Wool
From my experience wool has it all over keeping you warm when wet over synthetics.Fleece definatly drys faster and is lighter.Fleece and fire don’t mix!If you wear a thin pollypro layer under the wool iching is not a factor,even if you are not using cheaper non- Merino wool.Merino wool is less durable than the scratchy kind and I belive, less warm while wet.
I wear both,but always choose wool when paddleing in cold water or camping with a fire.
Turtle
air can pass through the fibers NM
I do, too
If you had told me I’d be wearing them when it was that warm outside when I first got them, I would have laughed, but they really do keep your feet dry, especially when you HAVE to wear shoes/boots (like at work).
Icebreaker
I needed a replacement for a worn out capilene top this past winter. On the advise of two mountain shop employees that I trust I tryed the icebreaker despite the price. I do physical work that moves me inside and out as high as 10,000 ft. I tele ski and sometimes bike commute in winter. I also wore the piece under my drysuit during ice out. I wore the piece while doing 5K snow shoe races. I like the stuff. I’m going to outfit two sets, T/B for next winter. One this I noticed and heard from others here is that the weights are not the same as other materials. Another words, the light weight actully works as well as the mid weight in something else.
Rob
not familiar with it
But I’ve got two light Smartwool zippered shirts that cost nearly $90 each, one is four years old and the other a half year old. They’re great.
Plenty of advice on this thread.
But, anyone got a link? Wool brands? Polartec?
Icebreaker info
Here is the website for Icebreakers woolen garments. I think the stuff is absolutely fabulous! It has been interesting watching this thread.
http://www.icebreaker.com/site/home.html?id=sAamqMiB:205.213.111.52
Bob.
good point
the ‘200 weight’ Icebreaker is equivalent to Patagonia’s Capilene 1 and 2, ‘260 weight’ is about equal to Capilene 3 and 4, ‘320 weight’ is about equal to Capilene 4 to the R2 jacket.
Then you start to layer them!! First when you put on several layers of merino wool they start to ‘mesh’ together. At the end of the day when you take them off they can come off all at one time as one piece. In the morning when you put them back on at the same time, they go on as one piece. This eliminates the twisting/binding feel of wearing several base layers.
Second, wear a 200,260, and 320 weight together while moving a bit and you get the warmth of a down jacket. Plus, it isn’t as bulky as it sounds. I wore that combination under a lightweight jacket during a trip on Mt. Cook (New Zealand). A blizzard rolled in and I was perfectly warm. At one point I lived in Boone, NC and would walk to work. During the winter I would wear a 200 and 260 to work under a light rain jacket. Trudging through the snow I would be comfortable. At work I would take off the jacket, leave the other two layers on and never over get too hot.
Geez, I am all over this post - starting to feel like Pamlico_140.
In all seriousness, when I made the switch to Icebreaker it changed the way I thought about outdoor activities and comfort.