Hi Lockwdg,
As SylviaJ has said, I left a review of this holiday, including some tips, from January of this year. But on reading the advice given by others on this thread I can only concur with their recommendations.
Thermal underwear - top and long johns - are a MUST. I bought mine from the George range at Asda so they were relatively inexpensive but did keep out the cold. A thick jacket is of course essential (with a fur lined hood if possible) - I bought mine from Next for about £80 and it was absolutely brilliant. A woollen hat (balaclava) is also recommended together with mittens as PeterG has described. A good pair of walking boots are also essential.
As has already been mentioned, it’s a dry cold in the Rockies which doesn’t permeate through layers (unlike the damp cold we get in the UK), so providing that you wrap up warm -35C doesn’t feel as bad as it sounds!
Now, after telling you about the clothing required to keep you warm, you’re going to think my last suggestion is crazy! Take a swimming costume to enjoy the Banff Hot Springs. There’s something quite exhilarating about lounging about in an outdoor hot spring with the air temperature at -35C!
By the way, if you’ve booked the Malign Canyon icewalk, special boots, ice grips and protective headgear will be supplied at the time.
I hope you have a great time. The scenery is magnificent, majestic and truly humbling in its scale. If you get Patrick
Twomey as your TM, say hi for me - he was my TM in Chile last November as well as leading my group in the Rockies in January. He’s a local guy so knows the area well and will look after you expertly. I’m so glad that I booked this tour, it’s one of the best I’ve done and would love to return one day.
Hope this helps.
Mike