How To Dress For A Calgary Winter

How To Dress For a Calgary Winter

by

Jonathan Meier

Calgary is renowned for its unstable weather patterns and its harsh winters. The temperatures can change drastically throughout the course of the day, from -20 in the morning to +5 in the afternoon. Trying to dress for that kind of difference can be challenging to say the least, and even people who have lived in the city for years have trouble trying to figure out a way to stay warm without looking like an understudy for the Michelin Man.

Fortunately for the climate challenged, before I came to work here at Nuvo Hotel Suites I worked for several outdoor retailers and I have a few tips to help beat the sleet this coming winter season. Any outfit starts with what you wear under it, and the same is true for your winter gear. To really stay warm this winter, and to keep the ability to handle massive temperature changes in the same day, you need to get yourself into some Thermal Underwear. I know it sounds uncomfortable and slightly gorby-ish, but your base layer is the most important aspect of a winter setup. There’s a huge variety of types of underwear available these days. They start with the least warm Silkweight class and proceed through Lightweight, Midweight and finally Heavyweight. Even picking a silk long sleeve shirt and wearing it next to your skin can add an extra five to ten degrees of warmth. The rule of thumb for the various degrees of base layer weights is as follows. However, everyone’s level of body heat is different and this is just a general guide to the lowest temperatures that you could get away using a pair of Thermal Underwear underneath a comprehensive set of winter gear. Silkweight: -10 Degrees Celsius Lightweight: -20 Degrees Celsius Midwieght: -30 Degrees Celsius Heavyweight: -35 Degrees Celsius or colder The next layer of your getup is your Midlayer. This is basically your sweater, softshell, or shirt that you wear on top of your base layer, but underneath your Outer Layer. Midlayers serve two purposes, first to add some more insulation between you and the elements, and second to help transfer moisture vapours from your base layer through to your outer layer. The golden rule with midlayers is simple. Never. Use. Cotton. Ever. Cotton can absorb up to %8 of its mass in water, compared to most synthetics, which absorb %0.04. Wool is also a good choice, especially Merino wool since it’s not nearly as itchy. For extremely cold situations you can use what’s known as a Down Sweater, however those things are so toasty they should really only be used for things like downhill skiing when it’s -20. The last layer to worry about is your outer layer. This is also the easiest one to deal with since all it has to do is be weather resistant. A Gore-Tex shell is ideal for this purpose, but remember, there is no such thing as a waterproof jacket. There are jackets that are advertised as being waterproof, but that’s a term based on the material’s resistance to a certain amount of water pressure. It doesn’t matter what your coat is made out of, if there is enough water you will get wet. Also, there are a number of materials that are the same or better than Gore-Tex, such as E-Vent, so don’t get too freaked out by different brand names. If you want to complete the outfit you can score yourself some Gore-Tex pants as well, many of them have zippers or buttons on the hems to help keep your dress pants from getting nasty brown city-slush all over them. Okay, so I lied. The one other set of clothing that must be incorporated into any comprehensive winter setup is your extremities. The proper functioning of hands and head are pretty important to most people, so dress them warm. Get yourself a nice warm Toque (to Americans and Britons: It is a TOQUE, not a ‘beanie’ or a ‘hat’), and some good gloves that fit well. The term ‘fits like a glove’ is a bit misleading since it can actually be really hard to find gloves that fit properly. That’s the essence of how to dress for a long, strange and somewhat bipolar winter. I stand by all the advice I just gave, but there is one last piece that I feel I should impart. Everyone’s body works differently. Some people will be comfortable in the middle of a raging blizzard with nothing more than a pair of jeans and a hoodie, and some people may need a full on parks to stand the cold. In reality, the only way to know how to dress appropriately for a Calgary winter is to live it.

Jonathan Meier is the Marketing and Social Media Coordinator for

Nuvo Hotel Suites

. He has received a degree in Communications Studies from the University of Calgary and is now, miraculously, employed in a related field. When he’s not at the Hotel dealing with the daily dose of craziness he’s usually out in the mountains near his hometown of Canmore where he can be seen climbing, skiing, or doing anything at all that doesn’t involve computers.

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How To Dress For a Calgary Winter