It’s time to prep the winter hiking kit. Side note… where did summer go?
For those of us hiking mountains, the reality is that wintery temperatures are something we are contending with from early Autumn. It’s already feeling mightily chilly on some of these UK summits.
So as I switch out my lightweight summer kit for a bulkier bag and more layers, I’ve put something to the test…. battery heated socks and gloves.
I’ve always been a bit reluctant to try heated gloves and socks before for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I was gifted a pair of heated gloves someone had picked up from the High Street a few years ago. They were ineffective at keeping my hands warm when switched off (so just not great quality gloves in general) and the battery life was awful. Lucky to get more than an hour out of them. So I wore them a couple of times and then gave up. Since then, I’ve decided against trying others as because I don’t want the extra battery weight when I’m trying to keep my pack (and myself) as light as possible over einter and also simply don’t want something else to charge!
But I’ve done it anyway! I tried the gloves and socks from HeatPerformance (kindly gifted to me)and here’s my honest review of these products from the perspective of hiking use.
Heatperformance – the Quick Review
If you don’t want the details, here’s the two sentence summary review of the HeatPerformance socks and gloves:
Honestly, miles, miles better products than I’d actually considered they would be. Both are at the pricier end of the market for heated gloves and socks, but they’re comfortable, work incredibly well, don’t feel heavy once worn and have an impressive battery life.
Now for the details…
HeatPerformance Gloves and Socks – Pricing
I won’t lie. The idea of spending over £100 on a pair of socks isn’t something I would normally consider. I’m always concerned with things like preventing blisters and found cheap pairs of Trespass socks (the ones with the lining) to be miles more effective than some much pricier “anti blister” socks on the market. So I’ve been pretty thrifty when it comes to hiking socks.
The Heatperformance Socks (the ones I have) are £119.95 with batteries (£79.95 without). The gloves I have are £139.95.
Is it worth is though?
I was gifted these products a few months back. I didn’t have much need over the summer months of course, but as the temperatures have started dipping I’ve given both these products a bit of an outing.
How I’ve Tested Them
I unboxed everything in my office, learnt how to use it all, tried things on and walked around the office in general with them!
I’ve worn the socks on 4 of my morning 5km walks and one one longer mountain route of just over 12km.
I’ve worn the gloves on two mountain hikes so far and actually fully expect I will be wearing them throughout the winter day to day, not just for hiking. Spoiler – I LOVE them!
What’s in the Box?
I received two boxes – one for the socks and one for the gloves. Each comes with the garment, batteries and a charger. And the gloves came with a handy storage bag too:
How do you fit the batteries and turn them on?
This was a breeze! One one side of the glove is a zip comparment where the battery goes.
And there’s a simple connector that you plug into, before tucking the battery back away again and zipping up.
There’s a switch you press and hold to switch on, then you can press it to turn the heat up (there are 3 levels) or press and hold it to switch it back off:
With the socks, the battery is connected the same way and the pouch in which the battery goes sits around your ankle:
They’re very easy to switch on and off.
Now let’s take a look at each of these products individually.
HeatPerformance Gloves Review
I have the cycling gloves which I love for the grip.
Take the batteries and heating features out of the equation for a moment and just rating these are gloves, I am a bit fan.
They’re made from a mixture of TCP and neoprene which helps keep your hands dry in wet conditions (wet hands in cold conditions… not pleasant). The fit is lovely, there’s a touch screen tip which works really well and they’re genuinely a solid pair of gloves.
Now, add the batter and of course we have some extra weight. But in all honesty when hiking, I haven’t noticed this really.
It takes about 30 seconds for them to heat up (much much faster than the cheap pair I was given a couple of years back) and one the lowest setting you get 7 to 8 hours of heat.
When I used this for a mountain, I put them on when I got high enough that it was biting! But I didn’t switch the heat pack on until my fingers were really cold on the summit. I had them on the second setting for a couple of hours before switching them back off and there was still battery left.
I actually genuinely love these just as gloves even without the heating. Add that heat and honestly, these will be game changing on cold winter hikes and morning walks. And probably just on the school run. Best gloves I’ve ever owned, hands down.
HeatPerformance Socks Review
So this is where I was particularly cynical. The batteries make for added weight around your ankles and honestly, I am obsessed with the effect of the wrong socks on blisters when hiking.
So I did my short walks without issue in the socks. I don’t think my short daily walks are really cold enough to get the full benefit right now. But I did test the heating regardless and again within about 30 seconds, I had toasty warm toes!
This was more useful on a mountain hike though when I stopped on the summit for something to eat. It’s always when you stop you start to feel the cold.
The same battery life applies as with the gloves.
The one thing I would say though is that if I’m on walks with scrambles, I will often wear leggings as opposed to hiking pants for the added flexibility. And with a tight fitting leg, it’s not always easy to get your pants over the battery pack on the sock.
However, for those of who like to spend longer hanging around on summits for a sandwich and to take some photos, cold fingers and toes are something we are well familiar with. And these products fix the solution.
I’ve walked almost 30km in the socks so far with no hint of a blister either.
Can You Wash Them?
You can take the batteries out easily and replace the cap at the end of the wire in the battery pocket. This enables you to machine was the socks at 30 degrees but DO NOT TUMBLE DRY OR DRY ON A HEAT SOURCE. They need to be left simply air dry.
The gloves must be hand washed, though with other neoprene type gloves I’ve had this is all I’ve ever done anyway.
I’m a Convert
I’m sold on electronically heated gloves and socks. Might be tempted to try a heated base layer soon ha!
But these are so effective and so easy to look after. You can be confident you’ll get hours of heat out of them and I honestly didn’t notice the extra weight.
So yes, for winter hiking I’ll be wearing these the whole season! Winner!
