[pct-l] Hiking in Rain Gear

[Eric Lee (GAMES)]

Slogger wrote:
>
  I have FroggToggs too (and at the risk of repeating myself    ...yes, I'm a gearhead !!)  Carried the jacket all the way to Katahdin but hardly ever wore it (except when I did laundry).  Sent the pant home.  Guess I could consider carrying that jacket on the PCT.  Just can't make up my mind what makes the most sense.  I've got time to think about it.
>

I guess I'm too late to add anything new to the discussion but I'll just echo what others have already said.  I've lived in the Northwest all my life and the thing you have to remember about this area is that storms any time of year (but especially after Labor Day) are can be really cold, like just above freezing cold.  It's not like the AT in summer where it can be 75 degrees and raining.  Hypothermia is a real and serious danger.  I've read a lot of trail journals and I'm amazed that we haven't had a series of thru-hiker deaths in Washington.  It seems like every year I read about people who display classic hypothermic symptoms and the *only* thing keeping them alive is their ability to keep walking.  Scary stuff.

There are a number of different gear options and people can choose what works the best for them.  There's isn't one right choice, but everyone should have gear of some sort which they're confident will keep them warm (not necessarily dry) in a wind-driven, just-above-freezing, multi-day rain.

Eric