Clothing for Alaska

[missyp]

We are from the northeast so we are used to cold weather. My question is for people who come from areas that have colder climates what type of jackets do you think we need? I know everyone talks about layering and we plan on bringing lots of things to layer. Is a true winter jacket really necessary for us? Would down vests or lighter weight jackets with sweatshirts be enough for us?

 

[DISNEY FANTASY]

We are from the northeast so we are used to cold weather. My question is for people who come from areas that have colder climates what type of jackets do you think we need? I know everyone talks about layering and we plan on bringing lots of things to layer. Is a true winter jacket really necessary for us? Would down vests or lighter weight jackets with sweatshirts be enough for us?

We took too much the lighter weight jackets should be fine more waterproof, we were lucky we went and got the sun most of the time,. prepare for everything, and enjoy.

 

[Pens Fan]

We took gor-tex rain jackets and then layered them with t-shirts and sweatshirts and fleece pullovers underneath if needed. We really only wore the sweatshirts on Tracy Arm day. But our weather was unusually warm and sunny (late July). We got lucky.

I know the term layers is repeated over and over, but it really is the way to go. You don't know what type of weather you are going to have.

Enjoy your cruise! Alaska is amazing!!

 

[missyp]

Great! It sounds like we should leave the winter coats at home but be prepared with enough layers and hats and gloves to equal a winter coat if necessary?

 

[Pens Fan]

Yes on the hats and gloves!! I would suggest fingerless gloves if you are a camera addict like I am. It made spending all day on our balcony at Tracy Arm snapping pictures so much more comfortable.

 

[missyp]

Yes on the hats and gloves!! I would suggest fingerless gloves if you are a camera addict like I am. It made spending all day on our balcony at Tracy Arm snapping pictures so much more comfortable.

Great idea! I work in a little boutique and we sell fingerless gloves! I will buy a pair tomorrow

 

[jetskigrl]

I took this for warmth:

http://www.landsend.com/products/womens-polartec-aircore-200-fleece-parka/id_273417

and added a rain-proof shell over the top when it was raining. On the colder days (Tracy Arm), I wore a long sleeve waffle-weave shirt under it. Other days I just wore a t-shirt.

The cold wasn't as much of an issue as the wet was. So having a long rain shell and waterproof shoes made all the difference in the world. It was raining most of our day in Juneau but we still managed to enjoy Whale Watching and then hiking to the falls at Mendenhall Glacier because we kept dry

 

[missyp]

I took this for warmth:

http://www.landsend.com/products/womens-polartec-aircore-200-fleece-parka/id_273417

and added a rain-proof shell over the top when it was raining. On the colder days (Tracy Arm), I wore a long sleeve waffle-weave shirt under it. Other days I just wore a t-shirt.

The cold wasn't as much of an issue as the wet was. So having a long rain shell and waterproof shoes made all the difference in the world. It was raining most of our day in Juneau but we still managed to enjoy Whale Watching and then hiking to the falls at Mendenhall Glacier because we kept dry

Perfect! that is why I was asking the questions today, great sales at Landsend plus 25% off entire purchase coupon

 

[stlouismickey]

I had a North Face jacket that was weather proof and I was fine. I don't think a big winter coat was necessary just something that is waterproof. I did not have gloves but had a baseball cap for when it was raining. It was cool and rainy the week that we went.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

Big winter coats are too bulky, especially flying in from the desert when you don't need to wear them. We just layered with light weight fleece and rain jackets from Columbia. We stayed warm and dry without the bulk.

 

[jetskigrl]

Yes on the hats and gloves!! I would suggest fingerless gloves if you are a camera addict like I am. It made spending all day on our balcony at Tracy Arm snapping pictures so much more comfortable.

Oh, that was another thing that I had that I really used. My gloves were finger-less but had a mitten part that folded back when I needed to use my fingers (camera addict here too). Then when I was done, just fold the mitten part back over my fingers.

Something like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Hot-Headz-Pol...1421708786&sr=8-22&keywords=fingerless+gloves

 

[Pens Fan]

Oh, that was another thing that I had that I really used. My gloves were finger-less but had a mitten part that folded back when I needed to use my fingers (camera addict here too). Then when I was done, just fold the mitten part back over my fingers.

Something like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Hot-Headz-Pol...1421708786&sr=8-22&keywords=fingerless+gloves

Love this idea! Thanks for the tip!

 

[wdwwishes]

We did AK in July '11. We base layered with a Smart Wool long sleeve tee, fleece half zip over that and a wind/water proof jacket over that. We were fine each day. We had beautiful weather the entire trip 65 and sunny by mid day every day except our Tracy Arm day. We did dog sledding and that was the only day we needed gloves.

 

[jburge12000]

Definitely a good raincoat, and warm water proof hiking boots depending on what you are planning on doing. We were really happy with our boots when we went whale watching and when we went on a bear watching hike. We had a lot of mist/rain while whale watching and we preferred to be outside rather then in the boat looking thru the windows that kept fogging up. Also poured rain when we stopped for lunch and we went out walking on the beach looking at clam shells. My kids would have been miserable with wet feet, but the weather did not slow them down at all with the raincoats and boots.

We also left the winter coats at home. Only my 8 yr old daughter had more then a sweatshirt and raincoat on, and she doubled up with a fleece pull over we had got her.