Gear For Kids

Gear for kids can be tricky. First off, everything is expensive. As a adult you can justify the three hundred dollar puffy for yourself by saying it will last many years, but it is a hard pill to swallow spending that much on a jacket that will fit one year - two if you are lucky. On the other hand, compromising safety is not an option and in the winter that puffy jacket is not just a fashion accessory. We certainly do not have unlimited funds, but we have found a system that works for us, so we will be listing some of the gear that Jillian uses in the mountains. This list will probably never be complete and things change a lot. We have no affiliation with any of these companies and paid for everything with our own funds, these are just products Jillian uses and likes. Also I want to say that everyone is different, a pair of mittens that keep one person's hands toasty warm all day can leave another person's hands miserably cold, so figure out what works best for you. If anyone has any questions ask and I will try to answer.

 

Clothing:

Ragged Mountain Athena Jacket - Jillian and I both love this style of fleece. It has a snug hood that can be worn like a balaclava and it is just a great mid layer.

LL Bean Trail Model Rain Jacket - Jillian uses this jacket year round. In the winter she uses it as a uninsulated shell and it is her rain shell the rest of the year. She also uses it on rainy days at home. This is her third one - she grows out of them they do not wear out.

EMS Kids' Thunderhead Pants - Again, a product Jillian uses year round. She prefers an uninsulated shell for pants in winter and layers a pair of fleece pants under them as needed.

LL Bean Kids' Cold Buster Snow Pants - For very cold days in the winter these are the insulated pants that always keep Jillian warm. They are a bit heavy, but she has never had a issue with them. They are great for playing in the snow at home as well. Like all LL Bean products they seem to last forever.   

LL Bean Girls' Bean's Fleece-Lined Down Jacket - This jacket has a lot of the features we were looking for. It is durable, kids are hard on gear and ultra thin shell materials just don't work for Jillian. It has the water resistant down so it has a wider range of use. It is also Jillian's every day winter coat, so yay for multi-use.  

The North Face Chilkats Lace Boots - These boots kept Jillian's feet warm all winter. 

Outdoor Research Kids' Alpine Hat - A great windproof hat she wore all winter.  

Outdoor Research Kids' Adrenaline Gloves - Warm for gloves and she liked them a lot. I like that they come in different colors so it is easy to distinguish between the gloves and the mittens quickly in the pack.

Outdoor Research Kids' Adrenaline Mitts - When she needed mittens these worked well. On a few very cold days we used these and chemical warmers and her hands were warm all day. Again, I like that they come in different colors so it is easy to distinguish between gloves and the mittens quickly in the pack.

Seirus Neofleece Combo Scarf - A great face mask. It has good coverage over the neck and worked every day she needed it.

Gear:

Deuter Fox 30 - This pack is a good size for backpacking and winter day hiking. It does have one key feature, the torso length is adjustable so it can grow with her.

Black Diamond Women's Trail Trekking Poles - They work as one would expect and they have smaller grips for smaller hands.

Kahtoola’s Microspikes - Who does not wear these.

Tubbs Girls' FLEX JR Snowshoe -  She doesn't need these much but they work for her when she needs them to.