My crossing of the Vercors (2/3): my equipment

After talking about the "preparation process", you now know the genesis of the project. Here is the continuation of my adventures in the Vercors.

As a quick reminder, I left you with an existential question: how to dress for such unpredictable weather?

It's time to talk gear!

Base layers, shoes, tent, sleeping system, essential tools, backpack... I'll tell you everything in detail.

⚠️ Obviously, all the links in this article pointing to other e-shops are NOT affiliated, I will not receive any commission if you decide to buy anything. If I recommend an item to you, it is because I believe in it , and not to receive a commission .

0% affiliation, 100% passion!

Second point: I am passionate about technical clothing, and I love niche brands in this universe. But it is obviously entirely possible to live this adventure with cheaper and/or second-hand outdoor clothing .

My base layers

During the 4 days and during the day, I wore two upper body garments.

THE ACLIMA WOOL MESH BASE LAYER

Available at Aventure Nordique .

This is THE garment that makes the difference in cold weather , that I recommend all the time, and that is never bought by my friends, because of its confusing appearance. I already talked about it inmy article on the gear list of my survival course .

And yet… its usefulness is no longer in doubt, I can no longer do without it in cold weather: it traps air, and therefore insulation . You are not too hot and not too cold. It is a formidable secret weapon!

KUIU LONG SLEEVE T-SHIRT

Available at Kuiu .

It is a long-sleeved t-shirt in a particular merino : Nuyarn . To put it simply, it is a process that allows you to obtain a merino yarn with more loft than a classic yarn. It will therefore dry faster , trap more air and have a greater natural stretch than a classic jersey .

30% nylon is added to increase friction resistance , which is essential when carrying a backpack all day, as merino wool t-shirts can be fragile in this type of use .

It's hard to tell if it makes a difference, as I would have had to compare it with another merino base layer in these conditions, but I was very comfortable in a wide variety of temperatures each time .

With temperatures between 0°c and 15°c, the combination of these two base layers worked wonders !

Fun fact: even if I don't recommend it for this use, Valentin did the hike in a BonneGueule merino t-shirt !

CANIS ATHLETE GRID FLEECE

Available at Canis Athlete .

Here is a brand that is totally unknown in France, and because it is very niche : it is a very high-end brand that dresses American hunters , with a level of aesthetics and attention to detail that is unusual in this world.

And for good reason: the designer is a Swiss specialist in outdoor and military clothing , and he trained as a tailor...

Concerning this “grid fleece”, its role is to reconcile two seemingly opposing issues :

• to keep you warm during exercise ,
• and be very breathable, allowing excellent ventilation .

To achieve this, it was first the famous manufacturer Polartec who invented its famous Power Grid , which is schematically a micro fleece dotted with grooves (hence the grid shape) which allow perspiration to flow well.

This principle has been taken up by many manufacturers of technical fabrics, and it is a variation that dresses this piece of Canis. It is in a mixture of merino wool and polyester, which allows it to accumulate little odors, which is useful for a 4-day hike in a group…

On the other hand, I found it quite fragile in terms of abrasion resistance, it is not the most durable piece in my outdoor clothing collection, that's for sure.

That said, another piece that played its role perfectly, and I will use it again without hesitation for future hikes in similar conditions.

It is therefore a difficult brand to recommend to you, because the extra you will pay really concerns design, and not necessarily additional performance .

I have two pants from this brand, they are not more “efficient” than other pants, but they have by far the most neat and accomplished finishes: braid on certain seams, grosgrain belt loops, mesh in the waistband, pocket system, etc. We really feel that these are clothes that have been designed without compromise , with a designer who has pushed his madness to the limit.

To be reserved for enthusiasts and the most aesthetic connoisseurs .

PROMETHEUS DESIGN WERX TROUSERS

Unfortunately not available at the moment, the closest product is the "Guide" fabric Raider on the Prometheus website .

Prometheus Design Werx (PDW for short) is an American brand that offers stylish outdoor clothing, in the same vein as Triple Aught Design, Beyond Clothing or Thrudark.

These are pants that I hesitated to buy, but I did well to take them!

These are now my favorite winter pants . They are very stretchy , so super comfortable and are thick enough to cut the wind without making me suffocate. Getting wet with these pants is not a problem, as they dry quickly as soon as the rain or snow stops.

Only regret: the absence of cargo pockets . But for all that, the pocket system is well thought out, and you can easily compartmentalize your personal effects. The “D rings” are also very practical for hanging small accessories. For example, I hung my gloves here so that I could put them on and take them off easily.

Nice little detail: there is a double thickness of fabric at the knees and the seat, very practical when you put a knee on the ground or if you sit on a cool and damp floor.

These are pants that I highly recommend if you regularly hike below 10°c . For my part, I take them all the time if I have to walk or snowshoe in cold conditions.

STONE GLACIER GRUMMAN JACKET

Available at Stone Glacier .

This piece has a crucial role: to keep you warm in the evening , after a long day of walking and while the temperatures drop, and to keep you warm in the morning , after a cool night and when you have not yet started to move .

This is a “static” insulation piece, it is not made to be worn during intense physical activities , Stone Glacier clearly states this in its blog article .

I wanted a piece around 300 grams and my choice fell on the Grumman jacket from Stone Glacier , because I liked the style, the color and its clean design going to the essentials .

She was very comforting in the evening and was very valuable to me.

You have European equivalents that are just as effective, such as Incredilite or Climalite (with Climashield insulation) from the Polish brand Cumulus. I have also heard a lot of good things about another Polish brand: Malachowski .

FYI, Anthony had the MT100 down jacket from Decathlon, at €65 and which did the job very well.

Geoffrey had decided to treat himself with the Super Down model at Kuiu .

VELEZ DE PARAMO RAIN JACKET

Available at Paramo .

I already talked about Paramo in my video on waterproofing , an outdoor brand that has extremely loyal fans (of which I am one).

These are rainwear without a membrane and very, very breathable !

The principle?

The outer fabric is water-repellent, and there is a lining inside that wicks away your sweat , even when it is in liquid form (which a membrane cannot do), hence the name “pump liner” of the lining.

Watch this video which explains the principle, it is very well done:

The absence of a membrane also allows for a more durable product, which will not delaminate (this is when the membrane comes off the outer fabric, due to sebum or humidity).

So on this trip I took the Velez , the “4 seasons” model from Paramo. I also have a more wintery model (the Altai), but I think it would have been a bit warm.

This is a jacket that has proven to be simply formidable and that I will no longer be able to do without .

So yes, it is rather heavy (650g) but it avoids a phenomenon that I dread when wearing a membrane jacket during physical activity in heavy snow: condensation . And as soon as the inside of your membrane jacket is damp when it is cold, the situation can drastically worsen .

These problems do not exist with a Paramo jacket, and at the end of a day with heavy snow showers, having had intense physical activity, there was barely any moisture inside the jacket at the level of the straps of my backpack.

There are a lot of very well thought out details on this jacket:

• There are ventilation zips on the arms and sides for optimal ventilation,
• the fit of the hood is perfect,
• there is a double zip.

I'm only talking about the technical performance, but it's also a great brand with great values: the jackets are made in Colombia by a foundation , everything is designed so that the jackets are easily repairable and recyclable , etc.

In short, it's a brand that I recommend from the bottom of my heart, which requires you to delve into its products to understand how they work , but you won't be disappointed. If you're in London, know that this is where the only Paramo store in the world is located !

BUFF NECK WARMER

The version I have, with the Power Stretch insert no longer seems to exist, here is the closest version at Terrang .

Nothing surprising here, it's a neck warmer that dries very quickly , I had the military version, bought from Terrang, where part of the neck warmer is in Polartec, so it's warmer !

I also took the opportunity to test a prototype of a BonneGueule neck strap, I will tell you more in a few months…

HOUDINI HAT

Available from Houdini .

For physical exertion, I prefer to wear a Polartec Power Stretch hat than a 100% wool hat, it's more comfortable. However, the Houdini brand offered a very simple one that suited me perfectly.

The Shoe Dilemma

On a 4-day hike, with snowy passages, should you take waterproof shoes, with a Gore-Tex membrane, or not?

The problem with Gore-Tex shoes is that once water gets in, it won't come out, and they are almost impossible to dry on the ground . That's why "thru hikers", those very long distance hikers , no longer take them, and prefer light and airy shoes, which will get wet quickly of course, but also dry very quickly .

So I asked Jules, a friend who is doing the PCT , this immense hike of several thousand km that crosses the United States, for advice. He was categorical: you should choose non- waterproof shoes AND wear gaiters.

So I went with airy shoes, with mesh, fearing for my feet...

And his recommendation worked pretty well! When I was walking in the snow, my feet were indeed very wet (but warm when I was moving), but they dried out when the weather cleared . While I often have cold feet in an urban context, this was never the case here.

My friends who had waterproof shoes had more difficulty: Alexandre in particular had a pair of snow shoes , very heavy and waterproof, but the humidity ended up accumulating significantly, so much so that on the 4th day, it became very painful to walk , with blisters as a result ( friction + damp, unventilated shoes = not good at all ).

Geoffrey told me his feet were cold, I think it was the sweat from his feet that condensed inside, because the Gore-Tex membrane must have been saturated.

In short, yet another reason to definitely abandon Gore-Tex shoes in spring and summer...

HIKING SOCKS MY RED SOCKS

Available at Mes Chaussettes Rouges .

Yes! The well-known brand of knee-high socks among sartorialists offers a small line of hiking socks. Over four days, they played their role perfectly , and despite the friction and humidity, they didn't suffer too much.

In short, it’s a successful foray into the world of the outdoors from Mes Chaussettes Rouges!

STONE GLACIER GAITERS

Available at Stone Glacier .

Here, it’s a little treat that I treated myself to…

Made in the USA, three-layer waterproof fabric, X-Pac inserts and Dyneema cord, no doubt: Stone Glacier knows how to melt me ​​with these gaiters !

They are great and have played their role perfectly. They have an ingenious velcro system that allows them to fit the curve of the calf as closely as possible and do not slip. In addition to that, I really like the colors, with this petrol blue of the X-Pac which mixes with the gray/purple tint of the waterproof fabric.

I insisted heavily that my companions take gaiters and I did not regret having done so: as soon as you sink into the snow, they are essential to prevent the snow from getting into your shoes .

Ultralight hikers take gaiters that are much less bulky (but also more fragile) than mine: the Dirty Girls Gaiters brand is the best known. They are very light gaiters, but fragile and do not go up very high.

My “sleeping system”

TO SLEEP

Some hikers sleep in their day clothes , but I'm not there yet, and I really appreciated having "fresh" clothes to put on at night to sleep .

Their role is simply to offer you a little thermal protection during cool nights.

Nothing really surprising here:

• Polartec Power Stretch leggings from Rab
• a thick 230g long-sleeved t-shirt from Aclima in merino (a Christmas present)
• a pair of Darn Tough socks

The t-shirt was still a little too warm , and if I had to do it again, I would take a lighter t-shirt, in 150g merino.

ZENBIVY SLEEPING BAG

Available at Zenbivy .

I'll let you in on a secret: I hate sleeping bags .

I tend to move around when I sleep , and sleep on my side: all of which are very unpleasant to do with a sleeping bag, because I feel trapped in a sarcophagus-type sleeping bag.

This is where the Zenbivy brand comes in with a very telling video:

I am very surprised that this sleeping bag and this brand are almost unknown in France , while it is starting to have many very positive reviews from experienced hikers on Youtube .

The principle? It is a two-part system, composed of a “quilt” (= it looks like a small duvet) which , thanks to an ingenious system of small hooks, attaches to the hood of a sort of cover for your mattress .

This way you can move around freely inside , while avoiding heat “leaks”.

And in use, this system works great, especially for someone like me who hates sleeping bags. You can finely ventilate your heat, take one arm out of the blanket, sleep on your side, turn the other way, take one leg out... all while keeping your head warm with the hood system.

I had the “10 F” version, so comfort at -7°c. Traumatized by the nights of my trip to Mongolia where I could not sleep because I was too cold, I therefore needed a WARM system .

This is a very warm version, more suited to winter, but what a joy to know that my Zenbivy was waiting for me after a long, cool day of walking ! I'm thinking in particular of the third night when we slept in an unguarded refuge: I was never cold all night.

For a night where it is not less than 7-10°c and you are dressed, you risk being too hot with the 10F version, so you will have to put it in duvet mode or open the sides.

In short, I can only highly recommend a Zenbivy . Sure, it's a bit heavy and bulky than a quilt (but not that much), but the comfort is really there.

THERMAREST NEOAIR X LITE MATTRESS

Available at Aventure Nordique .

No need to introduce it to you, it's the mattress I had for the trip to Mongolia , and it's a model well known to ultralight hikers.

Even though it doesn't work miracles on a really hard floor like the floor of a shelter, it did its job pretty well. I don't know if it's me getting older, but I find it increasingly narrow and I would have appreciated a few more centimetres on each side!

NEMO FILLO ELITE PILLOW

Available on Nordic Adventure .

I took it for Mongolia in 2017, and at the time I found it comfortable. Here, the situation is quite different, surely old age! But this pillow has less merit of being very compact .

But I'm going to have to dig a little deeper into the "pillow game"...

If you have any suggestions for really comfortable backpacking pillows, let me know!

MORA KNIFE AND FISKARS SAW

The knife is available at Aventure Nordique , and the saw too .

The Vercors is a plateau with quite a few trees, and the unguarded refuges often have a small stove which allows you to warm up at this time of year.

Except that when reading the information sheets for each shelter, there is often mention of saws, but which cut poorly because they are worn .

These were all good reasons to take my Mora knife, very solid and practical for “sharpening” wood, and my little Fiskar saw that I had used duringmy survival training .

Although very practical, especially compared to the worn saws in the shelters, it must be handled with a minimum of delicacy : we broke the blade on a cut that was a little too committed.

In any case, these are two items that I absolutely recommend if you plan on making a little fire in the stoves in the cold season .

I used the knife for batonnage , a technique which allows you to split a log in two, in order to access its very dry wooden heart.

My survival training was very practical here, since I was able to apply what I had learned : spotting dead (and dry) wood standing even in wet weather, cutting the right thickness , starting a fire with firelighters, safety around blades, etc.

If you are unable to complete this course, read David Manise's book ; this knowledge was useful to me several times during this hike, as you will see later.

DURSTON GEAR X-MID 2 TENT

Available at Kaviso .

I would have liked to tell you about this tent, how easy it is to set up, how large its interior space is, and how light it is, but… we never set it up ! In fact, we always found empty unguarded shelters every evening.

JETBOIL FLASH

Available from Jetboil .

Ah, that famous Jetboil gas stove! It was a bit of a totem object of our hike. For those who don't know it, it's a stove that allows you to boil water very quickly: less than two minutes for 50cl of water .

It therefore allows you to prepare a number of freeze-dried meals on the fly and therefore, supreme luxury in the snow, to eat HOT food and make hot drinks : +1000 comfort points for your character.

It's definitely not the lightest stove, especially when compared to an alcohol stove, but it's incredibly efficient . Using it for 4 days, I understood why it's in all the video gear lists of American hunters who go on 10-day total isolation trips.

Then comes the question of gas.

In general, you need to count 10g of gas per liter of boiled water , so if you add up all the water needed for your freeze-dried foods (be careful, the quantities of water needed are different depending on the dish!), you have the number of grams of gas to take, and therefore the number of cartridges.

Except that for some unknown reason, Geoffrey's gas cartridge ran out very quickly and so we had to "ration" our second gas cartridge, and as you will read later, Valentin was very creative about it...

My backpack: Kifaru's Muskeg

Unfortunately no longer available, the closest one is the Kutthroat at Kifaru .

So how do you wear all this gear now?

Yes, normally you choose your gear, and then your backpack (and not the other way around).

From what I saw, you needed a bag that was at least somewhat rainproof because it was certain that we were going to get rained on or snowed in.

Knowing that I have already lent my Gila from Seek Outside in X-Pac to my friend Anthony, I only have one other bag left in X-Pac, the Muskeg from Kifaru, worthy representation of the “Muskeg” range from Kifaru . A range supposed to be light, in X-Pac, all things considered, because the word “light” at Kifaru does not have the same meaning as an ultra light brand…

Before, I tried to put everything in a 40-45 liter bag, but I had to face the facts: it doesn't fit. The 4 days of food, even if it was freeze-dried, and the 2-person tent take up too much space.

So I decided to get a backpack with more volume .

This is why I am very interested in backpacks intended more for American hunters (note: I am not a hunter, I do not want to become one).

In this very particular niche, almost unknown in France, there are a few American brands that reign supreme: Seek Outside, Stone Glacier, Mystery Ranch, Exo Mountain and the best known of them, Kifaru.

Kifaru bags are special creatures to tame: their construction is extremely robust and rustic, their load capacity is insane (several dozen kilos without any problem), the waist belt is oversized to firmly grip the hips without slipping, and the modularity is incomparable to other brands, because you can attach a large number of accessories , and carry a whole bunch of objects because of the multiple straps (all removable).

They also work differently from a hiking bag… A Kifaru bag consists of two elements: a “frame” (a chassis or a frame) with the shoulder straps and the waist belt . This is what you see in this photo:

It is on this frame that you then place the bag itself.

So you can have several bags to attach to your frame depending on your needs. It's a very modular system, but above all very robust... and very heavy !

Besides, while Kifaru's slogan is “Gear for life,” they don't joke about sustainability .

Some examples of their robustness:

• My Muskeg is X-Pac, but Kifaru lines the bottom and front of the bag with good old 500 denier Cordura to add strength. Nonsense for the average hiker, since there are two layers of fabric, but a useful finish for a hunter who subjects his bag to a lot of friction.
• There are so-called “bartac” seams (a very strong seam, formed of multiple zigzags) everywhere, and sometimes these bartac seams are even doubled
• the collar drawstring is made of Paracord, an extremely strong but oversized string for this use,
• The fabric of the bottle pockets on the sides is extremely abrasion-resistant, and comes from Tweave, an American supplier specializing in stretch for the military. On some bags, part of the side pockets are reinforced with Cordura in case you go through branches.
• The part of the backpack that rests on the chassis is made of Squadron, an ultra-resistant Brookwood fabric , originally developed for bulletproof vests, composed of a 1000 denier Cordura fabric glued to a 500 denier Cordura fabric. It is absolutely indestructible.

And totally subjectively: I love Kifaru's color scheme, where the honey color of the X-Pac blends beautifully with the coyote-colored straps and the gray/green Cordura.

But these are bags that would make any ultralight hiker jump to the ceiling , because most Kifaru bags weigh more than 2.5 kg empty (vs 1 kg for an ultralight brand for an equivalent volume). The chassis of the bags can also give an impression of stiffness. Some malicious tongues even say that a Kifaru bag is not very different from a wooden board to which a bag would have been attached…

Above all, to be somewhat comfortable, these are bags that require finely playing with the settings :

• the position of the waist belt on your hips and its tightness,
• the position of the bust strap,
• adjusting the straps
• and the adjustment of the load lifters.

For those who are curious, here is what the process of adjusting a Kifaru bag looks like:

Regarding my bag, my shoulders hurt a bit the first day : I had actually tightened the straps too much , and I was wearing the waist belt a bit too low. As soon as I changed the settings, the effect was immediate : the straps barely touched my shoulders (they are said to “float” on them), and all the load was in my hips, thus relieving my back and shoulders.

And that was the beginning of a beautiful story with this bag, where the X-Pac was able to largely prevent water from entering, despite the rain and snow.

Although I love Kifaru, these are still difficult bags to recommend for a simple hiker considering their price, their weight and their rustic comfort which is obtained after many adjustments. To be reserved there also for the most curious, the most passionate and the most knowledgeable, because it will be very easy to find cheaper, lighter and more comfortable from another brand.

As an alternative, the first one that comes to mind is the one the instructors wore at my survival course: the Crown2 60 liters from Granite Gear which weighs only 1 kg, and is very modular too. Or if you have a bigger budget, look at the Kakwa range from Durston Gear in Ultra fabric. Otherwise, a Decathlon or an Osprey will do the job very well!

My pouch system

Seasoned hikers know this well: only put items that are not used much inside your backpack . For items that need to be accessed quickly (gloves, glasses, snacks, etc.), the ideal is to place them in exterior pockets so that you don't have to open and close your bag at the slightest need.

So let's see how I did it. Some are compatible with the MOLLE system to attach them to my bag.

HYPERLITE MOUNTAIN VERSO CHEST POCKET

It's a Dyneema fanny pack that can be used as a chest pocket, and this item was a revelation ! Having a little storage space there is very practical , I used it to put my glasses, my neck warmer, my hat, a snack, etc.

Due to its Dyneema construction, it is very light and waterproof.

To transform this bag into a chest pouch, simply remove the straps and place the bag on the chest strap of your backpack:

MY POCKETS

On the front of the bag, I mounted two Kifaru pouches in X-Pac:

• The first was used to put the knife, the small saw, the water filter, the firelighters and the lighter
• The second one included my food for the day.

But that's not all! To dress the huge waist belt of the Kifaru bag, I added a few pockets:

• a very sturdy Hill People Gear bottle holder, where I put my 75 cl Camelbak Mag bottle
• a Kifaru bottle holder for my 1 liter titanium bottle
• a Hill People Gear Cordura pouch for storing snacks and tissues
• a thick Triple Aught Design X-Pac pouch to store my sunglasses

The advantage of having pouches with sturdy materials is to have peace of mind when you put the bag on the ground: the risk of a hole or tear due to a stone or a branch is very minimal .

VARGO DIG DIG TOOL TITANIUM SHOVEL

Available at Lyophilise.fr .

The same thing always happens with this object: at first, it's an accessory that earns me a few sniggers from my friends, then by the end of the trip they can't do without it .

It is a small shovel that is used to dig a hole in order to do one's business and bury it . Yes, you read that right .

Human feces degrade far too slowly in nature, not to mention the visual (and odor) pollution they cause; it's never pleasant to come across them while detouring a path.

In a “leave no trace” spirit, the least you can do is bury your stools . And the little titanium shovel is very practical!

And remember, you don't urinate in waterways. This is a very important subject, which is worth learning a little bit about .

In your “poo kit”, also think about the pocket bidet, for optimal cleaning of your private parts, as if you had taken a shower. The best-known European brand is Culo Clean .

But if you can, check out the Holey Hiker brand and its designer, Paul, has made a generous 30-minute tutorial where he explains in detail how to use this type of bidet. He is considered to have created the most accomplished handheld bidet.

For my part, I ordered about ten of them which I gave to those around me and which I had brought back thanks to an expatriate friend who was returning from the US.

With the itinerary and gear ready, it was time to start this adventure…

See you for part three!