Tips/gear for women

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

I do actually ;-) I mastered eating and walking as well…lol! I have one lightweight mug that was a straw as well. I love my herbal teas in the morning – it encourages me to stay hydrated, something I can be bad at.

On underwear, I don't care about fashion and often wear the worst granny panties around as they don't bind, ride up or cut in. As long as it works I don't worry about styling ;-)

[Lori P]

I have the feeling the two of us aren't going to be doing the splits anytime soon… Here's to the granny panty posse. :)

[Leslie Bell]

Yeah, no splits for me either. Not even close.

I actually tried a pair of the soy underwear and quite liked it. They are easy to rinse out and not smelly. The price is a little hefty but if they don't wear out too quickly it might be worth it. I'll send in a review in a couple of years if they stand the test of time;)

Now I'm gonna be on the lookout for a mug before my next hike! Maybe we can come up with a multi-purpose version (wrap your emergency duct tape around it for extra insulation?).

[Lori P]

The REI insulated mug isn't bad… about five ounces. I've also worked up a reflectix covered ziploc container with screw on lid… easy to slice a sipper slot in the lid.

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

Lol..I can barely bend over currently due to my growing belly. I am now trying to find hiking underwear for it and that ain't happening. So I ended up just accepting that for the next couple months I'll be wearing below the belly ones with pants that have stretch panels to my chin. Sexy, eh? Hubba Hubba!

If I did the splits I'd need help getting back up ;-)

[backpackerchick]

Can't you just wear bikini underwear under the belly?

I will say, I can not imagine wearing a thong for outdoor/endurance sports! But there are certainly a lot of them on the market so some of you girls must be wearing them.

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

Maternity panties go under the belly with full butt coverage. But pants go up to your boobs with the panels (you can get really cute pants these days at least!) So what you get is this weird limbo where you wonder if your underpants are going to fall off while your pants will creep to your chin. Went hiking this week and spent half the time hiking up my underwear and rolling down the stretch panel ;-P

Regular bikini underwear does work for some ladies but if you are on the second or further kid, lets just say the belly starts earlier. While I can wear most of my pre-belly underwear, they are just not comfy over my hips (which do get a bit bigger while pg). The maternity ones curve up more, onto the hips, but sling under the belly.

I am currently hiking in cotton pants, no choice there. At least I kept my winter hiking pants that are WP/B and are 2 sizes 2 big. I can fit in them come December ;-)

But no loss really, this one is hanging off my rib cage and I can barely breathe when I hike uphill. To say the least….I went from 15 to 20 mile days in June to 2 mile days in September. Some women can be hard core athletes I suppose, not me. All I wanna do is sleep anyways ;-)

[Elena Lee]

Leslie:

Thermos: No, too heavy! worst comes to worst, you can carry a Nalgene and put some boiling water into it, and stuck it into sleeping bag if your are totally freezing.

Down Vest: i agree, but it could be a good winter additional layer to boost your system. especially in high aerobic activity when putting parka is too warm (sweat) but just a synthetic shirt is too cold (core is cold). could be also good when you stop and take a break.

in any case, you will get cold. it is just a question of when, and how you manage it. suggestion: get out in the winter for a weekend and camp with someone you trust, get frosty (but not hypothermic, of course!) after this, you'd have the experience with REAL cold and when it gets cold in the shoulder season you'd know what to expect and you'd know your limits, you'd stretch out your "cold tolerance muscle", so to speak. you'd also find out what works and what doesn't for you. we can make hundreds of suggestions, but you only know how your body reacts, so test your layering system before you get out there.

[backpackerchick]

Leslie, you come from a part of the US where it can get pretty darn COLD and wet. Sure you've spent time upstate too. Even, if you haven't done a ton of hiking, you probably know if you're someone who gets cold easier than others. Even inside, are you the only one with that heavy sweater on? That might give you a launching point as you think about gear systems. In other words, what's you're everyday gear system. There seem to be a lot of SoCal people on this board. I'm currently in the LA area but have lived in numerous climes. Cold in LA isn't the same as cold in upstate NY. And cold in the high Sierras is not the same as cold in the Colorado Rockies! It's really not that hard. It's easy to over-analyze.

[Leslie Bell]

I'll be hiking the next 2-3 weekends with a possible overnight at the end of October, so I'll get to do a little testing. It won't be too cold yet (highs in the 60s, lows in the 50s so far).

Even though I hate to be cold, I love getting out of the city and hiking so I'll figure out pretty quickly what I need so I can keep going as late in the season as possible. As you all know already, once you're hooked there is no stopping (maybe just slowing down occationally–right Sarah?).

Thanks for all of the suggestions.

[backpackerchick]

BTW, thermos for day hiking would be sweet. Usually not that organized, though. If you are intending to have a hot meal on your day hikes, I think a ready made one in a thermos would be easier than dragging along a cooker. Also, maybe for base camp hiking — where you walk in a bit and set up a camp then launch out for day trips. But hauling it around for days at a time with all your other gear. No for me.

[Kathleen B]

Wait a minute. Rewind. Play.

Growing belly? Maternity underwear? Sarah?

Did I miss an announcement somewhere? Here I am in Kansas City for 4 days for a wedding (Mr. B's cousin's daughter, etc.) and I just found a computer because I am not interested in watching the Final Four in baseball, or whatever it is, and I am trying to catch up on the important things in life and I think you're saying you're pregnant?!!!! Congratulations!!!!! Due date? Oh, this is so exciting!!! Better than an airplane ride!

[Leslie Bell]

Actually, I'm from Texas. I've only been in NY for 6 years. I am really not fond of winter, but I'm not THAT cold intolerent. I might even consider trying snowshoeing this year (we'll see– it is easy to say that now sitting here in my warm apartment).

[backpackerchick]

Good for you. First time I tried, I rented some and asked the guy how to do it. He looked at me like I was crazy and said "it's just 4 wheel drive for your feet"! I use sticks (poles). Except you can step on your other shoe which has interesting consequences. It's fun!

This is an area where a lot women specific items are emerging. Women's snow shoes are designed to fit a smaller shoe (not real small — there's only one size so they will fit about all women). The men's were often impossible to get the binding snug enough around a women's sneaker type shoe. The ladies models tend to have a lower profile. Basically, there is less shoe on the inside so it's harder to step on your other foot.

Good fun. Nothing to it. Makes you walk a little funny that's all. Even if you aren't a fan of walking with sticks, they will really help with snowshoeing where everyone's a bit klutzier.

[Kimberly Wersal]

I'm thinking the same thing! Have I REALLY not been paying attention? Well, congrats! But all that hard work you had done getting trim and honed! Not that it is a wasted effort, but, just saying…

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

Well, lets just say I hadn't made a "real" announcement here. I had posted it on Facebook and then someone else blurted it on another forum ;-P Not that I can hide it….lets say the ol' ab muscles on #2 don't lay so flat ;-)

Due date? End of March/Early April :-)

Getting in shape really has helped a lot though!

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

When I first started snowshoeing I used lady Atlas's but then after a couple years went to MSR Denali Evo's with Televators as they gave me what I needed. The Evo's are not as wide as regular Denali's are.

Never had an issue with men's or genderless snwoshoes fitting my boots – but I also don't have small petite feet ;-) If a woman has above say, 8 for size, don't worry. You will fit!

[backpackerchick]

Tried a Women's MSR — the one with a lot of crampon on the frame — sent it back to backcountry.com after a trip — satisfaction guaranteed period, no time limit. The televator IS cool. I'm the type who tears up the top of running shoes just out there running — narrow stance. I felt klutzy in this snow shoe.

I went with some Crescent Moons (a ladies model) that I haven't put to much of a test. But they appear to have a lower profile.

Re: binding sizing — men's vs. women's. Women's allow a smaller fit. Found this can be an issue if you are wearing running shoe. I'm a US W 7 in true sizing with a low volume foot. Medium width forefoot with narrow heel. Of course, sneakers always end up being a larger size.

Most snowshoes are sized by weight. ADD your pack weight if you will be using them with a heavy pack!!

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

One thing most women's snowshoes do is they are narrower in the back, so more sloped. This allows a narrower stance when walking, as some women walk "tight" – not wide. Often the snowshoes do take in account for a narrower heel, but not always. If they have a back binding or heel cup this will be noted. Not all snowshoes have this. If all it has is a back binding of fabric or rubber, your heel size won't matter. A cup will be an issue for ladies with non-petite feet.

While snowshoes are rated often by weight, the type of snow is almost more important to rate when buying – in other words what type of terrain you will be using them in. Concrete snow allows one to get by with more weight on snowshoes than heavy, sinking snow – particularly if you are the one breaking trail. If you side hill or are doing more technical climbs you will want more crampons than for casual outings on flat or gentle rolling terrain. Especially if the area is blasted by wind and the snow gets icy. Few of the women's dedicated models will work best on side hilling sadly!

The MSR snowshoes are definitely not for everyone. They are loud on hard snow (you can always hear a person coming from far away) and they do require learning to walk farther apart. It takes a couple trips but after awhile it seems normal. Denali's have one advantage and that is in the tails. For hard snow I just use the main snowshoe. For deep "it just dumped" snow I slap on tails and have extra flotation for breaking trail. They are not weight dependent but rather terrain dependent I have found – and I like that.

It sounds like you had the MSR lightnings which do have a lady version but are not as adaptable, due to being similar to many main stream 'shoes. As well, with the Denali's backing up is not an issue nor is crossings snowshoes.

If you do walk with a narrow stance and find it tiring or causing over step while snowshoeing the best advice I can give is to constantly force yourself to walk wider – this will help with any brand and after a while you won't have to think about it.

PS: I had size 7 1/2 feet in high school. Went to 8 in college from wearing Birkenstocks. Until I wore Birks I had narrow feet. By the time I had my son my feet spread nicely and I wear a 10 now. Kids and age do that, especially if a woman lives in sandals (I wear Chacos almost every day). So if ya wanna get rid of them narrow feet have a couple kids ;-) Hehheh!!!!

[backpackerchick]

What? Walk wider? Of course — there is no choice! Other than falling flat on your face. Of course, sticks help in walking comfortably with a wider stance.

Yes, I had lightnings. There are some advantages to having traction on the frame, IMO.

You sound like you do a lot of this. You raise good points about snow quality and side hilling. Side hilling is big deal, IMO. Thanks for the post.

Also consider whether you want to run in them!

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