Balaclavas absolutely don't work for me. I fashion a balaclava-ish thing out of a merino Buff. I can adjust it to cover more or less depending on how cold I am, and it breathes so I don't get all sweaty. I wear wool leggings under my jeans. A thin turtleneck and wool sweater under a windproof shell (with pit zips) is usually enough unless it is really cold. Then a cardigan over the sweater, under the shell is sufficient. I love Smartwool snowboarding socks with my Keen shoes or hikers. I have a thin merino beanie for under my helmet. The one place I really need warmth is my hands. I have some extremely warm gauntlet-style snowmobile mittens. I doubt they'd work with bar end shifters. They work just fine on riser bars with regular Shimano click-shifters. They're really more puffy than bulky (800 or so gram Thinsulate). If my hands and toes are warm, I do pretty well.

Deb