Gloves for Denali

Hey guys! I wanted to get your thoughts on gloves for Denali. I'm going May 18th.

For a heavy glove I was looking at:

BD Guide Glove (the standard but not much dexterity)
OR Olympus Sensor (has more grams of insulation than the BD guide but outdoorgearlab says it is colder but more dextrous
Hestra Heli (a classic but have heard it is colder than the previous two)
OR Alti Gloves (I hear they are very warm but haven't heard much on dext)

For a Medium Glove:

OR Alpine Alibi II
OR Lodestar Glove
OR Extravert
OR Storm Sensor

Any recommendations? Thanks in advance

I can speak to the guides, OR Alti and the OR alibi. The guides are quite warm, but like you said lack dexterity. That being said you can still lock a carabiner, open your pack or adjust your layers. I've got a pair of Alti mitts. If the gloves are just as warm I'd be surprised, because these things are warm as hell, but there mitts, and totally useless expect when you need to do anything. The alibi are probably the gloves on the market with the best warmpth to dexterity ratio. Your hardly limited in your freedom, but most people can wear them to climb when it's 0 degrees out. Great glove. Compared to anything else in your list of similar OR gloves, the alibi would be my choice.

I have the Alit Gloves and my hands get sweaty in anything above 10 degrees. comfortable well below zero. They have an internal glove that is quite dextrous if you remove your hand from the over glove part. Otherwise they are not that dextrous. Hope that helps.

For heavies I brought alti mitts. For mediums I brought the rei switchback gloves. Both worked fine for me and I'd use them again.

Should mention I just did the west buttress. If you're doing a more technical route you may want to go in a different direction but these were fine for holding an axe, clipping running pro etc

EDIT: I would recommend a medium glove that has a thin liner glove. That way you can remove the outer glove, while leaving the liner on and do things like dig in your pack or mess with you camera, adjust prussiks or whatever without having your hands completely exposed. That makes a huge difference in my climbing/winter camping experience.

My glove/mitt lineup is:

Something like the Lodestar, worn about 50% of the time
Kincos, with lots of snow seal worked into them. Worn 40% of the time.
Guide Gloves, worn 5% of the time.
Big mitts, with silkweight liners to wear inside of them, so you can take the mitts off and not frostbite your hands. Worn on summit day, probably not any other time. You NEED the mitts 99% of the summit days.

Gloves/mitts are something to not skimp on, there are other areas to shave weight.

I've found from 10 trips on Denali that this works well. Don't forget some hand warmers for the summit.

I don't have any experience with heavy gloves, but I've used the Extravert and the Stormtracker (similar to stormsensor). Stormtracker is unlined, not super warm. Great for slogging uphill in fairly warm temps, but will quickly chill your hand at temps below about 25F. Extravert is a warmer glove with a wool lining, I've used them down to single digits while moving and been ok, they still have pretty good dexterity for normal tasks.

Some sort of liner/sun glove for the lower glacier; it can get HOT

Kinco heat keep leather gloves; I used these almost the whole time

Rab guide/BD Guide for when it gets a bit too cold for the kincos (BD's have a removable liner so you can dry those out in the tent easier)

If your hands get cold easily, I know people that wear a lighter weight mitten that they can slip their liner gloves into. Could be a good option

Summit mitten (HEAVY expedition weight). Don't slack on these because summit days can be VERY cold

I used: Arcteryx Beta AR glove, BD Guide glove, and BD Super Light Mitt. It worked fine, but the BD Super Light does not have a removable liner so it would be hard to dry out if used for more than just the summit day.

Regarding the mittens, most people like OR Alti mitts but I personally think they are junk. I originally brought some BD Absolute mitts but switch the out last minute for BD Super Light mitts. The reason, is because the Absolute mitts are so huge they could not fit in my ascender hand hole and that could be dangerous (although its unlikely you will need mittens in those sections).

The BD mittens have a pocket for the index finger that gives them way more dexterity, and if your index finger gets cold you can easily shove it in the other pocket with the rest of your fingers.

Thanks for all the help guys!

@Brady and Patrick... I've never heard of Kincos... can you tell me a bit more? Searching the net they look like a work glove?

@Tobin - I am definitely interested in the Extravert

@Myfeethurt - What do you dislike about the Alti Mitts?

@Max - good to hear about the Alibis... I had read a bunch of reviews about people getting cold in 30F weather with them

@Gabe - how do the Alti Gloves compare to the BD Guides in dexterity?

@Patrick - the lodestars look like a hell of a glove.. I've heard great things how do they compare to the BD Guides for dexterity and warmth? Could I feasibly ditch the BD Guides and go for the Lodestars or Alibis (use mitts if it gets colder?)

Orphan,

Having only tried the BD Guides in the store, I imagine them to be about the same. Any glove that size is going to be lacking on the dexterity in my opinion, so the noticeable difference might be quite small.

Goodluck!

Has anybody tried the Rab Expedition Mitt? Would it be suitable for the West Buttress?

Any other mitt recommendations?

Yes--Kincos are simply leather work gloves. They are popular among dirtbags and guides because they are low-cost and get the job done. The BD Dirtbag Glove and the Marmot Basic Work Glove are modeled on that idea.

Consequently, Kincos with fleece lining for cold weather are a go-to for many who work in skiing/climbing from lifties to patrolers to guides, etc. Lots of folks coat the leather with mink oil, NikWax, snow seal, etc. for additional waterproofing (see Pat's post).

At this point, Kincos are becoming ubiquitous enough in those circles that a pair of Kincos might not actually be Kincos but just whatever fleece-lined leather glove you found at the hardware store.

The Rab Expedition 8000 Mitt is stuffed with 850 fill-power hydrophobic down and PrimaLoft Gold. I can't imagine this mitt not being one of them warmest mitts available. I have and use the OR Alti Mitts for frigid belays & can attest to their warmth. If I were in the market for a new pair of mittens, I think I'd pull the trigger on the Rab mitts.

Also, two pairs of thin wool liners to fit under your gloves. Wear one, dry one. Helps a lot, and you will occasionally need to remove your outer mitt or glove, which I know you will tether so they don't blow away.

Another tip: bring a pair of rubber kitchen gloves to wear over the liner for wet chores like cooking and melting snow. Keep your hands and gloves warm and dry.

climbing friend,

do not be thinking of this.

it is too cold

your fingers will freeze

your balls will shrivel and ascend

The Lodestar is a fairly light glove, so not comparable to the BD Guide Glove. Like I said, I take three pairs of gloves, plus the big mitts with a light capaline liner.

Orphan26...regardless of which outer glove that you choose you should ALWAYS wear a reasonably thin inner glove. With an inner glove you have the dexterity when you need it, but NEVER have skin exposed to the elements. It'll save your fingers. Then layer on a midweight liner glove and a heavy outer glove. Have some spares.

Is there anything new in 2021?  Any options for heavyweight gloves other than OR Alti gloves or DB guide. Spent some time trying to find good option which will be warm and dexterous enough but couldn't find anything.  There is Hestra Army Leather but I am not sure if it will be warm enough.

Georgy Gobozov wrote:

Is there anything new in 2021?  Any options for heavyweight gloves other than OR Alti gloves or DB guide. Spent some time trying to find good option which will be warm and dexterous enough but couldn't find anything.  There is Hestra Army Leather but I am not sure if it will be warm enough.

do check Rab expedition mitts....

Anu N wrote:

do check Rab expedition mitts....

I have Alti mitts, asking for gloves.

Georgy Gobozov wrote:

Is there anything new in 2021?  Any options for heavyweight gloves other than OR Alti gloves or DB guide. Spent some time trying to find good option which will be warm and dexterous enough but couldn't find anything.  There is Hestra Army Leather but I am not sure if it will be warm enough.

FWIW When I was on the Cassin I climbed with shell mittens, specifically the Mercury Mitts. Much of the time it was with mid-weight gloves inside. When really cold the mitten liners but with thin glovers. At one point I lost a mid-weight glove and just double the thinner liner gloves to replace it. The system worked well and one I would use again and recommend. The only pitfall is that mittens are fairly specialized.