Originally Posted by Seattle Forrest

I wear one (merino) neck gaiter as a hat, covering my ears, and a second one around my neck. If I pull the neck one up ( it's scrunched, and has a lot of "slack" ) over my nose and cheeks, I get as much protection as a balaclava would give me. The main difference is that I can peel the gaiters back when I warm up, if the air isn't too cold. Also, to make a hat out of one, I fold it in half, so I've got more insulation around my ears.

A lot of this is highly personal, but I'm not comfortable in a balaclava unless I'm either hiking really slowly, or paddling a kayak really slowly. Otherwise, after about ten minutes of riding, I'm too warm, and starting to sweat.