Long underwear?

Feels great against your skin. Pick a weight to keep you warm enough. WON'T STINK!! Also assuming you have a down bag, it will still help keep you warm if you get wet.

I've tried several brands of wool, and none come close to the comfort of Icebreaker.

I love my Icebreaker top too. I've haven't washed it in 4 weeks and it still doesn't smell. I've gone hiking twice and built trail in it once, not to mention a handful of days on campus and lounging at home since the last time I washed it. My polypro top seems to pick up smells after the first time I wear it.

As for bottoms, I don't sweat as much down there so the odor doesn't build up. I have a cheap pair of Duofold polypro for bottoms and am happy enough with them. Although if I had the money I would definitely get some nice Icebreaker bottoms. They really do feel great.

Adam

My GF and I both have 3 brands of merino; Icebreaker, Smartwool, and Montbell. We both think highly of merino wool, obviously. The are all superior to synthetic base layers in our opinion, in the 9 coolest seasons. I recommend a 1/4 zip long sleeve top for extra venting options.
I find that the slightly tighter fit of the Icebreaker causes it to pickup smells faster (I should say less slowly) than the other brands; but they all are remarkably stink free.
In fact, I wore a merino set to sleep every night this winter, and live in the tops on the weekend. Mon to Friday I have a pair of the merino stretch tights under my suit pants! Hows that for maximizing the investment in hiking clothing?

For what it is worth, I dry my Ibex and Smartwool shirts with my normal clothes in the dryer with no adverse effects.

Don't forget about Patagonia's wool line. I have tried out the other brands and feel that Patagonia's is just as good if not better. I love my Wool 2 stuff! Several of their wool garments are on sale now on their website for some really good savings. Plus, Patagonia's wool is more environmentally friendly (sans chlorine in the production). This is something that matters to me. Check them out.

Truly, you can't go wrong with any of these companies. Wool has come a long way!

thank you everyone for your replies!

I found an Icebreaker shirt on sale for $35 so I ordered it. It would be great if I could safely put it in the dryer! I can imagine it being a big hassle to have to wait an extra couple hours in town for my shirt to dry. Brad, I'm glad to hear your shirts didn't shrink. Has anybody put an icebreaker in the dryer?

Also since it was on clearance they only had size XL. I thought it would be ok because people on the site commented that the fit was small. And if it's too big, then dryer shrinkage would be just the thing!

I have dried my merino shirts, Icebreaker and Smartwool, in the dryer many times with no problems. I also sized up on the Icebreaker, intentionally, because I didn't want the shirt skin tight.

Don't have any experience with Icebreaker but my Smartwool long underwear have shown no appreciable shrinkage in the dryer.

FYIW – I've unintentionally dried a 1/4 zip l/s merino mid layer top and it shrunk from a men's large size to a men's small! My 10 y/o son wears it now. However, this was an off brand I picked up on sale at Macy's (?). I believe it was Alfani brand. Nevertheless I no longer dry merino- particularly my Icebreaker ($$$) stuff.

That's good to know Brian. Thanks for the warning. I have some other merino garments (non-Smartwool) and will be sure to be careful when drying them.

I've never put my merino shirt through the dryer, but my socks have gone through a few times. They don't seem to have shrunk but I still make a point of grabbing them out once they done in the dryer and letting them hang somewhere and dry. It could all be FUD spread by the wool companies but I'd hate to ruin a $60 shirt.

Adam

Has anybody heard of the wool company I/O Biocompatibles? I found their stuff for sale on some skiing website. The I/O homepage says

"Easy Care
Recent technical advances allow wool to be washed and tumble dried like any other fabric."

http://iobiocompatibles.com/fabrics/

I wonder what that means? I assume they mean their stuff can be put in the drier, but maybe similar wool clothes can too.

I also forgot to mention that I had a friend who dried his Icebreaker 1/4 zip Tech shirt – it shrunk as well but not nearly as much as my off brand 1/4 zip did. Though my drying incident did not turn out all bad since my wife felt so bad about shrinking my 1/4 zip she didn't argue with me picking up an Icebreaker 1/4 zip! (nice upgrade…)

On a side note, if you do decide to toss merino wool in the dryer I'd avoid any fabric softeners which tend to reduce breathability.

I've dried my smartwool socks on accident without much of an issue as well. Seems like we've all had highly variable results.

I'm going to presume your skin type can handle any wool, even the newer merino. I have a friend who is fair skinned, and everything from Icebreaker, Ibex and Smartwool made her itch just a teeeeny bit, enough so that it was always a topic of conversation, ha. So she happily wears Duofold (light and inexpensive and does the job for her body type and temp).

My girlfriend loves Patagonia wool, and likes how she can throw it in the dryer. My favorite Icebreaker 1/4 zip shrunk when I did the dryer thing, but thankfully it's still within size that I take it along everywhere.

At the recent OR show, Icebreaker had a marketing idea of "picketing" outside with signs that put down polyester due to smell. But not all polyblend base layers stinks, and some do less than others. Having said that, I can wear my wool items for weeks on end and they NEVER get me disgusted looks from buddies.

I have used Cabela's polyester underwear for years and find it always warm and fast drying (very important when backpacking – as opposed to wool or silk). I use it for hunting, cross country skiing and winter camping.

Cabela's makes it in 3 weights. I recommend medioum weight for your purposes on the AT. This underwear is lightly fleeced on the inside for soft warmth.

Or, for very cold conditions a medium weight over a light weight covered by a light Gore-Tex rain suit. That should get you through almost any snow emergency. Don't forget, this is a record snowfall year for the east coast. A few years ago many AT hikers were stranded for days by a big snowstorm.

Eric

thanks for the replies!

Dan, I have a regular wool jacket that doesn't make me itch, so I assume that merino wool is going to be fine. My sense of smell is pretty bad, so stink is more about keeping my friends than my own comfort! I do think that smelling fresher will be an advantage in town.

Eric, I am going Southbound starting in late June. I do not expect temperatures below 20 or so until later in the year. (let me know if I'm wrong about this!) I have a Montbell down jacket for insulation.

How does everyone feel about silk for long underwear? My plan is to have one shirt and one pants for hiking in, and one shirt and one pants for sleeping. Since I have to carry them all day, the lighter my sleeping clothes are, the better! Silk tops and bottoms can be in the 4 oz range so I'm considering it. Is silk warm enough??

> How does everyone feel about silk for long underwear?
I made up some 8 mm silk full-length pygamas for sleeping in. Poly-cotton socks to cover my sweaty feet. Love them.

I'll add my voice to the merino wool group. I use a silk liner for my sleeping bag and it is great. I've also tried silk long underwear which is ok for sleeping in, but not as warm as wool. Also, if you perspire and the silk gets wet it sticks to your skin in an uncomfortable clammy way and is very slow to dry.

-Mark

Hello, and thanks for the new comments!

I have a new question that doesn't have to do with long underwear, but I figured I already have a thread so here goes.

I ordered two Montbell Alpine down jackets online, one size M and one size L. By my measurements and the sizing chart, I seemed to be squarely in the L size. But after trying both on, I think the L may be too big.

The L is somewhat baggy in the torso. However it is longer and fits me better in the shoulders. The M fits nice and snug to my torso and arms. Unfortunately it is a tiny bit tight across the shoulders. I'm in a dilemma which one to keep and which to return!

I figure I'll lose weight on my thru, but that won't change the size of my shoulders much. What should I do, how is a down jacket supposed to fit? I want to pick the right one! I know that it should fit close but not so tight it compresses the down. Help!!!

thanks!

Brittany, if I were you, I'd go with the bigger one, give you more room to layer under w/out compressing the down. The fit is subjective, really. You might size it trim if you were planning on layering it under a shell, but as an in camp insulation piece, I say mo is mo betta'.

since you said it was "longer and fits me better in the shoulders but is somewhat baggy in the torso" I'm going to assume by somewhat you mean only slightly. length and shoulder fit trump torso bagginess IMHO. But then I have long arms, broad shoulders and a relatively small waist, so this is something I have to deal with all the time, I'm used to it, I guess

Edited for spelling and clarification (can we get a blasted spellchecker on this site please?)

I would not chose a baggy down jacket for myself. Most people going light are going to have, at most, two very thin layers to go under the jacket.

Does anyone know if the Montbell jackets have a differential cut? If so, smaller sizing wouldn't compress the down.

Personally, I'd go for the smaller size. While it's annoying to have a tight fit through the shoulders, I'd rather not have the extra space to heat up. And maybe its partially psychological but a snug fit (jacket, gloves, hat, socks, sleeping bag, etc) always makes me feel a bit warmer.