I am looking to get a new pair of mitts for winter camping. What I have now does not accommodate wearing liner gloves or other layering. I cold tent and am looking for a system that will work through about -20F or so.

1) Looking at the mitts at REI and such places seem like they would be great for snowshoeing, skiing, etc., but I am concerned about their durability doing camp chores. Is that a legitimate concern or has anyone had issues?
2) The mitt I was narrowing in on was the Great Northern Chopper from Frost River. Link The plan would be to use them sized based on wearing a light liner glove and the wool liner mitt. Was looking for thoughts on these from anyone who has used them in the past.
3) Am I off base and should be looking else where? I am not new to cold weather, but this is the first year I have spent time out cold camping.

Thanks!

My typical hand-wear system for cold camping is:

- thin polypro liner gloves (just to prevent frostbite with mittens removed when doing something requiring finger dexterity)
- two options for insulating layer (i.e. two different thicknesses of rag wool mitten from Fox River or similar)
- durable nylon mitten shell from Wintergreen Northern Wear
- insulated leather work gloves for wood processing, cooking, and fire tending

I bring an extra pair of the polypro liner gloves for in camp if the first pair has gotten wet during the day (usually the case), then dry them out by wearing them to bed.

The mitten shells are rugged enough for most chores, but for heat-related things the leather work gloves are best (the leather tends to soak up water over the course of a trip, but applying waterproofing to them ahead of time takes care of that problem for the most part).

While travelling during the day I usually just have the polypro liners with the mitten shells over, unless it's a particularly cold day.

These are nice.






Sorry. It just felt like you teed that one up for me.

Empire Wool and Canvas True North Mitts are very nice. Come with a Wool Liner and I believe he even has a few available right now. A buddy of mine just upgraded to them from the Frost River ones. I have a pair of OR Alti Mitts that have never been used that I'd consider selling. Just in case you are interested.

Your mitts I would get extra big to put another pair of gloves in or a liner. Also have other gloves for chores etc. One thing I learned from decades of winter camping make sure you have extra gloves and socks. Both will get wet sooner or later. that goes for under garments also.

You might want to consider these - Steger mitts. I have not used them myself, but my main pair of mitts I use in winter camping are similar in that they are moose hide with canvas gauntlet, though mine have ahead wool liner vs 300 Polartec fleece. Moose hide is extremely tough, more I’d say than cow, pig, or deer. The gauntlets really help keep wind and blowing snow out.

Of course staying warm depends on both what you have underneath and how active you are. I usually wear a pair ofWell Lamont insulated work gloves for most things: travel, camp set up, camp chores. I sized my mitts so I could easily fit my work gloves inside with little effort to get them on and off.

One thing you might consider is getting/making a mitten harness so you can flip off your heavy mitts to dangle behind your back while you do some choreswithout your mitts falling in the snow.

I you can find them old U.S. Korean war mitts they are awesome. Nice and big and well made.

schweady: "These are nice.






Sorry. It just felt like you teed that one up for me.
"

No apologies necessary. Did not dawn on me when writing it, but yes, that was just served right up.

I appreciate all the feedback. I did a short trip up to Sylvania a few weeks back to check out how everything worked and hand warmth was one of the areas needing improvement. The Steger and Wintergreen mitts look like good options. I have liners to wear with them. Just need to double check the sizing to make sure the mitts are sized right. It did not look like either of those had an attachment point for a mitten harness. Do most folks just use clips (like on my kids' mitten keepers)?

True North mitts would be phenomenal, but are outside of my price range.

Thanks again for the advice.

I wanna say the Frost River ones do have a Mitten Loop, but the Stegers do not. But you probably want to do some more research here. I'm not a DIY kinda guy, but it would probably easy enough to sew one some loops or D-Rings. I use the Mitten Harness from Boundary Fur Sewing in Alaska. Pretty Cheap, but again, probably easy enough to craft your own. As Jaywalker pointed out it is nice when you can clip the Mitts behind your back, so they are out of the way when you don't need them, but still attached for when you do.

Kraut88 is right - sewing a couple loops on would be quick and easy even without a sewing machine. Heavy polyester thread and a needle will work, and even dental floss will work well. There was another thread not too long ago about Steger mitts . At the bottom of the thread I provided some details on my harness. I like using moose hide for my loops because it’s flexible but so strong. If you (or anyone else) wants a couple strips to use, just email me your address and I’ll drop them in the mail.

Outdoor Research Firebrand Coyote mitts. Or
US Army Extreme Cold Weather Mittens with wool liners

My Wintergreen Shell Overmitts (that I mentioned above) do not have a harness loop.

I use leather choppers with a polarfleece liner. I also bring lightweight Liner gloves to use alone or under the leather choppers when there is wind but warmer temps. Leather glovesor UG glove for the wood stove.

I got some waxed canvas choppers from Frost River in Duluth a few years back. Wonderfully waterproof and are large enough to cover much of the coat sleeve quite nicely. Not terribly warm, however. I'm still looking for just the right liner -- probably a thinner glove -- that will fit easily inside and won't pull against the soft lining already sewn in to the mitts.

schweady: "I got some waxed canvas choppers from Frost River in Duluth a few years back. Wonderfully waterproof and are large enough to cover much of the coat sleeve quite nicely. Not terribly warm, however. I'm still looking for just the right liner -- probably a thinner glove -- that will fit easily inside and won't pull against the soft lining already sewn in to the mitts.
"

like I said if Wintergreen still has the mitten liner they had 20 years ago,it can't be beat.

I am going to give Wintergreen a call tomorrow to see if they have the overmitts in stock and dug out some spare paracord to make a harness. Thanks again for all the info.