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A note from the editor: HIKE ROCKY magazine receives no compensation from the brands reviewed by Murray in this piece story and video by Murray Selleck, HIKE ROCKY magazine's gear reviewer We all have a favorite piece of winter gear. Whether it's a base layer for warmth, a pair of skis that makes one feel like a Norse god or a perfectly-fitting pair of lucky socks, these favorites have the ability to make a winter outing sublime. Over the years, my favorites have evolved just as design, materials, and manufacturing have evolved. I’ve worn out gear that I have reluctantly replaced. I have also given away perfectly good pieces of equipment or clothing that just didn't fit right or suit my skiing preferences. We all have a favorite piece of winter gear. Whether it's a base layer for warmth, a pair of skis that makes one feel like a Norse god or a perfectly-fitting pair of lucky socks, these favorites have the ability to make a winter outing sublime. This selection of equipment and clothing has become essential to my winter backcountry days. I don’t leave home without them!  Primus Preppen Vacuum Jug and Vacuum Bottle Primus Preppen Vacuum Jug and Vacuum Bottle Cold winter backcountry days when the winds are up and the temperatures down are enhanced with tummy- warming food and drink. I’ve taken to carrying the Primus Preppen Vacuum Jug and their Vacuum Bottle with me on my backcountry ski days. I fill the jug with soup and the bottle with either coffee, tea or hot chocolate. A quick pause from breaking trail and making turns to fuel up with warm food and drink not only provides a boost in energy but a boost in morale, as well! Dark, cold, wintery days suddenly feel not less challenging with tasty comfort food and a hot drink fueling one up. The Primus Preppen Jug and Vacuum Bottle are stainless steel, double walled, and vacuum insulated. The food and drink stay hotter longer. Even after my ski day is done I can still enjoy sipping hot chocolate on the way home. I can’t think of anything much worse than drinking a cold beverage on a bitter, snowy day! One of the most distinct features of the Primus Vacuum Bottle is the click open/close button on the top. Once you screw off the top lid (which doubles as a cup), simply push down on the click button on the second lid to pour your drink. Depending on the thickness of your gloves, it may be difficult to press the button while wearing them. If you don’t want to take off your gloves to click open the top, the easy work around is to just unscrew the second lid and pour from there. A nice feature of the Preppen Jug is its disc of cork on the lid. This no slip surface lets you use the lid as a small backcountry countertop. Place your Vacuum Bottle cup on it as you devour your soup! The Jug’s large lid is easy to grab and unscrew even with your gloves on. Once open, the Preppen Jug’s wide mouth opening makes eating from it simple. Both the Jug and Bottle have a powder coated finish making them easy to grab, hold, and open. If you don’t typically carry an insulated food or drink container on your backcountry ski days you should really consider it. Warm food and hot drinks are a special treat on even a short day out and the Primus insulated food and drink containers are especially good!  Wells Lamont HydraHyde Lifty Gloves Wells Lamont HydraHyde Lifty GlovesThe HydraHyde Lifty gloves are by far the best ski gloves I’ve ever worn. This is my fourth winter using this one pair of gloves from Wells Lamont. I have put them through many wet/dry cycles and the leather remains supple, soft, and crack-free. In the past I’ve ruined a few pairs of leather gloves because of my own neglect. Sure, I could have treated those gloves with leather conditioner and kept them in good shape if I had only remembered to do it! With the Wells Lamont Lifty Gloves I don’t have to think about maintaining the leather and that is wonderful from my lazy point of view. Maintenance-free leather gloves save time and money. When I get home from a ski day, I just set the gloves by the wood burner so they can dry. (Wells Lamont does recommend you dry your gloves vertically so if you can hang them or use a vertical glove dryer, that’s even better). The next day the gloves still feel great! From day 1 these gloves have had a comfortable broken-in feel that continues today… even after three years of use. The Wells Lamont HydraHyde is the not-so-secret secret to this great feeling leather. I can’t explain the tanning process but the end result is a water resistant, breathable, maintenance-free leather glove. The water resistance will never wear off. Brilliant! I use these gloves pretty much every cold winter day. For my hands and circulation the amount of insulation is perfect, not too much and not too little. I do wear a lighter pair of gloves on mild winter/spring days, but these are my go-to gloves during our typical cold winter conditions. Here are a few specs:
At around $40 the HydraHyde Lifty Glove is a bargain loaded with value! Julbo Aero Sunglasses (light as air) For a long time I wore sunglasses with lenses that were either too light in bright situations or too dark for low light days. I felt like either Mr. Magoo or a deer with headlights in its eyes, straining for definition. Nothing was ideal until I started using the Julbo Aero Sunglasses. The Reactiv lens is photochromic. They become squint- proof dark in really bright sunny conditions and they lighten up to a clear lens in very low light situations. Based on the conditions, the lens changes to allow between 12% and 87% light transmission. The Julbo Aero lens is a semi-shield shape, meaning that it has just one lens, similar to ski goggles. They offer plenty of “wind in your face” eye protection that prevents your eyes from tearing. The frame design offers plenty of ventilation to prevent fogging. I can’t remember this lens ever fogging up on me. And I do use these sunglasses year ‘round biking, hiking, and skiing. The Aeros are incredibly light and with the photochromic lens it is easy to forget you have them on your face!  One Way BC Vario XC Poles One Way BC Vario XC Poles This aluminum pole was originally built by Fischer Nordic under the same name - BC Vario. When Fischer bought One Way Sports a couple of years back, they handed off the production of this pole to One Way. One Way has since improved the BC Vario. There are several “best” features with this pole. The first is the “Vario” length. With an easy Quick Lock mechanism the pole length can be adjusted from 95cm to 160cm. This is great news for tall skiers who find that their adjustable poles work well for downhill skiing, but don't get quite long enough for comfortable uphill touring. The One Way BC Vario doesn’t discriminate! I like the cork touring grip, as well. In my early backcountry days we skied with adjustable alpine poles. A traditional alpine grip doesn’t allow for a comfortable backward poling motion in your glide phase like a Nordic grip will. The cork does not transmit cold through your gloves and into your hand as easily as a plastic grip will. The cork offers a nice slip free grip that won’t increase the chances of your hands getting cold! One Way added a length of foam just below the cork grip that adds more gripping options for holding the pole. If you don’t want to adjust the length of your pole (either while traversing a side slope or for a short downhill section) then simply hold the pole on the foam grip without using the strap. Options are always a good thing! The basket size is large enough to prevent the pole from sinking too much in deep snow but it is not so big it feels cumbersome. The basket also pivots or articulates to terrain variations as opposed to a fixed-position basket that might deflect off in some snow conditions. The pole has become a bit lighter under One Way’s production and that is another nice benefit. The last and least important feature is that the pole has a nice powder coat finish. It is a nice, refined look versus a “cheap” painted finish. One Way has definitely put some thought into this pole and made some nice improvements. It is a pole that will enhance your cross country ski or snowshoe day. Some folks may call these four items listed “minor accessories” that don’t need much consideration. They may think warm food and drink on a cold day isn’t necessary. A glove is a glove is a glove. A pair of cheap sunglasses will suffice. Poles don’t make any difference… However, I'd argue that any piece of clothing or equipment that you use and don’t think about while you’re using it is always the perfect piece of gear. A skier who is tired and hungry with hands that are wet and cold, eyes that are squinting or poles that aren't long enough to help keep his balance is likely not having as much fun as he could be. Accessories, or essentials as I like to call them, make all the difference in a snowy world!  Murray Selleck moved to Colorado in 1978. In the early 80s he split his time working winters in a ski shop in Steamboat Springs and his summers guiding on the Arkansas River. His career in the specialty outdoor industry has continued for over 30 years. Needless to say, he has witnessed decades of change in outdoor equipment and clothing. Steamboat Springs continues to be his home. The publication of this original content was made possible by: Erik Stensland's Images of RMNP and Inkwell and Brew.  
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