Bushwalk Australia

Any thoughts on a good glove for sustained scrambling and rock ascents at altitude.
I have some BD Punishers and they will probably do the job but I'm keen to hear about other possibles.
Obviously "feel" is necessary but still providing good warmth.

Here was me thinking feel and warmth were mutually exclusive. I used to use Kevlar cut resistant glaziers gloves which did double duty in the kitchen so tax deductible for me at the time, not particularly warm tho

Depends what you mean by 'altitude' . By Aussie altitude I would get fleece half finger gloves - nothing is going to give the feel of bare fingers but that will add a fair bit of warmth.

Very good source on this is http://andy-kirkpatrick.com/writing - jist of what he is saying is nothing works real well and it is going to hurt regardless .

Sorry, I should've been more specific.
4400m plus in the European Alps.

nq111 wrote:By Aussie altitude I would get fleece half finger gloves

In Queensland perhaps

I think ready Andys blog page on the matter would be recommended here.

I've got a pair of Rab Baltoro gloves. I have used them at +3000m in blizzard conditions, and remained toasty warm with dexterity.

http://www.prolitegear.com/site/image.html?sku=rab-baltoro-glove&ver=rab-baltoro_glove-lg.jpg

You were rockclimbing in those??

Moondog55 wrote:You were rockclimbing in those??

I was rock scrambling and climbing at altitude (ice/rock/snow). Sorry for the confusion, this was my interpretation of the OP's question and some of the thread.

...but no, not rock climbing per se...imagine that in the RAB Baltoro's!!

And my interpretation of the OPs question was taken the other way.
I can climb in gloves but i can't do difficult rock in gloves, which reminds me ; many years ago Paddys were selling very expensive "Jamming" gloves in Kevlar, which to my great surprise were the same as my work anti cut gloves but at 4 times the price. I was thinking the OP needed abrasion protection not warmth

quicky wrote:I was rock scrambling and climbing at altitude (ice/rock/snow). Sorry for the confusion, this was my interpretation of the OP's question and some of the thread.

Your interpretation was pretty close Quicky and I looked closely at the Rab gloves, but checking out the Prolite Gear site got me taking a good look at a few other options.
I ended up ordering a couple of gloves actually, the Montane Ice Grip and the OR Vert.

Moondog55 wrote:And my interpretation of the OPs question was taken the other way. I can climb in gloves but i can't do difficult rock in gloves

At 4000m plus, even in summer, believe me, I'll need gloves and I think the Montanes particularly, should be ok for "feel" in the fingers.
Thanks guys for your posts.

Strider wrote:In Queensland perhaps

Yeah - when not at altitude i prefer cane toad leather gloves with baby crocodile teeth stitched into the back

stuey69 wrote:Sorry, I should've been more specific.
4400m plus in the European Alps.

Summer or Winter? And which routes do you have in mind? There isn't that much of the Alps which is over 4400m.

In Summer doing any serious rock-climbing there, I wouldn't be using gloves at all on the actual climbing. If it was chilly, and I was on easier ground, I would probably just revert to mitts.

A halfway house would be polypro gloves. Yes, they'll trashed, but they're cheap. And they're close-fitting enough that you can climb in them.

An age ago when I was climbing in Scotland and the Lakes District i bought a pair of "Millar Mitts" these were machine crocheted fingerless mitts with a nylon/ cotton palm and a woollen back and they were perfect for the conditions.
If I was going away again I think a modern fingerless mitt with a Kevlar or Spectra palm and a windproof pile back would work even better or something of a style even older but being used by our fellers on service in Afghanistan is the old fishermans wristlet that the Royal Marines still use

Link to UK site for picture
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-Genuine-B ... 337de8083b

Surprisingly warm and very light

[quote="durks"
Summer or Winter? And which routes do you have in mind? There isn't that much of the Alps which is over 4400m.
In Summer doing any serious rock-climbing there, I wouldn't be using gloves at all on the actual climbing. If it was chilly, and I was on easier ground, I would probably just revert to mitts.[/quote]

At the very end of Summer Durks, and you're right, there's not much over 4400. The mountain in question is Monte Cervino, that monstrous thing that overlooks Zermatt.
Whether I use the gloves or not I'd like to have them on hand, given the changeability of mountain weather. I've got a pair of Montane Ice Grip gloves on the way anyway, so they'll be in the pack if needed.