Nordic Heater by then so you're welcome to borrow it for the trip.

 

[Mesquite]

I should have my Fjallraven Nordic Heater by then so you're welcome to borrow it for the trip.

LOL.... I was just thinking if I hadn't sold my Fjallraven Nordic Heater...

 

[tobes01]

I should have my Fjallraven Nordic Heater by then so you're welcome to borrow it for the trip.

That's very kind of you, but I'm happy to pick something up there - I can always sell it on here afterwards (that's if it doesn't get eaten by a husky first).

Tobes

 

[tedw]

Swedish Army "trapper" hats (as recommended by Uncle Ray for the Woodlore Arctic courses) sell for under a tenner on flea-bay - they are the dogs! Get one large enough to wear a thin balaclava under and you're golden

 

[Neumo]

In got one of those russian army fur hats from a surplus store a while back for about £10. It's one of those ones with the ear muffs that fold down the side & is made from proper fur. I have had it out in -15 & was as warm as toast. It lives in my cold weather bag for the car & is really good value.

 

[Big Geordie]

Hi Tobes,

Sounds like a lot of good advice already. Except for one thing, a light balaclava like a motor bike mask is really important to you. When we were dog sledding in Kiruna it was that cold and the wind chill made it worse. The face starts to go waxy and it isnt long before you can lose a part of your nose etc..:yikes:

Good luck with the trip, it sounds fabulous.
G

 

[sasquatch]

When I lived in Canada I had a neoprene facemask that closed at the back with velcro and was fuzzy inside. The nose was designed to block wind and expell warm air easily. Great for ski doos, skiing/snowboarding and dog sledding or general harsh prarie winds. When I first got one I didn't know how I'd survived up to that point without one!

 

[tommy the cat]

When I lived in Canada I had a neoprene facemask that closed at the back with velcro and was fuzzy inside. The nose was designed to block wind and expell warm air easily. Great for ski doos, skiing/snowboarding and dog sledding or general harsh prarie winds. When I first got one I didn't know how I'd survived up to that point without one!

I saw a lot of canuks wearing them when in Alberta snowboarding . Look like Hannibal but prob the locals know best!
I very nearly got caught out that trip 25 below plus strong winds... 'I wonder why it's so quiet on the mountain?' hmnnn frost bite is a reality even a small distance from 'safety'
Dead jealous buddy stay safe d

 

[coln18]

I did the dog sledging in the arctic trip with bushcraft expeditions last February and to be honest your marino beanie will probably be fine, i actually took my hat off as it was to hot, remember at times you are jumping of the sledge and helping the dogs push the sledge up hills etc, so in reality you soon work up some heat and nead to vent.

i took one of the Fjallraven heater hats, but they were a pain to be honest and i just used a ordinary beanie hat with a shemagh wrapped round my lower face when the wind was blowing cold and hard.

Hope this helps Tobes, you are a lucky man and will just love the dog sledging it was the highlight of my trip, absolutely fantastic.

Colin

 

[tobes01]

Thanks guys, lots of great ideas there. I'm chaperoning my 71-yr old dad, so need to be on the ball for his kit more than my own. We've got a day in Ostersund before we head out to the woods, so that should give us a chance to pick up some woolpower thermals and other bits and pieces.

Tobes

 

[DavidJT]

russian style fur hat + balaclava