World's Best Winter Mitts
December 14, 2009, 4:12 pm / Categories: Winter Gear
When it’s too cold for gloves — generally around 10 degrees Fahrenheit for me — a good pair of mittens is crucial to enjoying any wintertime adventure. You sacrifice dexterity for cozy digits, but that’s the price of warmth in the rock-bottom cold months of the year.
So what mittens are the best for outdoor enthusiasts who want to ski, climb and throw snowballs at friends? A few years back, I tested six pair of top-end mittens for three months to find out.
Granite Gear’s Lutsen Mitts (orig. $89 but now discontinued; http://www.granitegear.com), a stout waterproof-breathable pair with wool fleece liners, nudged out first place in my little competition. The company stopped producing mittens. But, with my pair, the simple, streamlined construction and a non-bulky liner let me clip a carabiner and tie knots when ice climbing. They fit well and had a durable leather palm. Also, they were among the warmest in the review, holding their own in temps down to 20 degrees below zero. So if you can somehow still find a pair, buy ‘em.
A close second place goes to Black Diamond’s Mercury Mitt ($86, http://www.blackdiamondequipment.com). The company described them as cocoons for the hands, and indeed they’re stuffed with 284 grams of Primaloft insulation, the same fill used in cold-weather sleeping bags.
They are nice waterproof-breathable mitts, but dexterity was not as good as with Granite Gear’s discontinued Lutsen Mitts. With the newest rendition of the Mercury Mitts, Black Diamond added a “trigger finger” removable liner that separates your index finger from the rest, increasing dexterity.
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Why don’t companies make mittens for winter running and walking ? Don’t need to have long sleeves that go half way up your arms, just insulated mittens to cover hands and wrists. Tons of gloves on the market, but not mittens. Don’t need the dexterity of gloves when running or walking, just the warmth.
True, the Granite Gear Mittens have not been made for several years. But I have a pair and they are great. We need Granite Gear to get with the program and begin making these mittens again. I live in Fairbanks Alaska. With some activity I have been comfortable to least 30 or 40 below. On many a more moderate days (20 below), I have walked down the river with my liner glove covered hands out of the mittens and steaming. If I would have wanted, I could have taken away a layer in side the mitten, but I went on. Bottom line…great mittens. Call Granite Gear!
I have a new pair of XL’s that I’m willing to sell. I tried them last winter when we got dumped on in New England. The most impressive ones that I’ve tried thus far are Buffalo Pertex mittens. Made in Great Britain. I own about 15 pairs of gloves,mitts, and liners,& I’m on the quest for the best.
Layers and moisture management are the key.
thin wool liner gloves [plus 2 sets of spares]
wool mittens
waterproof breathable shells
Sized so that all 3 layers can be worn at once
Mix and match as required by conditions
I like Smartwool glove liners with Foxriver wool mittens and Ragged Mountain alpine contour shells
I also bring a set of the Ragged Mountain Tucker Mitts which are double layer Polartec Highloft fleece.
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You need to update. Granite Gear’s Lutsen Mitts have not been manufactured for four years.