Choosing Between Single- and Double-Boots for Alpine Climbing and Mountaineering
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Tents, gloves, and boots. I’ve done recent videos on all of these items, without getting into specific recommendations. I imagine that is pretty refreshing for some people but really frustrating for others.
I think you might gather from they way I approach these things that I find it is much more important to understand the inherent tradeoffs that come from the design and material choices that manufacturers make than it is to call out a specific item. That’s not to say that I don’t do any reviews of specific pieces of equipment. Sometimes I am pretty stoked on a piece of gear, have been using it to good effect for many months (or even years), and want to introduce it to those who maybe haven’t come across it as a potential item of interest.
But it can never be more than a “potential” item; that’s because there is so much personal preference involved in specific gear selections. Maybe you live in a really wet environment. That may impact a tent choice. Maybe you have poor circulation in your hands (something like Raynaud’s disease). That will impact your glove choice. Maybe you have really wide feet. That will impact your boot choice.
What works for me cannot work for everyone, even if the design, features, and materials of the item are of high quality.
So, most frequently I try to take the approach of speaking about designs, features, and materials in such a way as a reader/viewer can apply that knowledge to lots of pieces of gear in the family of gear items of interest. That is going to be much more universally applicable than the specifics of a particular model.
That’s what I did in this video. Take a look and see what little nuggets or insights you might be able to apply to your own gear selections.
But, for those that are just dying to know what I use, I wear a lot of La Sportiva boots. Their narrow fit is good for my narrow foot (toes and even more so a small heel). I basically have a line of boots from them in order of more to less insulation: