Blethering Blonde

This winter has certainly got the old brain cells ticking over with regards to kit choice. Before I got back into walking seriously in 2005 I'd never really been out in  winter. Oh how that has changed. Even with its added dimensions which make it even more challenging for me, I can safely say it is my preferred season for walking, especially when you get a winter like this one. Up until this winter I've been tweaking my kit to help me deal with all the issues that plague me year round, when I'm moving I can run hot but as soon as I stop I cool. It seen my kit choice evolve from the standard base layer, fleece and hardshell to Icebreaker 200 weight merino layer and an original Paramo Velez . This combination has been a good servant in the 4 seasons in one day winters that I'm so used too with only occasionally having to tweak further by doubling up the merino or adding in a powerstretch if its been really cold. For me Paramo has solved the problem of getting as wet in...

I spoke a while back about my winter trouser dilemma and after doing battle with Decathlon over their overt sex discrimination in the pricing of the Quechua Bionassay Trousers , I thought I might as well give these £39.95 trousers a go. They've been on half a dozen times so far and they are certainly going to get used on my next few outings too. They're packed with features that a lot of top end winter troos don't have. Made of Decathlon's own version of softshell which seems quite tough and so far has handled drizzly damp stuff and snow very well. Not had them in persistent precipitation yet so unsure how they'll respond. I ended up with the male version, not because the women's didn't fit (the usual reason) but because the men's had a thigh pocket, something that I find invaluable in giving me easier access to small stuff than putting it in the two zipped hip pocket. The fit is reasonable though I need to keep the braces on as they do tend to drif...