Bird Head Toque

Let’s get real. Despite what our mothers told us; you don’t really lose all of your body heat through your head. As it turns out, you only lose about 7-9% of your body heat that way (it’s about total surface area). Regardless, nobody likes to be cold. So, this stylish beanie is made from a Merino wool/acrylic blend with a fleece band on the inside that is both lightweight, packable, and perfect for out in town after a day of ice-climbing to keep your head warm. That said, it’s pretty thick and therefore very warm (way thicker than my RHO LTW Beanie). As such, in my opinion, this beanie is best suited for low output activities like hanging around camp, in the dining tent, or out in town. My thoughts about wearing it while you climb. First, while ice or alpine climbing, I highly recommend that you always wear a helmet. But the very nature of climbing assumes you are participating in a relatively high output activity. In my experience, you are going to quickly become way too hot and this beanie will more likely be overkill in these situations. I wear a Petzl Elios helmet with an adjustable ventilation system that easily adjusts to account for small/large heads and, you guessed it, beanies. But I did try out the combination when I first got the beanie and it was way too hot and I started sweating, which is not good in these conditions, so I ended up taking it off (not an easy undertaking on a multi-pitch ice route). Besides, because of the thickness, it barely fit under my helmet? So, whether on summit morning at Rainier in May or ice climbing outback in Ouray in February, I either pull up my Konseal integrated hood/balaclava and/or whatever Arcteryx mid-layer or down jacket hood that I’m wearing for the added warmth that I need at just that moment. This way, I can quickly dump any excess head by simply pulling these hoods on or off while continuing to climb (otherwise, you’ll have to stop the train by taking off your gloves so that you can unbuckle your helmet and take it off, making sure not to drop it, and then take off your beanie only to put back on your helmet, then your gloves, etc). You get my point so plan ahead!

This is the very first piece of Arc'Teryx gear I ever owned. It was the gateway to my obsession with Arc'teryx's fantastic quality gear. The hat is by far the warmest fleece beanie I've ever had. It has a super warm, thicker, soft fleece headband underneath a tightly knitted outer layer. I keep this hat in my hiking backpack just in case of bad weather. It is lightweight, stylish, and well made; however, it is just a bit too thick to fit underneath a helmet without a little struggle. For something that will fit underneath a helmet, I'd recommend a Procline beanie or a RHO LTW. It's the perfect gift for yourself or someone else.

By far the best colour combination was the green (shorepine) / cream combination, that was produced probably 10 years ago. Inside, the hat was lined with a cream woollen material which meant the hat still looked cool if you rolled the edges to expose your ears. In the time of reboots, reboot this classic design from back in the day.

Great Togue that fits perfectly. Not to warm but fends of any wind. Nice selection of colors. Build quality is as expected from Arc'teryx.