Guide: Ski Touring Gloves

The most important thing on any ski tour: safety! Especially on ski tours, safety equipment and knowledge of weather, snow and route conditions are top priorities. The Austrian Alpine Club has compiled information worth knowing on the subject. What we can do best: support you with our decades of experience on the right equipment! Why it makes sense to buy special gloves for ski touring and what factors you should pay special attention to? We'll tell you:

What makes a good ski touring glove?

Good ski touring gloves should master several tasks at the same time: They must withstand the most adverse conditions in the mountains, be particularly breathable on the ascent and reliably protect our hands from the cold on the descent. Oh yes - at the same time, of course, grip and tactility must not be missing.

How do I find the right ski touring glove?

When buying gloves, you have to make compromises - if you opt for a thick glove for a lot of warmth, you pay with a loss of freedom of movement. Thinner gloves for more tactility, on the other hand, offer less protection against the cold. For this reason, it is advisable for those who are sensitive to the cold to pack two pairs of gloves in their backpacks for the next ski tour. For the ascent, thinner gloves with a good grip are suitable - this makes it easier to hold the poles, handle the ski boots, the binding and the zippers. For the rest at the summit and the descent, thick mittens or insulated finger gloves are suitable. We have developed the right solutions for this.

Warm hands through the right materials

On the ascent, particularly breathable, waterproof & windproof materials score. For the necessary grip on the poles, we recommend a leather palm. Leather is THE material among experts, and in terms of tactility, suppleness and wearing comfort hard to beat. In addition, leather is windproof and particularly robust, thus ensures a long life of the gloves. The fact that our gloves last a long time and we thereby counteract consumerism is of course particularly important to us as a CO2-neutral glove brand. Therefore: care for gloves with leather properly. Silicone prints also support the grip feeling of the palm. This is why we use this technique especially for thin liners made of textile so that the ski pole is always secure in the hand.

For the descent we recommend insulating materials such as down, virgin wool or Primaloft. The natural materials wool and down provide a comfortable feel and keep your fingers warm and dry thanks to their temperature- & moisture-regulating effect. Primaloft is known for replicating the insulating properties of down, and is now in the Eco variant made from 100% recycled materials.

Practical features for ski touring gloves

With the so-called hook loop on the finger, gloves can be stored practically on your backpack, carabiner or belt. With the so-called Leash - a larger, comfortable loop - the gloves simply dangle on the wrist when they are not worn. A particularly practical feature for ski touring models: the touch function. This means you no longer need to take off your gloves when you want to take pictures, navigate or call someone during your tour.

Glove recommendation from mountain guides and mountain rescuers in Tyrol

We are deeply rooted in the mountain world of our home country and rely on the support of the best in product development. Our mountaineering gloves benefit from the cooperation partners Mountain Rescue Tyrol and the Großglockner mountain guides from Kals and Heiligenblut. Thanks to the input of these experienced alpinists, the Zanier mountaineering gloves protect in all mountain activities, when handling the rope and under the most adverse conditions.

The thinnest glove in our Rock & Ice Line with plenty of tactility: the MYMOUNTAINPASSION GLOVE, is ideal for ski touring. A full leather glove with neoprene cuff, practical HOOK loop for easy attachment to a backpack or carabiner.

With Amara palm model HIKE is particularly robust. The PrimaLoft® Performance Fabric provides optimal insulation, makes the glove light and compressible. Practical features: TOUCH technology for smartphone operation and carabiner for easy attachment of the glove to the backpack.

RIDE.GTX MITTEN is a two-in-one model and THE tip for cold-sensitive ski tourers. That women are proven to freeze more, you know from our blog 5 tips against cold hands. The ascent is made with the separate, relatively thin inner glove - touch screen compatible with TOUCH of course. The warm mitten with combination of waterproof GORE-TEX with Gore Warm technology and warm LOFT insulation offers maximum protection against cold and wet weather, and dangles easily on the wrist during the climb or is already with heat pads in the backpack! The INSIDE FINGER lining warms additionally, HEAT PADS keep warm up to 8h. Also available as a finger glove.

The right accessories complete your ski tour perfectly: a backpack with enough space for safety equipment, skins, warm clothes to change, a thermos and snack. The right ski socks ensure warm feet & calves on the ascent as well as on the descent. At a high level of activity, a breathable & quick-drying multifunctional headband offers optimal protection against heat and moisture.

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