What do I take when hiking the Lycian Way in winter?

Every year, in January, our tourist club organizes hikes in Turkey. On the western part of the Lycian Trail and on the Carian Trail at this time the weather is quite spring (up to +20) and you can comfortably walk with a backpack (in summer it is unbearably hot there). This is a great way to spend the New Year holidays. But in order for such a hike to also seem excellent to you, you need to “guess” the choice of clothing and equipment. Therefore, I (instructor) will now tell you a little about what I myself take on the Lycian Way in winter, and you try to apply my advice to yourself and your hiking habits.

To begin with, just a list of everything I take. And just below are comments on its individual points and thoughts on how all these things can be combined.

Cloth

• Salomon Sense Ride
• light Crocs
• Dexshell membrane socks, 1 pair
• Quechua short trekking socks, 3 pairs
• fleece socks, 1 pair
• Elastic knee pads Optonia
• Quechua shorts
• unlined sweatpants
• silicone chaps trousers
• thermal shorts 3 pairs
• hiking shirt
• thermal underwear (top)
• Pertex windbreaker
• Primaloft insulated jacket
• down vest
• silicone poncho
• fleece hat
• panama hat
• fleece gloves
• microfiber towel

Equipment

• backpack KVN 100l
• tent TrailStar
• mat Thermarest NeoAir Xtherm R
• exped down sleeping bag
• Black Diamond trekking poles
• folding seat

Electronics

• headlamp Fenix
• powerbank 20 mAh
• Sony RX100M4 camera
• OTG card reader
• USB charger 4 ports
• micro-USB cable - 4 pcs
• tabletop photo tripod
• selfie stick

Food department

• titanium mug 650 ml
• titanium spoon
• drinking system 2.5 l<
• Swiss knife
• lighter

Group equipment

• PMR range radio - 3 pieces
• silicone awning 3*4 m
• camping boiler 5 l
• camping boiler 7 l
• taganok folding
• chainsaw
• cutting board
• ladle (scoop)
• multi-fuel burner
• first aid kit
• belt kit

Sneakers

The coastal routes (West Lycian, Caria, etc.) have dry and dense rocky paths. There is no swamp, no powder, no snow or cold, there is no need to cut down steps. That's why I've been walking around Lycia all my life in sneakers (not boots). Only once, on my first winter hike in Turkey, I decided to play it safe (the weather forecast promised a lot of rain), took boots and regretted it. It actually rained a couple of times and thanks to good boots, my feet remained dry, which is of course nice. But the rest of the time it was damn annoying for me to carry heavy, clumsy boots on my feet. Therefore, for all subsequent New Year’s hikes in Turkey, I took regular running sneakers with mesh and was happy even on the rainiest days.

Membrane socks

If the rain turns to downpour and there is too much water in my sneakers, then I wear Dexshell membrane socks over my regular trekking socks. When you splash around in puddles all day, no socks can provide 100% protection. Feet in socks may be slightly damp, but not wet. There is no moceration, reducing the risk of calluses and abrasions. And at rest stops, wearing membrane socks (and wet sneakers) keeps your feet from freezing. Please note that I do not wear membrane socks all the time, but only wear them when absolutely necessary.

Crocs

First of all, Crocs (or simple plastic flip-flops) are needed to give your feet a rest in the evening. You've been tormenting your feet all day with tight shoes and damp socks, your skin is steamed and needs to be dried a little. Therefore, when I arrive at the parking lot, I immediately change into Crocs. Moreover, I also take off my trekking socks. It is also useful (and pleasant) to warm your feet by the fire. Again, this is convenient to do without shoes and socks.

Pants-shorts

Just because this is a winter hike doesn’t mean you need some WARM pants. On the contrary, during the day the sun may be so warm that you will want to wear shorts. To simplify and speed up such changes, I take trousers with detachable legs on most hikes. They are thin and summery. As a spare pair of trousers, I take the lightest (130 g) unlined sweatpants. They are roomy enough and if it suddenly gets cold in the evening, I can wear them over my main trousers.

Warm clothes

Since we're talking about cold evenings, here's my standard set of warm clothes, which I take on 80% of my hikes (not just in Turkey): down vest, fleece gloves, fleece hat, fleece socks. When hiking the Lycian Way, I almost never use these items during the day, while traveling along the route with a backpack. Even in winter. But in the evening, when I arrive at the campsite, I immediately (before setting up the tent) insulate myself as much as possible. Instead of the traditional set of fleece jacket + membrane jacket, I prefer to take one single jacket on primaloft. If it gets cold, I add a down vest. And if it starts to rain...

Rain protection

The main element of my rain protection is a silicone poncho with a “pocket” for a backpack (500 g). In addition, my sleeping bag and a change of clothes in my backpack are always stored in hermetic bags. Just in case, I take with me (but rarely use) silicone chaps and silicone gloves.

Tent, rug, sleeping bag...

Let me remind you once again that we are not talking about an abstract winter hike in Turkey, but about a very specific route in a region with a mild Mediterranean climate. Thanks to this, there are no special requirements for camping equipment. You can take a regular summer tent with wall walls, a simple rug and a demi-season sleeping bag. These are general guidelines. What do I take on such a trip?

I like the TrailStar tent for its weight (1.5 kg for two) and spaciousness. This tent is set up with trekking poles (not poles), so you'll have them on this trip too. Although the ground in Turkey is warm, I will still take an inflatable mat, just for the sake of comfort. You can’t sit on one of these by the fire in the evening (there are a lot of thorns in Turkey), so you’ll have to take a seat with you. As with most of my hikes, I will take a 1kg Exped down sleeping bag on the Lycian Way (which is roughly equivalent to a 1.8kg synthetic bag).

Electronics

The most important electrical device on a winter hike is a flashlight. Daylight hours are short and a significant part of everyday issues (setting up a camp, preparing food, etc.) will be resolved by the light of flashlights. Therefore, I take a powerful flashlight with a capacious battery - Fenix ​​HL60R. Speaking of batteries, remember that there are no outlets on the trail. Therefore, I take at least one 20 mAh powerbank. I already have a Turkish SIM card, the connection on the route is good, so there will be plenty of energy to spend.

Perifood

A 600 ml titanium mug replaces my plate when camping. A spoon and a Swiss knife are the most common ones. A thermos on the Lycian Way is not very useful even in winter. Instead, I prefer to take a 2 liter drinking system.

Public equipment

As an instructor, I take a bunch of kitchen equipment with me to Turkey: two boilers (5-7 liters), a fire pit, a multi-fuel burner or turbo stove, a long scoop spoon, a cutting board, a chain saw. So that the kitchen can function normally in the rain, I take a group tent (3*4 m). Two or three walkie-talkies, a public first aid kit, a tiny repair kit (threads, needles). Sometimes the parking lot here is quite far from the source, so I take 3-4 five-liter folding eggplants to carry water.

Marching combinatorics

Thinking about what to take on my next hike, I play out various scenarios in my mind. I imagine what I will do and what to wear in case of rain, severe frost, hurricane winds or abnormal heat. The secret here is not to carry with you a mountain of individual highly specialized things for each of these scenarios, but to try to limit yourself to a minimum of universal things. By combining them in various combinations, I solve the difficult problem of thermoregulation while hiking... and amuse those around me. This is what my hiking combinatorics looks like for a winter hike along the Lycian Way:

On the route

While driving along the route, coolness is preferable to profuse sweating. I constantly monitor my temperature and at the slightest hint of overheating, I take off excess clothing.

The key elements of each combination are marked in green.

Basic set

Hat, shirt, shorts, thermal pants, knee pads, thin trekking socks, sneakers.
When I hike a trail with a backpack during daylight hours and normal weather, most of the time I don't have anything else on. Sometimes I feel a little fresh in this kit, but that's not a big deal.

Cool morning

Hat, windbreaker, shirt, shorts, thermal pants, knee pads, thin trekking socks, sneakers.
If we start early in the morning, when the sun has not yet come out and illuminated the slopes, then the air can feel really cool and many people have the thought “Do we need to undress? Maybe we should start in jackets and nightwear?” This is laziness speaking, don't listen to it. After 10 minutes, you will be sweating under your backpack. I prefer to immediately remove everything unnecessary and start with the basic set, supplemented with just a light windbreaker made of Pertex (parachute).

Short break or lunch

Hat, primaloft jacket, shirt, shorts, thermal shorts, knee pads (lowered to the ankles), thin trekking socks, sneakers.
If it’s better to freeze while moving, then at a rest stop you need to warm yourself. Don’t wait until you cool down, but immediately take the jacket and throw it over your shoulders. If the halt is long enough, you can take off your shoes (dry your socks) and lower your knee pads to your ankles.

Light rain

Poncho, hat, shirt, shorts, thermal pants, knee pads, thin trekking socks, sneakers.
Yes, I just threw a poncho over my backpack and didn’t do any more insulation. On the contrary, if before this I was walking in a windbreaker, then when I put on a poncho I will most likely take it off so as not to sweat. While the rain is still light, I will not fasten the poncho and put on the hood.

Heavy rain with wind

Poncho, fleece hat, shirt, windbreaker, shorts, silicone chaps, silicone mittens, thermal pants, knee pads, membrane socks, thin trekking socks, sneakers.
If a real storm begins and its cooling power is enough to counter the “evaporating” effect of waterproof clothing, then I begin to gradually supplement the poncho with other protective equipment. I take my time getting dressed and try to limit myself to a minimum of clothes. After all, I know that in any waterproof clothing I will inevitably get damp. Either the rain will seep in or my sweat will wet my clothes. Dampness is inevitable and the less clothes I have on, the easier it will be to dry them later. Then why bother dressing at all? Because “damp and warm” is better than “deep wet and frozen to death.”

Backup kit

thermal underwear (top), sweatpants, down vest, crocs
Suppose that while moving along the route I fell into a ditch, getting very wet and radically staining all the clothes that I was wearing. What should I change into? Unlike staying at the camp, on the route I never wear ALL the clothes I have. In your backpack, in a reliable hermetic bag, there is always something to replace.

In the camp

As soon as we arrive at camp, priorities change. I stop loving the cool and immediately insulate myself as much as possible. I will set up a tent and make a fire only after I have put on a jacket and a warm hat (at least). Now let’s take a closer look at different weather scenarios for a tent camp.

Warm evening by the fire

Fleece hat, shirt, primaloft jacket, down vest, shorts, thermal pants, crocs.
On such a warm evening, and even with a fire, in principle, one could easily get by with just a jacket, without a vest. But when you sit relatively motionless for a long time, it makes sense to insulate yourself with a reserve. Please note that there are no socks on the feet - they “breathe” and rest.

Cold evening

Fleece hat, thermal underwear (top), primaloft jacket, down vest, raincoat-poncho, fleece gloves, shorts, sweatpants, thermal shorts, fleece socks, crocs.
I put on almost everything I had. Compared to the “warm evening”, sweatpants were added over trousers and a poncho over all clothes. On the route (under my backpack) I never wear a raincoat over a down jacket, because my sweat can dampen it. And in a cold parking lot I won’t sweat and I can easily combine down with a poncho.

Sleeping in a sleeping bag

Down sleeping bag, fleece hat, shirt, thermal pants, fleece socks.
I don’t change clothes before going to bed and sleep in the same shirt or thermal jacket that I spent the evening before. I always insulate my head with a hat. Fleece socks usually stay on my feet only for the first two to three hours of sleep, then I warm up and take them off. If the night promises to be cold, then for additional insulation I drag a down vest into my sleeping bag and cover myself with it. I don’t put it on, but rather hide inside the sleeping bag!! It's warmer this way.

Results

In fact, all of the above could be stated in literally two sentences. For example: “The weather will be spring, similar to the beginning of May in the middle zone. Take the same set of things as for summer Carpathians.”

The purpose of this article is not to convince you to imitate me in terms of specific clothing items. Everyone has their own wardrobe and their own habits. But the habit of mentally checking your set of clothes for performance in the main hiking scenarios seems useful to me.