Balaclava

[Weasel]

I use a little neck warmer made by Columbia. Cheap and effective. It will keep the area under the chin warm and also behind the neck.

[BCKRider]

Most balaclavas including ones which protect your neck, have a little rim around the face opening. Learned the hard way to make sure to push the top part up on your head so the rim is NOT between your forhead and helmet. Took me a half hour to figure out where all that pain was coming from! After that it was just heaven in colder weather.

[bmwrider88]

both Merino Wool and Silk would work just fine, silk might be a bit thinner. both would be more or less self regulating. no itch or discomfort. for the lower portion, the windproof feature sure would be nice. i have a windproof neck gaiter i use and it is sweet.

[irish]

Polypropylene is also excellent. Does not itch and still insulates when wet. I wear a polypropylene neck gator on the cycle. I also wear it off the cycle for skiiing, etc, when I want my face covered. It has iced over from condensed water vapor on my breath and still kept me toasty.

[pffog]

I love baklava, but don't think a polyprop on would taste too good

[PeterV]

Knox Hot Hood Balaclava. I am surprised how well it does work.

[Rpbump]

Silk +100

[26667]

silk

[GeorgeK1200RS]

Everything I have tried causes my glasses to fog up...the ones I wear for lousy vision. Has anyone found a solution to that problem?

[donbmw]

Everything I have tried causes my glasses to fog up...the ones I wear for lousy vision. Has anyone found a solution to that problem?

Same for me. I have always use a dickey to stop the draft.

[hcmiller52]

Turtle Fur is one manufacturer and I love their balaclavas. I must have four or five around. I've been a hiker for thirty years so am very familiar with balaclavas. I can't tolerate ANY sort of wool around my face and, besides, it's expensive. I can usually find a turtle fur one on sale at ski shops for ten bucks this time of year. Forget about bulk. It's just not an issue. All that stuff squishes down just fine when you put it together.

Silk is notoriously useless in cold temps. It is fine as an undergarment because it is so nice next to the skin and facilitates movement because it's slippery. We always use it in mountaineering for these reasons, UNDER either wool or fleece. I have a silk BMW balaclava, too, but it's only good to around 40 degrees by itself.

[arthurdent]

Wow, this thread has been idle a long time being so close to the top of this forum...

For my $-02 two solutions.

DW made us each a wool dickey - rib knit, goes under the jacket and up the neck. Both made of superwash merino wool. Uber comfortable, except when the velcro from the neck closure gets ahold of them. Custom size, took a day each to knit. Patterns available upon request. Your choice of color.

Second solution: polarfleece balaclava with dickey. Same form factor, under jacket, up neck and over head. The head piece is fuzzy side in for comfort. Bought two at an art fair in Bayfield, WI two years ago. Very good solution to all problems cold and drafty.

As for wool - go with superwash or you'l shrink it all to mini-me size even without putting it in the washer. We both wear wool socks year round - never a hint of trenchfoot one gets with cotton.

Nature keeps giving good solutions to modern problems...