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Dress to kill – in winter

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Coming back from the depths of the cold

Having grown up in Canada, it seemed like common sense to figure out how to dress for winter. A lot of layers and coats. But not only until I started doing a lot more winter activities with friends and really thinking about how to stay warm did I actually “learn” of a “correct” way to dress for winter.

Meeting people from everywhere else in the world has made me realize even more how little we know about how to survive the blasting cold – afterall, Canada is notorious for being cold. In Korea, the winter of 2012 – 2013 has been the coldest in a long time, reaching to the depths of -20 Celsius, temperatures this Canadian boy is no stranger to. Seeing people that look like the Michelin man all  bundled up and still cold has inclined me to share with you a few tricks I picked up on how to dress for winter.

Sections are broken down into:
1) Layers
2) Materials
3) Application (how to apply layering to day-to-day activities)
4) Body Physiology in Cold Weather.

Left to right: Base, mid-layer, outer mid-layer.
Before our back-country trip in winter.

1) UNDERSTAND: LAYERS

Layering is a very important concept. This idea pretty much encompasses how you should dress. Essentially, what you want to do is create a micro-climate between your skin and your outer layers. To do this, you want the body to heat up the air between your skin and the outer-shell, warming your mid layers to create an insulation. It’s this insulation that keeps you warm and to do this effectively, we should layer accordingly.

Base Layer: This is practically your underwear. The layer that touches your skin. What we should understand is wet = death. Your body perspires without you knowing, so you want to draw that wetness away from your body. You want clothing that draws sweat away from your body to the surface for the sweat to evaporate without soaking your clothes. It’s the way the clothing is designed. I’ll save you the details, but the idea works on “osmosis” – liquids want to saturate areas with more surface, bringing the sweat up to the top.

Pretty much any modern sports t-shirt, polyester or any type of new-aged blend material would work. Most sports stores or outdoor stores will sell base layers.

Merino Wool mid layer.
Photo courtesy of: mec.ca

Mid Layers: This is your insulation. This layer is very important to creating “dead air space” This part goes over your base layer. Keeping in mind wet = death, we want materials that will not saturate with sweat from the base layer, and continue to keep you warm even when wet. Here is where materials get a little more important.

My favourite is Merino Wool because of its many attributes. It doesn’t soak up sweat, it wicks, it keeps you warm even when wet (doesn’t saturate), it’s light, and it’s natural.

Polyester comes in second. It’s a synthetic material and it’s not bad. It doesn’t soak up sweat that much, it keeps you relatively warm when wet.

Fleece is on my list, but I don’t own much. Not that it’s bad, it just gets really static-y in dry winter days. Polyester and fleece are similar.

Outer mid-layer: This layer is not completely necessary. Typically I would wear an outer-mid layer when it’s really cold out, for me about -15 Celsius. What I normally do is wear another merino wool layer. Or my favourite would be my goose down jacket.

Goose down can be considered a mid layer or outer mid layer. It can come as a jacket or a vest. Goose down is explained more in detail under the “materials” section. Things you should know about is “loft” and “powerfill.”

Outer shell with Goretex membrane
Photo courtesy of: mec.ca

The biggest downside is that it’s completely useless when wet. Like incredibly absolutely useless. So be sure you can get dry fast if you sweat on your down jacket.  Just recently a few companies have started coating each feather in a water-proof membrane before injecting it into the coat. This way the down will stay loft even when wet.

Outer layer (shell): This layer is to protect your warm. All the warm air you’ve heated up in the mid-layers needs to stay between this layer and your skin. This can be a wind breaker, a rain jacket, or what have you. The most popular material these days is a jacket with Goretex membrane. Each brand or company has their own version of Goretex.

Goretex, or more generically called “waterproof breathables”, allows your perspiration to evaporate while keeping out rain or wetness. Remember, wet = death. You want a layer that can allow evaporation of your sweat.

Able to hang out in the cold because of proper layering!

Putting it together
Remember wet = death. You want your layers to draw sweat away from your body and allow it to evaporate. The base layer is important for that. The mid layers allow “dead air space” to warm up while the shell keeps in that warmed-up-air.

2) MATERIALS
I spoke briefly about materials earlier. Here is an more in depth look at a few of them.

Cotton: I would stay away. Things like jeans, denim, or any other heavy cotton made material would be pretty useless. It collects water and saturates very easily. It gets heavy when wet and takes a long time to dry.

Pro: It can keep dead airspace. Con: Soaks up a lot of wetness, takes long to dry, wet when heavy. Stay away!

Goretex: As explained before, it’s a waterproof breathable. Goretex is a brand name that first successfully commercially marketed their waterproof breathable membrane. Each company, ie The North Face, would have their own version. And each company would claim that their water poof breathable membrane is the best.

Pro: Waterproof and breathable. Cons: Finding the “best” membrane as there as so many on the market

Merino wool: My favourite mid-layer. Pro: Doesn’t saturate with sweat and wicks it away. And it stays warm even when wet. Also it doesn’t keep your body odour. Cons: None I can think of

Polyester/fleece I categorized these in the same thing. Pro: They’re similar to merino wool except they’re synthetic. Cons: They create a lot of static electricity (first world problems… )

Powerfill down quality. Photo courtesy of: http://www.tmasc.ca

Goose Down: Is a very important insulation material to know. Most jacket that’s worth buying would be insulated with some down. Practically all winter sleeping bags are filled with goose down. What you need to know is “loft” and “powerfill”. In fact down is so good, here is a whole webpage dedicated to understanding more. Click here

  • Loft: Is how much dead airspace the down is. The crappier quality the less loft. To gauge how good the loft should be, check the “powerfill”. The “loftier” something is, the better in retaining warmth (remember, dead air space)
  • Powerfill: This is dictated by a number for quality control. A typical “powerfill” number would be about 500. This is decent loft and quality. I wouldn’t buy anything less – and if it’s un-marked, it’s probably less than 500. Companies want to sell high quality and would label it. 800+ is superb. It will also be the most expensive.

Remember, although it can wick a bit, Goose Down when wet is practically useless. Keep good care of keeping the down dry.

Hyperloft: This is a synthetic version of goose down. It’s about equivalent of 500 powerfill goose down.  Also, to note, hyperloft isn’t usually made for clothes, but more for gloves, sleeping bag and sometimes jackets.

Pro: it can get wet and keep you dry. Cons: Heavier than down, doesn’t pack down as much either.

3) APPLICATION

Now w understand the basics of layering, I’ll tell you how I typically layer myself. Obviously different occasions call for different things. If you’re more laid back city slicker or more of an outdoor enthusiast, the layering basics still apply.

A night out: On a typical night out clubbing, perhaps, this will be a balance of 3 things: 1)how good you want to look vs. 2) how warm you want to be vs. 3) how hot you’ll be in the club.

I’ve been out in -20 degree nights clubbing in Seoul. Layering is ridiculous and there’s no way around it – especially if you’re hopping around. That night, I opted for sweating a bit more in the club and being a bit warmer outside.

Base layer: Thin long johns. Thin v-neck top (some new-aged material)
Mid layer: Jean pants. 2 merino wool sweaters. The outer-mid layer is more of a merino wool jacket.
Shell: Wool pea coat
Scarf: Acrylic, although I wish I had a wool scarf.

In the club, I definitely stripped down to my base layers… except for my pants. Was I sweating in the club? No – until I started dancing. Was I cold outside? Yes – but not as much I would’ve been. I think it was a good balance.

It’s a delicate balance for a winter night out from extreme hots to extreme cold and how good you want to look..

In nature: This is where it gets easier. Mainly because you don’t have to “look good.” If you’re hiking around or skiing, the idea is the same. Dress as if it’s 10 degrees warmer because you’ll be working with an increased heart rate. Once you stop to rest, put on an extra layer; keep in that warmth you built up!

Climbing in -5 Celsius in the sun.
East face of Insubong. In the shade by the afternoon. 

While on the move
Base layer: Expedition weight long johns. Wicking layer
Mid layer: None
Shell: Goretex jacket.

While resting
Base layer : Same as above
Mid layer: Merino sweater, down jacket
Shell: Goretex jacket

Notice I add my mid layers while resting. However, in the picture above, I ended up putting on my mid-layers halfway through the climb as the sun wrapped around the mountain and we had no more warmth.

For skiing, I just wear my expedition weight long johns under my insulated snow pants.

Back country snow shoeing, I wear base layer while on the move and then add my down jacket and shell while resting. For legs, expedition weight long johns with insulated snow pants.

4) BODY PHYSIOLOGY IN COLD WEATHER
Disclaimer: This information is for reference only. This is based on personal research and experience. I am no physician and information presented here may not be entirely accurate! DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH!

Having the disclaimer out of the way… this is what I’ve come to understand about the body in cold weather.

Working hard building a chair from snow.
Body in base layer.
Legs in long johns and insulated snow pants

Why fingers and toes get cold first: When it comes to survival, your body automatically diverts all the blood to your core to keep the important organs functioning to the very last second. It’s a back-up system that we can’t do anything about.

When this happens, we all have felt the effects of what happens to the other parts of your body, mainly your toes and fingers; they get cold. The blood vessels and capillaries start to close off into the most extremities of your body. This is to keep your vital organs warm and alive. So your toes and fingers will always be the first things to get cold.

To reverse these effects you have pretty much one option, but several ways to achieve it; this is to increase your core temperature

Naturally, the body will shiver to try and increase energy usage to keep you warm. To add to that, you can increase your heart rate by doing jumping jacks, hopping on the spot, or that gets your blood pumping. My favourite is to flex all my muscles at once really really tight and then let go. And then do it again.This will increase the blood flow and warm your body up.

Alternatively, you can drink something warm or have an external source of heat.

But the idea is to amp up the core temperature. But it needs to be done slowly.

Alcohol: consumption may allow you to feel the effects of your body warming up, but it’s not entirely accurate. Alcohol increases the blood flow to your finger and toes by opening up the capillaries and blood vessels. The very same vessels that closed off to keep your core temperature warm. This will warm up your fingers and toes but it also draws blood away from your core, and actually decreases your overall body temperature.

This can have very dangerous and fatal outcomes. So be wary about drinking alcohol to warm up the body. It could be a mental boost in survival capacities, but in the end, it makes you colder.

Wearing a hat: This cannot be expressed enough. We understand that hot air rises. Guess what happens in the body? Hot air rises too! And it comes out from your head! Wearing a toque or hat of some sort will dramatically increase your body temperature. It’s so simple, yet so many people don’t wear something on their head!

First aid: There is way too much to cover. Common sense – call emergency medical services if unsure!
If you’re to remember anything: really bad sign is uncontrollable shivering and even worse when the shivering stops.

I would strongly suggest taking a first aid course. It wouldn’t hurt.

Rock Climbing in Korea: Where we climb

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Rock climbing in Korea has become such an extensive part of our lives here in Seoul. If you followed us, you know we continuously post these pictures up with us on this mountain.

Please also note, rock climbing in Korea is generally trad climbing. Please be comfortable with your gear placement and anchor building before setting out! This post reflects our favourite routes and additional information on getting there, down and around, but climbing and information continues to evolve.

The information isn’t by any means secret. But if you’re wondering what we’re climbing or if you’re reading this blog sniffing out rock climbing in Korea, keep reading! This could be a great round the world idea for you to start your outdoor travel adventures!

ROCK CLIMBING IN KOREA: What is there to climb?


Climbing Insu-bong in winter via Go Deok Gil

There are a lot of climbing gyms in Korea, but most of them are bouldering gyms. We’re not really gym rats… Korea is a very mountainous country. Don’t know where to go in Seoul? “Bukhansan”, on the northern edge of the city, a city which few would think of as an “adventure getaway”. Rock climbing in Korea, Seoul is actually very accessible. The city literally wraps around this mountain which is in a national park called “Bukhansan National Park”. This is a very popular park for Seoulites. The peak in the mountain we climb is called “Insubong” which is across from the main peak called “Baegundae”. From the summit of Insu, when you look across, it looks like an ant hill. Easy access (but complicated to get there) and a plethora of different routes attracts a lot of climbers to Insubong.

The climbs on the main face of Insubong are mainly high friction granite slabs and cracks. Multi-pitch trad climbing is prevalent. There are other climbs on the rappelling side that attract more sport climbers, single pitch stuff. There are 5.12 stuff for you stronger climbers. Most routes are about 5 pitches, so leave your portaledges at home! You can find a picture of the routes at the bottom of the main slab.

A few favourite routes of ours is “Insu-B [인수-B]”, “Yang Ji [양지]”, and “Gomak-B [검막 – B]”. Standard rack should suffice. There is this one 5.7 splitter crack, though, that requires BD5’s. But that’s one special case.

ROUTES ON INSU-BONG

A brief description of some of our three favourite routes for rock climbing in Korea, by no means comprehensive. We’re also a fan of mish-mashing routes together instead of sticking to one route the entire way. This is to give you an idea. For a more comprehensive climbing guide, check “more information” at the bottom of the page.

“Go Deok Gil” 5.6 (5.5?)

This route can be done with minimal trad gear. However, bring out your slings, because this is where you’ll need them. At the big slab head up right. Way right, like you’re going to leave the climbing area. This route is great for foul weather climbing as it’s very not-exposed. It’s about 6 pitches, but most of these pitches are less than 30m. Crux pitch is the last pitch that starts with a 5.7 shallow crack that opens into a layback. Several routes converge right here and usually bottle necks traffic. Bring up to a BD 3 here.

“Insu – B” 5.7

This is by far, our most favourite route, mainly because Ian learnt how to trad climb on this. We usually start this on the slab, but the official beginning is a 5.7 crack. The crux pitch is pitch 2, where you can navigate a 5.9 slab on the left and right, or stick into the off-width 5.8 crack. Ian usually sticks to the crack. Not a bad idea to bring a size 5BD camalot for this pitch, especially near the top of the crack. The rest of the 3 pitches are cruisers hovering around 5.7’s.

“Gomak – B” 5.9 (with A0 on crux pitch)

If you like slab, this ones for you. On the 3rd pitch, before you head up the climb, you have to walk down a bit to get to Gomak, otherwise, the route you’re looking at is a 5.8 splitter crack which requries 5BD’s and a lot of them. Navigate your way up the 5.9 slabs and you should find yourself at the bottom of the aided bolt pitch, 5.10c or A0. Quickdraws to aid should suffice. Just grab the bone and pull up. This is the crux pitch, freak out on it and cruise up the last 2 pitches.

GETTING DOWN

There are about 8 rappel anchors on top of Insubong that allows a quick descent. With the amount of teams up there though, getting down is a battle, mainly fighting for an anchor. You’ll need 2x 60m ropes. If you’re only stuck with one rope, like how we usually are, there are anchors at the 15m point to tie in again. There is a 7 meter over hang on the anchors to the mid and climbers left of the face. In the late afternoons, around 3 or 4, it gets windy.

GETTING THERE

Ian on Gomak crux pitch, 5.10c (A0) slab

To get to Insubong, get out of Suyu Station (line 4), exit #3. Get onto the bus island and take the 120 bus to the last stop, which is a small bus terminal. Hop on a taxi in front of the area where the bus for the temple picks up people, which is located across from the small bus terminal. The taxis usually shuttle people up and down for a flat rate of 2,000kw per person. This area also has a lot of small little stores with hiking and climbing clothes you can brows

Or, alternatively, catch a taxi from Suyu station and tell them “Doe Sun Sa”, which takes you to the rotary. It shouldn’t cost more than 10,000 kw (~10 USD).

You’ll arrive at the rotary and the trail head. Enjoy the view of the Koreans decked out in their finest Sunday climbing clothes. From here, start up the trail. The approach takes about an hour. Once you reach the campsite (about 40 minute hike in) look for campsite 11. From campsite 11 you’ll see the a trail that leads up. Follow it, but keep in mind your navigation toward Insubong.

MORE INFORMATION

On the anchors of the rappel station

If you’re a well established climber, you can search for more routes here on Korea On The Rocks (KOTR). This site gives you a lot of beta and different climbs; bouldering gyms, climbing gyms, and artificial outdoor walls. KOTRI (KOTR Initatives) recently just came out with a guide book “Climb”, you can find here. Rock climbing in Korea continues to change and evolve. So at the time of writing, this is the information provided. There would be updated routes and recommend to check as it is user generated content and updates: https://www.thecrag.com/climbing/south-korea/insubong

Suggest consulting this page: https://explorationsevo.com/outdoor-gear-shop-explorations/#rock-climbing-gear-shop for ideal shoes for rock climbing in Korea, especially for trade and slab. There is sport and ice climbing as well, but extends beyond the scope of this article.

If you’re not a well established climber but want to head out on the mountain anyway, there’s a great guide company called SAN. They offer various beginner and intermediate rock climbing courses, rescue courses, ice climbing, guided climbs, and programs, a great way to get started in climbing! It’s all conducted in English. They’re also great for satisfying your outdoor travel adventure junkie inside you! That’s actually where we started climbing. SAN also helped sponsor the Reel Rock Tour film festival in Seoul. Check out more of the Reel Rock Tour here. So that’s the gist of it, rock climbing in Korea! Hope it was helpful!

Mak’s noodle

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Noodle house!

Another food place worthy of commenting! We’d have to say, there really isn’t a whole lot of authentic Chinese cuisines when it comes to being in Korea. This is really surprising, considering how close we are to China. Infact, North Korea is connected to China! The peninsula is only seperated by the Yellow Sea.

Regardless, we finally found a Chinese restaurant, kind of, worthy to say “GO AND EAT SOOOOME!”

This Chinese restaurant isn’t your typical Chinese restaraunt, and it isn’t serving Korean-ized Chinese food either! If you lived in Hong Kong or Guangzhou (Canton), you would have this stuff for breakfast/lunch/snack. It’s fast, easy and incredibly delicious! This is something Ian ate almost everyday for breakfast when him and his brother went to China. And because it`s kind of a “fast food”, it’s not your typical restaurant.

What this is called, wonton soup. It’s a soup served with egg noodles and these dumplings called wonton, a Cantonese word. But that`s not all they have. They have a few more selections of different dumplings, and braised beef in wonton soup. This is, afterall, a “wonton dim” (roughly translated would be: “wonton house”). You can order large or small portions, 8,500 and 5,500 Korean won, respectively for your straight up wonton noodle soup. That’s about 8 or 5 USD. If you order the large portion, it could be a meal. The smaller portions are tie-overs to your next meal.


The dumplings were incredibly flavourful. The kind of flavourful like dim sum’s har gaow tastes. Infact, this is how it should taste in the har gaow. It’s authentic, that’s for sure, unlike the Western China restaurant that we went to before. The broth and the noodles are dead on. It feels like it straight out of Hong Kong.

From Hong Kong to Seoul, the food finally made a debut! You can see the noodles being prepared in one of the pictures by two sweet old ladies.Can’t get your dim sum fix? This place’ll tame those cravings for now. But still searching for dim sum… Ian is a happy guy.

We’re not sure who the owner is, but they were all speaking Korean when we entered. The restaurant itself is a franchise stretching out of Hong Kong called Mak`s Noodle Co., LTD. Yes, a company limited. The business card is all in Chinese and a seperate one in Korean. Mak’s Noodle is located right on Itaewon Street, infact outside the station. This is one of those places to eat in Seoul, one to mark down, and one for us to come back to again and again.

To get there: Itaewon Station (Line 6, brown line) Exit 4. Do an about turn and walk toward the IBK bank, and Gecko’s is above. Go to the left of the bank (don’t enter the bank) the house is tucked in the back corner. 

Little India Seoul

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Shalla and his restaurant

You like Indian food? You’ll love this place! Any party goers to Hongdae on a Friday and Saturday night will definetely recognize the first and lovable kebab stand guy. His name? Shalla. The friendliest lovable guy who works long hours and never seems to be angry (must be the kebabs – which are made with love!)

A little less known fact about him, he owns an Indian restaurant just off Itaewon Street near the Seoul Masjid (directions below). If  Halal Muslim Indian food is your thing, look no further! Not only are his kebabs astounding when you stumble out of the club at 5am, but his restaurant is even better.

Explorations went ahead and visited him at his restaurant, and then several more times later! We pretty much order the same dish, mainly because it’s A LOT of food for a modest price. The one set we usually order comes with 2 different curries, loaded with naan bread, rice, samosa and tandoori chicken.


Usually the tandoori chicken in other places are overcooked and dry. Here, it’s juicy and succulent. Forget knives and forks! The “finger licking good” definetly lives up to its name! The naan bread is hot, chewy, and loaded with a good amount of garlic, for those garlic lovers. The curries come out in a small candle lit, self heating apparatus. A nice little gimmick.

Even Ian, a huge eater, can’t finish these portions, and Shalla is more than happy to wrap it up and send it home with you on a very happy full stomach. You can order chai teas and lassi’s among the usualy drinks, which are equally astounding.

We’ve tried a few Indian restaurants in Seoul, and this byfar trumps them all. Not only does he personally greet you with a warm welcome and make you feel right at home, his food is just incredibly flavourful and out of this world! Next time your looking for places to eat in Seoul, remember this Indian restaurant! Yumaste!

Here are some pictures of his place.

P.S – Don’t confuse this place with Little India in Insa-dong by Tripadvisor. This is an entirely different place!

Get there:
Call ahead 02- 793-5416. 
From Itaewon Station, (line 6) Exit 3. Go straight to the first big road. You will pass UN Club and Mr. Kebab (You want Shalla’s place) At the intersection, make a right. Go straight. You will pass “Foreign Restaurant” and the “Foreign Food Mart”. Continue to the 3rd small road and make a left toward the mosque. It’s along this road on the left handside. Check map below. 



View Little India Seoul in a larger map

Western China dim sum

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Dim Sum!

Considering Korea is so close to China, you’d expect it to have some amazing Chinese food. This is entirely not the case.

Since Ian arrived, he’s been scouring the corners of Seoul to find a decent Chinese restaurant that serves dim sum. The most recent expedition brought Explorations to a place called Western China restaurant. It prided itself with dim sum and that’s what sold us to try it out, finally.

We ordered a chicken dish that seemed Asiatic in flavour, a noodle dish, and four dim sum dishes.We should also note, this was dim sum a-la-carte; and we don’t mean the usual push around carts that defined Ian’s childhood of dim sum meal times.You had to order it from the menu.

We’ll skip the other dishes as dim sum was the heart of the course for tonight. The dim sum dishes we had were Har Gaow, Siu Mao, Siu Long Bao, and Law Mai Fahn. Hovering at around 5,000 Korean won a piece or approximately 4.50(USD). Your usual dishes came with 3 pieces. Usually it’s 4 pieces an order elsewhere.
First, Har Gaow. This dish is one of the staple dim sum foods. You can tell the skill of the chef, and subsequently the quality of the restaurant by this dish. It was incredibly underwhelming. You could barely taste the shrimp, let alone the other spices that’s supposed to go with it.

Next, Siu Mai. Also one of the staple dim sum foods. Sure, there was pork and a little garnish of roe on top, but the shrimp was missing and most other spices that go into making this piece. Things are looking very grave for the next few dishes.

Along came Siu Long Bao. Ian’s first time trying this dim sum piece was, actually, in Korea. It was on par with the other dim sum retaurants he’s tried. but, we’re not entirely sure how good this is. This one is a dumpling with soup inside the dumpling. There’s promise that it could go well, but not here.

Last but not least was the Law Mai Fahn. This dish comes pre-wrapped in lotus leaf as it’s steamed in it. Inside the lotus leaf is sticky rice and in the middle of it, a concoction of chicken blend of spices. This was the closest tasting dish to what dim sum actually is. But having said that, it was still lacking in most flavours that define what this dish is. The sticky rice also wasn’t very sticky.

All in all at the end of the meal, we were full. The flavours of dim sum were less than impressive and even more so, a bill to rub salt in the wound really doesn’t justify the cost vs. taste ratio. First and last time we’ll ever go there.

The quest for dim sum continues…

We have Pictures of the other dishes. If you so chose to go to this restaurant, it’s in Itaewon in Hannam-Dong. The website and phone number is in the pictures, however we don’t reccommend destroying your hope of dim sum by going here. Good for Korean-ized Chinese food.